Technical Hacked Off and Boxed In

So I have a '62 Ford F100 Unibody which I thoroughly enjoy driving, but quite frankly I'm tired of looking at this:



It's a great wheel, classic design, but nothing screams Farm Truck! like an 18-inch piece of plastic, no matter what color it's painted. I wanted something more Hot Rod, more Rock'n'Roll.

So I bought this.



Have always loved the C2 Vette wheel, in all it's thin-rimmed glory, so when I found a brand new reproduction on eBay (albeit a blemished item, though I defy you to find any) for less than a Benjamin, I jumped at the chance. Even found an adapter that would allow me to use a standard Grant-style mounting kit. Things were looking good.

So yesterday morning I popped the horn button off and got quite a surprise. Rather than a nice, fat 15/16" steel retaining nut staring back at me, I found a crappy little allow machine screw and a stack of washers holding my wheel in place. I was so taken aback I forgot to take a photo. So I got out my 3/8" socket and started wrenching.

SNAP.



The head of the screw broke off inside the shaft. And to add insult to injury, a previous owner for some reason decided to hack off about a half-inch worth of threads on the shaft. No wonder there was no retaining nut. And while I'm pissed-off to no end, on the bright side, at least I didn't discover this little SNAFU at 70 mph on the highway.

So HAMBers, what are my options? As fate would have it, my manual steering box is rather sloppy and in dire need of a rebuild anyway, do I bite the bullet and just buy a new or rebuilt box and shaft? Take my chance on a used unit? Force a nut back onto what's left of the threads and go on whistling past the graveyard? No one seems to offer a rebuild kit for the 'box, and the couple places that sell just the shaft want almost as much as the total for a rebuilt box AND shaft. And before offering any advice, please note that my mechanical abilities don't extend to adapting another manufacturers' part to my vehicle, so if it's not built for a Ford F100, it's not gonna happen.

Unless y'all want to come over and pull some MacGyver shit while I keep the beers handy.

Oh, and while I had a chance, figured I'd mock up what my new helm will look like someday.

 

Well, the wheel looks great, but the broken bolt sucks. Your best bet might to be drill and tap a 3/8 hole in the center of the shaft and stick a bolt in it to hold the wheel down.

Good luck, -Abone.

 

Depends upon the thread depth you can run the column 'nut' on to. It might be possible to tighten sufficient to hold the adapter(?) down. Perm. locktite?

 

Maybe a thin jam nut?

 

Come on fellas, it’s the damn steering wheel. Fix it right for your safety, and the safety of others.

 

I think you should replace the column and avoid all the worries. And by the way, thats a C1 Corvette wheel, not a C2...( damn picky corvette guys!)

 

Yeah, I don't really want to tempt Fate again, as it would appear I have been for this past year of ownership.

 

Trying to do this as cheaply as possible, as I still need to finish the interior (carpet, headliner, upholstery). And thank you, yes, C1. I knew that, and still typed C2.

 

Pull the steering column, remove the shaft and take it to someone who has a lathe and counterbore and tap the shaft for the largest size that is non-destructive to the base material. Use that to attach your new adapter to the column. Don't try drilling with out a line up jig. You will ruin your shaft.

 

It’s splined and there is not really any force pulling it back at you unless you are trying to get the wheel off? I’d have no problem drilling/tapping or using a thin jamb nut as suggested.

 

The new steering wheel looks GREAT!........but nothing screams Farm Truck! like that instrument cluster panel..

Just yankin' your chain! But there are other options if you want to continue restyling your interior.

 

I'm hoping that glorious new steering wheel will divert attention away from that corrugated metal slab protruding behind it.

 

The last 2 suggestions might/would work , but they Don't address the worn out steering box issues. A new shaft or box would/should fix both problems. Later Bill

 

No way would I trust that steering column tube now that it's been damaged like that, those tubes are shockingly thin and frail to begin with, and think of the turning strain you put on it every time you use it. Somebody already broke a chunk off of the end (I doubt they just cut it off, I bet a chunk sheared off as they were trying to force a bolt down the inside), you don't want it to shear off below those splines.

Personally I would shop around for a complete box with shaft from a lower mileage truck, something without so much slop and without the damaged splines and threads. Clean out the old dried up grease and refill it with cornhead grease. Solve both issues at once.

 

Bite the bullet and do it right, you will be happier in the long run. Get your box rebuilt or replaced, new shaft and install your new steering wheel. It's a great old truck design, always loved those unibodies, and your truck looks to be in great shape.

 

Spend the money and be safe, replace the steering box and shaft with a rebuilt!
Save money else where, your life of someone else's could be at risk.
I know I am being very harsh, but reality is sometimes harsh, don't jury rig a fix.
KK

 

Let me ask you all, has anyone out there rebuilt one of these boxes before? I’m currently watching one on eBay right now which I could pick up for a THIRD of a rebuilt unit.

 

Get a copy of the factory shop manual. They are not very expensive and worth every penny. Rebuilding the steering box is not that complicated. You can learn how. None of us were born knowing what we know now...all of it was learned along the way.

Ray

 

I've rebuilt half a dozen steering boxes, It's not too difficult but not a job for a novice. Some special tools are required in most cases.
Buying a used box and paying someone to rebuild it will not be cheap either. Are new steering boxes available? If so just bite the bullet and buy one and swap it in.

 

I’ve found remanufactured boxes with shafts online for a shade under $400.

 

The last F-1 box I did I had around $300 in parts and machine work. So $400 isn't bad "IF" it comes from a reputable rebuilder. I wouldn't buy one from any joe blow off of ebay though....

 

That's the route I'd go if it is a dependable rebuilder. Spend a little more now, maybe save your life in the future!

 

Boy, it’s slim pickens out there as far as remanufactured units go. But I’m realizing I may NEED to go with a rebuildable, used unit as opposed to remanufactured. LMC Truck Parts offers a remanufactured unit, but has a $250 core charge, with the caveat that the core unit be ‘rebuildable’. I would say that my steering shaft, having been roughly hacked off at the end, would be considered UN-rebuildable.

 

Since it is damaged anyhow, why not splice in the top portion from a GM column and avoid using adapters for the steering wheel?

Sent from my SM-T350 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

Are we actually debating the fact that I/you don't need this car rolling down the highway in the opposite direction at a high rate of speed (or even the speed limit) and have the wheel come off in the driver's hands.....WTF????
Sure glad the insurance guys aren't listening

 

Probably because I wouldn’t even know how to go about doing that. And the adapter only cost me $15.

 

How bad is the slop? Is it in the box or ball joints/ tie rod ends? If your gearbox is able to be adjusted , I'd have no problem drilling and tapping for a new "retainer" the splines are still there.

Sent from my LG-TP450 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

Buy used and rebuild. They're not very hard if you're half mechanically inclined. Hell, if you think yours could be rebuilt, you might just want to buy the shaft anyway. Other options I would consider include building that up with weld and cutting new threads - but I don't like drilling and tapping. My .02

 

If you are not going to replace it with a rebuild or good used one, please let us know what area of the country you will be driving in so we can avoid it. Don't want to be the one you have a head on with.

 

im with the rebuild/replace crowd. You said there's slop anyway, might end up being easier to pull a few pieces of hardware, than it is to drill, tap, file, etc.