{there was a similar thread some time back..so mine is a repost.}

truck broken into. ignition in steering column was busted. steering lock is
spring loaded, hardened steel pin which mates into the steering column.

next morning, late for work, I find the perfect socket out of the toolbox to
jamb the spring piece open. steering is now unlocked and I tape socket to
keep the spring pin from locking the steering column. cool, i get to work on
time. 8 hrs later, I am off work and jump back in the truck. heading home on
Interstate 5. warm day. duct tape loosens and the socket pops out....
releasing the pin.....which then locks the steering at 55mph.

steering is locked off center and I'm heading towards the jersey barrier. I'm
trying to steer, find the socket, flip the turn signal, keep from panicking and
slamming on the brakes.....while my heart and head are speeding at 200mph.
car horns are blaring as I cut across 3 lanes of traffic like a dunkard.

i hit the guard rail at just the perfect angle. there was a wide base on the
jersey barrier and my tire's sidewall took most of the impact. truck unscratched.
i fond the socket and hold it in the recess to keep steering unlocked...and
am able to steer the truck to the nearest offramp.

get out to inspect damage. no sheet metal damage at all! tire sidewall had
scuffed white lettering and missing some letters.

managed to limp home....another miracle as I had my eyes closed and prayed
the rest of the way that I was still alive. parked the truck and left it for a
week untouched. natch, i fixed it proper after a visit to the auto wrecking
yard.

============
same truck. had gone to the summit of Mt St Helens to look into the steaming
crater. back down and heading back to seattle on a Sunday evening.
just outside of Couger, WA, i had a flat tire. the bottle nose jack on a 4x4
truck just isn't going to raise the truck enough to raise the tire off the
ground. no service stations within easy reach; no cell phone service.

buddy and i grumbled that it was ironic that we had thousands of dollars
worth of climbing equipment and stuck with a simple flat tire. determined
to mcgyver this, we maneuvered the truck over to a soft shoulder just off
the road. raised the jack as high as we could beneath the leaf suspension/
axle. then, using our ice axes, we removed dirt from beneath the tire which
allowed us to remove and replace the blown tire with the spare. yes, we
replaced and excavated dirt and stomped on it as firmly as we could.

__________________
-- raymond~
47º 34'N 122º 18'W