2005 G35 Power Steering - odd stiffness

[bsn321]

Hi folks - have read several things about failing power steering on G35s - would like to see if I can arm myself with insight before taking car to shop.

Issue: Power steering has intermittent stiffness. By intermittent, I mean the following: Imagine turning the wheel one full rotation, and keeping in mind the face of a clock. During turning, the stiffness is observed in an alternating "stiff-smooth-stiff" fashion. aka stiff between 1-2 o'clock, smooth between 2-3 o'clock, stiff between 3-4 o'clock, smooth 4-5 o'clock, etc. (I'm not using exact numbers for the stiffness, but hopefully you know what I mean)

Rather than simply state the power steering is stiff - I'm trying to convey this exact symptom in hopes that it might be indicative of an exact issue. I've read many people being convinced it's their power steering pump, only to find it's not...

Happy to describe more if needed - but any help appreciated!

Brad