5" of Rain in Past Three Days, but a Little More Progress

Working between storms, I managed to get the steering column painted and the front shock slots enlarged to fit the '56 bolt size. Not too sure if the ivory shade is quite what I want. It appears more yellow than I expected.

 

Also did some experimentation on the steering wheel design. It's easy to make the horn function with custom parts, but making the center cap and horn ring trim look period is something else.

Yesterday I ordered a part from Summit and it arrived today! Like so many things I order online, the $4 part advertised free shipping, but the handling charge was over $5. Even so, it beats driving around trying to find the part I wanted locally.

Wind, Hail, Torrential Rain, and Some Car Progress

Worst storm I've experienced since moving to Texas hit last night. Our vinyl fence was punctured in several places by hail, and one section blew down in the estimated 70mph wind. Plants were shredded and broken, and trees planted this spring were blown over. I know we had a drought, but it doesn't work trying to dump five years worth of water on us in one month. Please, Mother Nature, save a little for this fall!

I disassembled and primed the steering column, cleaned the key cylinder and removed the wheel lock parts, as I see no reason for it to be functioning on this car.

Since everything is disassembled, I ordered new ignition and turn signal switches. The ignition switch was replaced at some point, but the harness had been cut and spliced, and the work was sloppy. I may regret replacing switches as I'm sure the replacements are Chinese built.

The shock absorbers arrived this afternoon, but can't install them until it dries out a little bit.

Steering Column Test Fit

First the weather report: More rain today, and more predicted every day for the next ten.

I received the Dodge truck steering column yesterday and did a test fit today. Using the '56 column support would have required too much custom work, so I decided to use the truck method. The column is the collapsible version, so the support is designed to slip apart for the collapse to take place properly in an accident. That feature required a custom support that was quickly made from angle iron.

Once the column was in place, I was able to check the measurements against the stock setup, and was surprised to discover that every dimension was within a half-inch of stock! Even the rag joint connection will fall in the perfect position. Since both the '56 and the truck shafts are 1" dia, it should be a simple job to join them. The trick will be joining them so that the steering wheel aligns properly. The best bet is probably to cut another groove in the steering wheel keying flat so there are grooves all the way around and create thirty-six positions for adjustment.

It will need some sort of trim to hide the support and wire loom, but that shouldn't be difficult. I will also have to modify the sheet metal where the column goes through the floor, but carpet will cover that. I did change my wheel selection to the one shown in the picture. It's from a mid-late seventies model, and though it's 15" diameter might be  small for manual steering, it looks a little more car-like than the one I first considered. Otherwise, the column looks much like a factory installation.

Slight change of Plans

Since the beginning of my project, I had planned to use a Flaming River or Ididit tilt steering column, mostly so I could have a column-mounted ignition switch, as well as emergency flashers and a modern turn signal harness with lane changing feature.

After doing more research and seeking opinions on HAMB and other forums, I learned that the quality of aftermarket columns is not that great. Another strike against that option is the steering wheel limitation. They do not have a Mopar spline available on the shaft, so it was either an aftermarket wheel with an adapter, or a GM, neither of which I wanted. The alternative was to make my own Mopar adapter, which was a little too complicated and time consuming. The total cost would be in the neighborhood of $1000...not a very friendly neighborhood, and I haven't found an aftermarket wheel that I like and would look right on a '56.

I sought another option and after some ebay searching and more measuring, I decided to buy a column from a mid-eighties Dodge truck.

It is almost exactly the same length as the '56 column. It has the switch, turn signals and flashers I want, plus the crash collapsible design that was not available on the aftermarket version I needed. I will have the choice of dozens of Mopar steering wheel styles that are a direct fit, and at $120, the price is way more palatable. It would be nice to have the tilt feature, but for the price I can live without it.

I have several steering wheels that would work, but I'm leaning toward the wheel I swapped out of my '73 D100.

It is 1/2" smaller diameter than the stock wheel, and is slightly dished, which makes me more comfortable than having that bone-crushing point on the Hollywood wheel sitting in front of my chest.

I would replace the horn button with something more period correct, but the wheel diameter is about right for manual steering. I also have a nice wheel that would look better, but it's only 15" in diameter which might make steering a little too heavy. At least I will have more options while keeping the car more Mopar.

5-14-15

Nearly two weeks of rain, wind and thunderstorms have slowed progress. Reservoirs that were dry only six weeks ago are now overflowing and low-lying areas are under water, including spots in my yard. When I cut grass between storms a couple of days ago, I had to mow around several "ponds", or risk getting the mower stuck in the greasy clay.

Several household projects have also kept me out of the workshop, but the guestroom now has built-in cabinets , new closet shelving, and all new furniture.

With thunderstorms in the forecast for at least the next ten days, plans to fit check the engine and transmission mounts will be delayed or dropped since it would have to take place outside where the frame is stored. I'll probably just take the block and heads in to the machine shop and hope everything fits when it's time to install the engine.

Since I refilled the welder's gas canister, put on a new roll of wire, and bought new welding gloves, it might be time to install the lower fender patch panels. That will be the last major sheet metal repair needed. It's difficult to get motivated for some jobs, but they have to be done and it feels good when complete and out of the way.

Ready for a Powertrain

Finished fabricating the transmission crossmember and welding in place. If I roll the frame onto the concrete, I could bolt the transmission and engine block together to fit check the mounts. If the weather holds until Monday, I might do that.