The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline POWER STEERING FOR A 1949 THATSALL STOCK

HEY ALL, NEED IDEAS FOR POWER STEERING FOR A1949 CHEVY 1/2 TON THATS ALL STOCK AND WANT TO KEEP IT THAT WAY...

THANKS TRUCKMAN

Sounds like a conflict of interests?

You want power steering and you want to keep the truck all stock?

We used to call it Armstrong power steering. Strong arms and learning to drive without P/S.

WELL GUYS THE MAN IS IN LATE 60'S HE JUST NEED'S A LITTLE HELP TURNING THE CORNER.


TRUCKMAN

I'm in my "very" late 60's, a few months away from my 70's and just a scrawny little fella.
With a good set of tires and the correct front end geometry I can turn corners quite easily
in my “completely stock” 1950, ¾ ton with one hand on the wheel and the other out the
window signaling that turn.

Where I could use a third hand is shifting into my second gear choice in the middle
of those turns.

If these trucks are “restored” correctly a child could steer them with the wheels rolling.
Now parallel parking in town with a line of cars waiting to pass presents a whole new set
of problems.

I do have a good friend with advanced COPD who could really use PS on his 1950, 3104.
I’ve been looking for years for some simple way to get PS on his truck with out changing
the steering gear and I haven’t found anything yet.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

There are kits out there for this. I think the popular mod involves replacing the steering box with one from a power steering setup. Some use a box from a Toyota truck. They cut the steering column just above the box and put a secure union on to join it to the new box. All the truck suppkiers carry a new Pitman arm for this application.

I agree with the above comments in that having tires with good tread makes steering quite easy. When the truck is stopped, it takes a little more work. The steering in my 1 Ton is very light when driving down the road.

Yes there are mods that require changing the steering box, steering column and other steering components. All of them are
quite involved and they are not just a simple bolt on addition to the stock steering, which I think is what the poster had in mind.

DG

Yes, it would be quite involved. I mentioned it because it seems to be the most popular way of adding power steering. In addition, one would have to add the pump and brackets and then get into the problem with pulleys.

Truckman;

There were "ram" power steering setups on early Chevies. I had one on a 55 sedan and a 66 Chevy II. They use the standard manual box and a hydraulic valve on the tie rod. I think they were used up until the mid 60's. You can still get rebuild kits, etc. See this post for some photos.
Ram power steering

SimS

SimS

THAT'S WHAT I WAS TRYING TO REMEMBER... THE POWER RAM OR A OTHER NAME FOR IT.. THANKS

SO GUYS DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY IDEA'S WHERE TO GET ANYTHING LIKE THIS.....

THANKS TRUCKMAN

Classic Performance Products has kits for 47-52, 53-54 & 55-59 trucks. There are probably other vendors too. You could also assemble your own from individual parts.

SimS

As we've been saying, it's not a simple modification, it's quite involved, ya need to read the procedure not just the heading:
http://www.classicperform.com/power2.htm

Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

I'm only a year behind Denny and I have no desire for power steering on my old jalopies. I think that is part of the nostalgic experience of driving them. And its not going to look stock by any means.

Denny;

Your link references changing out the entire steering gear with modern parts. I agree that is a bigger deal. The "power ram" steering just replaces the existing tie rod and bolts on a hydraulic cylinder. Still it involves some labor but it is much less intense than the whole steering column, steering gear route. I'm with you, a well maintained manual system on these trucks is good enough even for this scrawny old guy.

SimS

I'm doing a CPP power steering installation like Denny links using a 71-87 C10 box on a buddy's '55.2 right now-the kit is for '47-59. It's pretty involved, truck is on a lift & I got about 4-5 hours in it at least, still haven't got the column back in. Shocks must be relocated to the rear of axle, fenderwell trimmed, etc etc. Great setup though, fits like a glove, and should work great.

and with that CPP kit, note well the detail at the very bottom, an incorrect pitman will cause grief, a buddy here had it done to his 56 panel and it took much head scratching to figure out why it handled terribly, even after modifying the original job it's still poor .... and per the original post here, it sure doesn't look stock

I'm with the other oldsters above, if you can't stand "armstrong steering" buy a newer vehicle, one finger steering is only needed by those that use the other fingers for texting

Bill

If I get to the point where I can't "armstrong" my truck, I'm not going to sell it. I like the rattles, noise and shifting gears. I don't need a step ladder to put something in the bed like new trucks. I'll modify my truck before I let it go. From what I've read, the technology is coming that puts power steering units under the dash as a retro fit. Unfortunately the cost is terrible and it would require conversion to 12V alternator for the current requirement. Here is one company: www.ateliersemva.com
click on English

THANKS FOR THE IDEAS GUYS...WE ARE GOING AFTER THE " POWER RAM "
AS FOR ARMSTRONG IT, I CAN DO IN HIS TRUCK, THE TRUCK IS VERY WELL MAINTAINED. HE WAS IN A WRECK A FEW YEARS BACK, DOES GOOD TO LIFT 20 POUNDS AND IS GETTING BACK ON HIS FEET.... ONE THING HE SAYS IS I'M NOT SELL MY TRUCK..

So, I'm looking at the parts available from Ecklers (www.ecklers.com). The ram and the control valve are available for Corvettes. The control valve fits between the Pitman arm and the middle tie rod. The ram fits between the frame and the idler arm at the other end of the middle tie rod.

My question is, how hard would it be to install this system in an AD truck with original steering?

I can see the drag link would have to be modified to fit the control valve, and some method would have to be found to couple the ram to the tie rod...

Given the price of the parts, it seems a reasonable solution.

Truckman,

What's your plan for attaching a power steering pump to the 216?

regards,
Leon