As far as upgrades, Red Head actually machines for larger bearings and in some cases opens up bores for more apply force (easier at the wheel). I just couldn't justify the price tag.
Also, Lares is local to me, but when I went into the shop, the lady told me to buy it off RockAuto and I'd save almost $100 based on the deal they have with them. Shipping was only $8 through RockAuto.
The first thing I would try is to flush out the old fluid and refill with a synthetic power steering fluid. If it hasn't been done in awhile you might be surprised. My 02 will get hard to turn an it has worked for it in the past.
thats a thought...its got 250k on it tho. my buddy says he can palm his with 35's..sitting still. if mine aint moving it aint turning....I don't need a new steering box...just a pump
Red head, price is steep but I feel it was worth every penny. It's machined with bigger bearings which helps take the load a bit better. 100k on it running 38's zero issues.
I've been running the bigger AGR pump on my 12V (37's) for years and haven't had an issue. It also helped a ton to turn the tires on dry pavement (probably due to my old pump getting lazy. The only thing that sucked was the adapter on the shaft (press on) was not included with this pump, and I couldn't get it off my old pump. I ended up having to cut the shaft off the old pump, heating/pressing off the adapter and losing my core.
The other option I've seen a lot of people liking is the PSC pump, which does come with the pressed on adapter and reservoir (although I like the stock reservoir better, and I believe you can swap back to it).
If you lookup on the "other" forum there's a guy who did a lot of research and trial and error stuff on improving the pumps. Compared a oem VS the psc, you'd be surprised at the differences.
I’ve had them all and can tell you that the differences are there but not worth the extra cash because if you’re running larger tires and work your truck they will all fail at some point in time. Best thing I’ve done is an in-line fluid cooler. Seems to help a good bit especially when moving/parking trailers.
Take care of your fluid and a stock parts store pump should last a few years.