I finished installing the steering rack by using the stock top hole to clamp the rack in place while I located and drilled the bottom hole. The rack was removed, both of the stock holes were welded/closed, the top hole was drilled and 1/8” steel backer plates were fabricated.
Agile sent me taller pillow blocks which allowed me to ditch the spacer. Rack-to-steering-arm alignment looks good so I‘m not expecting any bump steer issues. Agile also sent me beefy tie rods with Auora heim joints which are higher quality than the ones provided in the kit. In addition, they have a misalignment mono ball which removes the need to use misalignment washers — two less things to lose!
I also noticed that the uprights were binding on the sway bar drop link brackets about 8 degrees before full lock. I had previously fabricated 1/4” spacers to allow the brackets to clear the top of the shock pins. This extra height was exacerbating the binding. It then occurred to me that I could clip the corner of the shock pin. This resolved the binding so I tossed the spacers. This also enables me to remove the shocks without removing the brackets. Duh, I wish I had done that sooner!
