Steering issues
 

I was driving my Mule yesterday, doing some yard chores, and all was good. Suddenly, I couldn't turn to the right. Something was binding. Jacked up vehicle and I can turn the wheel lock to lock, but there are a couple of "bumps" or places where it binds during its travel. Placing my hands on all the front end components while someone turns the wheel, it feels like the problem is in the rack and pinion unit. Is this a common thing? It looks fairly straightforward to remove. Any complications?
BTW, I did a search and it looks like someone else had the same problem, but got no answers.
Thanks for any help.