ROSS steering box and column? id help

[sodbuster]

I picked this up today at a junkyard and it moves freely with no play in the steering box. Does anyone have more info on it?

http://photo.starblvd.net/saltflats03/4-5-2.jpg
http://photo.starblvd.net/saltflats03/4-5-3.jpg
http://photo.starblvd.net/saltflats03/4-5-4.jpg
Chris Nelson
Kansas

[Unkl Ian]

[ QUOTE ]

Does anyone have more info on it?

[/ QUOTE ]

It's big and ugly.


But then,you already knew that. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif

[Kevin Lee]

Looks small and ugly to me. Actually looks like a neat little piece. Would probably fit on a frame rail with plenty of room for headers. My best guess would be some sort of small delivery truck...maybe early Jeep - but nothing definitive there.

1) Did you get a pitman arm with it?
2) Which way does it turn?

[sodbuster]

Epay says that they are "HOTROD" steering boxes and google says they came on tractors. I did not get the pitman arm yet. I need to go back and see if it is laying around.

Grim,
I am heading to that boneyard in the a.m., looks like a nice day. If you are not doing anything, maybe you could meet me there or ride along. I am going to leave around 7am. If you feel like going PM me your phone number and I can call you.

Chris Nelson
Kansas

[Flat Ernie]

I think they came on the old Willys wagons...

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif

[sodbuster]

Thanks.

[disastron13]

Anyone here actually know anything about Ross boxes? Found one on a Diamond T last year, it was comact, neat, well engineered lookin.
So- were the Ross sprint car boxes the same, except cast in aluminum? Were the ratios different on the truck boxes? Are the worms and sectors interchangeable? How many sizes of Ross boxes were there? Did any stock cars or trucks come with the aluminum boxes?
Come on you experts out there...

[Ted H]

I've heard that ross boxes were used in the late 40 early 50s Stude pick ups.I'm looking for one now as a possible thru the cowl steering for my Model A project.
Ross has been in business forever and has always been known for their quality and durability. As of just recently and probably still are the main supplier of steering gears for class 8 trucks (Peterbilt, KW ect)
course they are power steeriing and are massive.Over the years they have made boxes for many sizes of trucks, tractors, combines and back in the day made some boxes for midgets and sprint cars.
The box for the Stude pickups is pretty compact and very neat appearing.
Ted H

As a side note ..when looking for a cowl steering box make sure the Pitman arm shaft turns the opposite of the steering shaft. In other words if you turn the steering wheel clockwise the pitman arm shaft should go counter clockwise.
Clark

[nobux]

I got this ross box off of a 52 International 1/2ton.
http://photo.starblvd.net/~nobux/1-1-1.jpg
I've seen them on early 50s 2wd Jeepsters, and several other makes of trucks. The boxes themselves all appear to be the same, its the mounting provisions that vary.
I was going to use this box on my T, but ended up reversing a Corvair box instead.

Nobux

[racer5c]

I raced Midgets and Sprint cars for 20 years Ross Boxes were kind of a poor mans schroeder they came on fork lifts, at least the ones used in Midgets and Sprint cars did.
Roy Caruthers

[alleyoop392]

These boxes were used on early willys jeeps. I have a couple that came out of the wagons, but yours has an early cj type wheel on it. I hung on to mine because they look like they would work the same as a F-100 box would. Only thing to keep in mind, these are real "slow" boxes. like 5 or so turns lock to lock.

Scot

[Roothawg]

I agree with the Jeep consensus.

[JohnnyFast]

The Ross gears in both my midget and my dragster came from Crosleys.

[Gasserfreak]

The Ross gears in both my midget and my dragster came from Crosleys.

Did the box on this car http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=123701 come like that or has it been lengthened to run as cowl steering. Just looing for a cheap alternative to a Schroder box. Thanks

Drew

[JohnnyFast]

It was lengthened. Very simple job on that box because it didn't have a spline for the pitman arm. There was a 1" (approx.) dia. output shaft with a hole through it so I made a tubular coupler to connect it to a half of a sprint car torsion bar. That gave me a spline for the new pitman arm which is a standard midget item. The whole deal was enclosed in a stainless tube, bolted to the housing, that allows it to be mounted in the frame.

It would be too light for a street rod. Ross did make larger similar units however.

[barry templin]

I raced Midgets and Sprint cars for 20 years Ross Boxes were kind of a poor mans schroeder they came on fork lifts, at least the ones used in Midgets and Sprint cars did.
Roy Caruthers
I have an avenger silver crown chassis that I am going to run on the street and drag strip with a possible 37fiat drag body, small block. I see that you say the Ross Steering Gear would not be good for the street. Could you give me some advice? Also I was thinking a 24:1 Ratio. Barry Templin, Speedway, IN

[Bruce Lancaster]

Possible research source for steering ID of all sorts: Early Motor's manuals have separate sections covering the steering boxes and other parts that were used in multiple makes of cars. These sections offer clues to figuring out sources of boxes.

[krylon32]

I took one off a Gleaner combine a few years back, was the right size but steered backwards. Steering arm had to point up to do the job right. No big deal.

[Dale Fairfax]

Bruce Lancaster's post is good advice. You will be able to figure out most of the applications-at least as far as passenger cars are concerned. As Racer5C said, the ones in sprints and midgets weren't originally built for that purpose-thery were more likely from fork truck or industrial/shop truck applications. As has been the subject of a previous thread, some Rosses were used in Allis Chalmers/Baldwin combines. These had real long pitman shafts which, on the surface, made them look ideal for cowl steering. However, they worked backwards (as do the ones out of Studebaker pickup trucks.) Reversing one of these is not as simple as doing a Corvair or Vega (Saginaw ball nut) box. The worm (which Ross calls a "cam" is not reversible relative to the sector (Ross's "lever") To reverse one you have to cut the shaft off the worm and reattach it to the opposite end. This will maintain the relationship between the cam & lever but will allow the steering shaft to protrude from the opposite end of the case.





I picked this up today at a junkyard and it moves freely with no play in the steering box. Does anyone have more info on it?

http://photo.starblvd.net/saltflats03/4-5-2.jpg
http://photo.starblvd.net/saltflats03/4-5-3.jpg
http://photo.starblvd.net/saltflats03/4-5-4.jpg
Chris Nelson
Kansas

[Bruce Lancaster]

On the Crosley boxes...they were reproduced around 1960 in aluminum by one of the dragster companies, maybe Chassis Engineering.

[brandon]

On the Crosley boxes...they were reproduced around 1960 in aluminum by one of the dragster companies, maybe Chassis Engineering.


p&s possibly..? brandon:D

[B-Rad]

I have two cars with ross boxes, one from a crosley(runnin the complete sterring shaft ) on a deuce,and the other from a jeep on a 29 pick up with u-joints. Light duty stuff, parts imposible to find(got two complete setups from a crosley to rebuild mine last year right before the crusher got them. If my cars weren so screwwed up with those boxes already in(both built in the 60's). would have went with a F1

[oldspwr]

Ross also made steering boxes for big trucks, such as Brockways. All of the 100 and 200 Series Brockway had Ross steering boxes and the horn button read "Ross Cam and Lever Steering".

Tom