Technical What cars came with a 525 Reverse Rotation Steering Box?

Does anyone know what specific year and model cars or trucks came from the factory with a 525 reverse rotation steering box?

I know a lot of GM cars came with the 525 standard rotation steering box, but I need one that has the reverse rotation (turn the input shaft clockwise and the pitman arm shaft turns counter-clockwise). Due to limited space I need to have the pitman arm and spindle arm pointed the same direction.

I don't want to:
1) Reverse the input shaft on a standard 525 box so it comes out the bottom of the box instead of the top.
2) Mount a standard 525 box in a different location so I can use it instead.
3) Turn the steering wheel right when I want to go left like a crazy carnival ride.

My project requires a reverse rotation box so I purchased a 525 steering box from evilbay that was supposed to be reverse rotation. When it arrived it was a standard rotation, so now I get to ship it back for a refund. I'd rather go to a wrecking yard or find a vehicle being parted out on craigslist. That way I can check it out in person before I buy.

If anyone knows what specific year and model cars or trucks came from the factory with a 525 reverse rotation steering box, that would be greatly appreciated.

 

Good luck with that.

 

on second thought....I remembered what it was.

1972-up Dodge 4x4, such as a W100 pickup. the housing might have the mounting on the wrong side of the box, so you might need to swap the guts into a car housing. Or maybe it will be fine as is.

 

Here goes, not sure who manufacturers them but here is another seller or manufacturer
1965-91 GM 525 Manual Reverse Rotation Steering Box - SAGINAW CHEVY OLDS PONTIAC

This GM 525 Manual Steering Box with Reverse Rotation is perfect for Hot Rods, Rat Rods, Street Rods, T-Buckets and more. This very strong and sturdy Steering Box is will outlast the GM Saginaw Vega Boxes and require no maintenance after the break in period.

Features:

• Steering Shaft Spline: 3/4"-30
• Ratio: 25 : 1
• 1.058 Diameter Top of Splines
• 1.100 Diameter Middle of Splines
• 1.124 Diameter Bottom Of Splines
• Output Shaft Spline: 36
• Made From Cast Iron
• 6.25" Turns (Lock-to-Lock)

 

A Ford Ranger pickup also uses a reverse rotation steering box......I am thinking it is the later versions of that model.

Ray

 

The Dodge uses a Saginaw box....what is the Ranger box?

 

I have a Box like that but the tag on it (hand written not reliable) says 62-3-4 Chevrolet 1/2 ton truck. A customer brought it to me when I was building the 51 Vicky prior to going Nova clip. 49-51 Fords needed a reverse steer if you were going to change the box and difficult to come up with. I didn't want the Volvo unit. Never did follow up to make sure info given was correct. Maybe it's actually the Dodge box.
The Wizzard

 

If the pitman shaft sits vertical, then it would be normal rotation. If it sits horizontal, then it would be reverse rotation.

The Dodge 4x4 box lays on it's side, the shaft is horizontal.

 

Same box I used on my OT 46 Jeep. They claim it is reverse rotation in their description.
https://www.amazon.com/REVERSE-ROTATION-MANUAL-STEERING-SAGINAW/dp/B00PUXLCCW

 

Here's 2 photos of the one I have. Looks like it mounts outboard of a Frame rail like GM Truck and turn the shaft right the Pitman swings left.
The Wizzard

 

it's a front steer box, like all the Chevy trucks from 1960-on. I don't think it's reverse rotation.

 

Jim, I believe the reverse rotation boxes came on some cars where the pitman arm shaft was vertical. Because of the space available the pitman arm and spindle arm(s) needed to point the same direction and I'm thinking the worm gear is cut or made with an opposite direction spiral for reverse rotation possibly?

 

I don't recall any cars that have the steering setup you describe. If the steering gear were mounted right between the wheels, then it would need to be reverse rotation. But all the ones I've seen are mounted either ahead or behind the wheels, and the linkage is between the box and the wheel centerline.

If you can show me that I'm wrong, I'd love to see it...

 

I believe the Chevrolet Astro Van comes with a reverse rotation steering box, but all the replacements I've been able to locate are power steering boxes. The need for reverse rotation makes sense due to the stubby vehicle front and the need to mount the steering between the wheels.

 

Looks to me like the pitman arm is horizontal in that application. But it's good to know about it...

and there do seem to be some manual gears used from 1985-89.

 

Well it's the typical saginaw steering box, but it's mounted with the input shaft pointing straight up so the pitman arm shaft ends up being horizontal as seen below. If you mount the box with the input shaft normal (horizontal) the pitman arm shaft ends up being vertical.



I've been looking for the manual version steering box but none of the local parts places (Autozone, Oreilly, Pep Boys, NAPA) even list anything other than the power steering box. I'm thinking that they made so few with manual steering that the rebuilders don't have much of a supply of them. That's why I was hoping to find some other vehicles that came with reverse rotation steering boxes.

Do you know of any place I can get a rebuilt 1985-89 Astro manual steering box and do I get any points for showing you something you new?

 

Thanks for the links. I may buy a new one if I can't find used or rebuilt.

Thanks for the pictures.

 

there is a listing on rockauto, but I don't know how reliable that is.

And I also don't know if it's the same setup.

You definitely get points

 

the box you are looking for is from a 61 to 63 olds f-85 or buick special.we used them for many years to build power steering boxes for sprint cars.they have some odd mounting bosses that can be bandsawed off.kinda hard to find since most of these light cars had manual steering,but if you are in an area that didn't support much racing they are out there.was also told late 80s ford vans had a saginaw box with the correct rotation,but I haven't checked

 

Jim,
I don't know the answer to that questions. I do know the Ranger box is opposite rotation in several year models. A close friend of mine, who happens to be an extremely talented fabricator, used one to add power steering to a '53 Chevy Bel Air.

The owner wanted the stock steering column and no change in front suspension. Bob (my friend), did the usual modification of the steering column, and installed the Ranger box with the pitman shaft horizontal and the pitman arm vertical in the same alignment as the stock Chevy steering box. That required a reverse rotation box to keep everything moving as original. It took some creative brackets to mount the box that way, but creativity is one of his strengths. I have photos somewhere, if you have any interest in seeing them.

Ray