Help, advise or opinions needed on after market Steering Columns for my 66

[acool66]

My current column is a manual 3sp column converted to auto, and its a micky mouse job at best and needs to be replaced. Steering Columns are big dollar items to me so any advice would be a great help. What I need is auto on the column w/tilt. If you have done this type of install please let me know some things you may have learned (like Flaming River over Ididit or vice versa, or don't forget... ). Thanks in advance for any tips or tricks.

[markeb01]

Since you will be spending virtually all of the time in your truck sitting behind the steering wheel, it is critically important it be located exactly where it is most comfortable for you. My advice goes something like this.

1. Decide first what kind of steering wheel you want to run, establishing the dish or depth of the wheel.
2. Decide if the existing seat is going to remain, or if you intend to replace it with something else. This is important because most replacement seats have a thicker backrest which moves the driver closer to the dashboard.
3. After you’ve established where your seat will end up, spend some time deciding the most comfortable position for your hands on the wheel. They may land naturally on the wheel in its current location, but many find it more comfortable moving the steering wheel an inch or two closer to the dash.
4. Once you know where you want the wheel to end up, and how deep the steering wheel is going to be, it's time to start researching steering column specifications.

Some of the application specific columns put the wheel mounting surface in the stock location, while others move the wheel closer to the driver. Before spending a sizeable investment on a new column, make sure you know the actual dimensions of the column. Both the overall length, and the distance from the bottom of the bell where it contacts the dashboard to the steering wheel mounting surface. Some of the newer tilt columns have a very tapered and short tilt mechanism, while others are long and blocky. It may turn out you’d be happier with a column you select rather than one designed specifically for your truck.

I bought a bare steel tilt column from Butch’s Rod Shop about 20 years ago with a rather long and bulky lower bell (the area below the tilt mechanism) and for a while I was pleased it was well built and solid. Eventually however it drove me nuts because the distance from the bottom of the bell to the wheel was too long, pushing the wheel too close to the driver. After years of living with the problem, I finally cut away the upper portion of the lower bell where it contacted the dashboard until it matched the dash profile. This allowed me to push the column down over an inch closer to the steering box, resulting in a vastly improved driving position. Better planning on my part would have provided a better solution to begin with.

I don’t think you can go wrong with either Ididit or Flaming River, both make excellent products. I don't have experience with either brand however so I can't offer a recommendation one over the other.

[acool66]

Wow. You are truly a very nice person for taking the time to give me all of this good information. These ideas are great- I would have never thought of researching how far back I was comfortable with it sitting/driving positions (i would have probably just gone for the cheapest one). Thanks - I appreciate it all!

[csa daddy]

find a 67-72 tilt if possible thats kind of what im going to do an its still gm not after market.

[brawley]

73-87 Gmc vans, that is what I used, you need the steering collumn and intermeadiate shaft that connects to steering box, try a local junk yard i got mine for $40 and it is a pretty easy swap. You will need to shorten the intermeadiate shaft to fit the distance between steering box and collumn.

[kieth]

you can use parts off a suburban thru 1991...

[gimmy 64]

i bought the colum from performance online and it turned out to be an ididit. good price and nice colum. also got the wire adapter from them and was supe easy to put in

[acool66]

brawley what great deal, $40 dollars WINNER. gimmy looks great thats what I would like to have. Thanks guys