Many months ago I pulled the whole steering column out of my 50 Mercury. I intended to replace it with an iDidit or something later so I paid no attention to how it went together or came apart. Well i have since changed my mind, I repaired the parts that needed work, and now i can't figure out how it goes back together. Where can I find a schematic of how the various parts and assemblies go together? Specifically, there is a spacer that attaches to the column via tow square headed bolts from the back side. My problem is if I get the bolts tight enough to hold the spacer to the tube, the shifter won't make the H pattern; it only goes up and down. Additionally, there is a big gap maybe 3/8 inch wide between the spacer and the rear face of the steering wheel. I don't think the horn ring will make contact with the grounding collar which attached to the spacer. Help please.
There are plenty of break downs in the chassis parts and O/H books but they don't actually show how it goes together. The flange that houses the turn signal mechanism is held to the outer steering column tube with those square head (wedge head) bolts. The bolts have to be properly positioned in the windows of the column tube to get the correct retension. The inner shift tube will move up and down inside the column tube & flange if the bolts are properly positioned and also rotate with the shift lever & bowl. There is a plastic insulator ring that goes between the horn contact ring and the flange. Here's a link: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=756822&highlight=mercury+column This was the discussion last year on this.
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