I was looking for some guidance on my cowl steering setup. I am using a shortened '36 ford tie rod for my steering drag link and I heated and bent it to clearance the lakes pipes. My question is do you think this is going to be safe? Or am I running a big risk of having it fold up on me? The tie rod is 1/4" rolled steel. I have seen pictures of hot rods where they bent the drag link, but I wanted to see if anyone out there has done it before, and if its reasonably safe?
Your steering box mounting position is way too high to make this work out with correct mechanics and appearance. With the body not channeled or a front frame sweep, the steering box should be lower. Just my thoughts.
I suggest you search for this thread, "Cowl Steering.... Just Stop". The information there could prove to be invaluable to you!
Thank you for the link. Now I will set out to see if I can make it safe and work. Or pivot to a traditional steering box!
Ever try and push/pull a bent rope??? In order to even get that to remotely work is to increase the diameter of the link itself where the size/dia overcomes the weakness of the bends. Adding wall thickness to the rod adds a little strength but no where near what diameter will give you. When you turn the steering the link will rock as it finds the input force so now the steering wheel will hunt driving straight
Some of the original tie rods were just a rolled tube, not welded. If that's one of those, you are asking for it to fold up.
Agree with all the above. the drag link needs to be roughly the same length and parallel to the radius rod to avoid serious bump steer. That's the geometry problem. The structural problem is the bend which will cause the link to flex like a noodle under stress and possibly break. Just my 2 cents.
With that much angle, under acceleration the car will pull to the right, under braking it will dart to the left.
I get the allure to cowl steering because it does kinda look cool , but with bent drag links , and aesthetic lines going every which way... doesn't that kinda kill the look? The closer you can get the tie rod end to the pivot point of the wishbone the better you will be .... that’s a long way off ... looks like bumpsteer city to me
Actually, the 4x4 crowd does this quite a lot on cross steer setups where shit has to be cleared. Just gusset the bends and that takes care of the possible fold up. Gotta say tho, it would look a bit bulky on your setup.
it actually looks like the original steering box location would work with those headers. use the later box, convert the mount....
Dave! what is the motive behind this? Do you want a cowl steer in particular? or do you want a steering system that fits in with your headers. If you want cowl steer....I wouldn't offer any advice here But if you want a workable steering system, why not reposition the steering box inside the cowl but down by the floor. Clock the steering box so the steering column is Vertical [up the inside of the firewall] Then to get the steering wheel at a decent angle , use a 90 degree steering box under the dash, These are common on Toyota Hiace and Liteace vans with forward mounted controls It will have builders scratching there heads because you will have a cowl type steering down by the clutch pedal and have a decent steering column angle.
From a design/geometry standpoint cowl steering is not good but guys use it anyway because it adds a certain competition flavor to car. I’m guessing that they just deal with the bump steer. But we’re talking steering here not just your safety but the safety of those around you. If you plan to drive it I would do a little more studying and basically make the steering right and build the exhaust around it. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Most competition cars [including sprint cars] have a 4 link set-up so cowl steering can be designed with zero bump steer. [think of it as a "5-link"] On a 2-link design the axle moves back in an arc , so the only way to eliminate bump steer is to have the pitman arm /drag link ball joint level with the suspension pivot. Even then in both situations it is a compromise [usually for straight ahead position] because the pitman arm rotates on a vertical plane and the spindles/steering arm rotates on a horizontal plane. Cross steer is a better idea!!
Sure cowl steering can be engineered to work properly but in the context of this post (and this site with mostly split ‘bones, hairpins and the occasional full wishbone) I didn’t think he should go that way. But if he insists, he should learn more so he can reposition his parts to make it the best it can be and be prepared for some drivability issues. His bent drag link, while it does connect A to B is not the best solution. Sent from my iPad using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
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