1941 Chevy Truck Steering in a 1937 Pickup

In 1941, Chevrolet introduce recirculating ball steering in the commercial line. This upgrade made the steering feel like Power Steering in comparison to the earlier steering box.

It is a bolt in conversion basically, although the steering wheel is different on how it mounts. Keeping the original wheel is important. This problem can be corrected quite easily, provided you have the welding skills and take the time to set it up correctly, so that the steering wheel ends up in the right position when the wheels are pointed straight ahead.

Another one of the unfortunate things about the early steering, is that there was no adjustment if your steering wheel didn't line up. I actually remedied the problem of adjustment too.

You may have also noticed that originally, the steering wheel is in your face. This can also be relieved somewhat without making it obvious at the same time you are doing your upgrade.

These steering columns are getting harder to find, just as is all the desirable vintage parts. I have collected all the parts required to build a NOS steering cluster, and have a nice used assembly to build it in. It's available, if you have a worthy project to use it in.

Check out the pictures of the finish product and the way Craig Thomson, with the help of Crystal, makes my work really look good!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

What type of lube did you use in the '41 steering box? Heavyweight oil or just grease?

Doug Leibrant said...

I did a blog post of this question and my answer in the "Ask Doug" section.
Doug