steering/firewall question.

I'm working my firewall for my dodge with the set back engine that is freaking wide (mopar 383 with banana manifolds). I noticed that my steering column will run directly into my exhaust manifold. So it looks like I will need to run a couple of u-joints to jog around the exhaust. One concern I have is heat damaging the u joint that will be on the end. Another one is space.

I'm thinking I mount the ujoint and shaft that will shoot to the left inside of the firewall and put a sheet metal box around it that way I could put some insulation on the inside firewall to ***ist with heat. This wouls also alow me to put the firewall closer to the engine giving me more leg room.

Here is a pic with a ****ty drawing.

 

Please advise a young dumb polack. pics of steering setups with crazy u-joints to go around things would be great too.

 

use a short column and do all of your bending on the inside of the car.

 

Sounds like I;m on the right track. ANyone got any pics of equally ****ed up situations?

 

Let me check my latest Goodguys Gazette.
There is a company in there marketing an affset gearbox for applications like yours.

 

http://www.wizardsteerclear.com/index.html

Might check McMaster Carr for a similar product.

 

use the offset steering set up.. with a short column, you can then drop you steering rods down low. may have to do something similar with my POS dodge

are there any other headers available that would allow you to run your steering between the block and header ??

 

I did a Lincoln Continental right hand drive conversion back in the 70's and shortened the column so that it ended well before the firewall and then ran u-jointed shaft down to the steering box. Sorry that I don't have any pix but the main thing to worry about is trying to keep the joint angularity down to as little as possible. You also need to "phase" the joints just like a driveshaft. If you don't phase the joints the steering will feel "knotty" as it rotates.
If you use more than two joints the intermediate section of the shaft will need to be supported. In our race cars we use the "helicopter" joints with the silicone boot over the universal but in your case the best bet would be a Borgeson or Maval joint. They are a little bulkier but much stronger in a street rod situation.

Roo Man

 

Very cool and very expensive, but it would solve my problems. I will check mcmaster carr and other places to find something similiar.

 

I just mcmaster carr I can't put a link up but page 1083 of there catalog

http://www.mcmaster.com/

has flexable drive shafts and extreme angle u joints. I wonder if something like that could work.

page 1081 has some pretty cheap u-joints.

 

Maybe I'm wrong, but $600.00 and you still need a steering box with that? Come on, that's a piece for a high end rod if I've ever seen it. For $500.00 you could hire someone to ride on the grill and turn the box from there. I'm NOT at all knocking your car, but from the photos it doesn't look like a $600.00 universal joint is for you. Maybe I'm wrong. You might be the first guy to put a security system on your steering linkage. I just know that I love my car, but I'd cut, grind, and weld A LOT before I bought that thing.

 

Sorry, but I just thought of this after my previous post. What about making your own piece like the expensive one from Wizard. Take a piece of 1/4" plate and mount 2 sprockets to it and use motorcycle or bicycle chain to run it. It would be completely open, and look bad ***. You may have some of the parts needed as well. Furthermore, you could make it to the exact specs you needed.

 

Make your own 90 degree steering set up... I have some crazy steering steups for you.... I am working on a Mopar right now with the same issue. It took 3 joints but works perfect... Here is a pic of the 90 degree set up.. Pm me if you want more info on any of the steering set ups.. Too much to type. Maybe one day I will do a post on the home grown 90 degree setup..there are a couple close ups and a pic of it installed in the car..EVILT

 

You probably wouldn't want to use bicyle chain(too weak) or motorcycle chain (too much back lash)... I used chevy timing chain and lower timing sprockets..It cost nothing as I don't throw much away....EVILT

 

This is a much better way to use my original idea. I didn't even consider a timing chain set up, but that would be awesome, especially under the hood. That's what's great about the HAMB, several people are usually way ahead of you.

 

That set up is very nice. I like the exposed chanin A LOT more than the very expensive unit from WIZARD. Do you mind me asking how much that cost? What about cost if someone didn't already have those parts you used? Thank you

 

Dave - KISS

I think you could get away with a 3 knuckle system to get around the manifold. You have to mount the center knuckle to the frame with a shaft support - look on borgeson's web site, they explain shafts systems with more than two knucks.

Thinks that would work??

 

I figured a 3 knuckle system woud do it. 90 deg drive is cool though. I'm probably gonna do that inside the firewall like I had mentioned.

 

EVILT - what you made is awesome - nice work. What is holding the short shafts with the knuckles on them to the timing gears on either side? Did you use double D shaft?

do you have bearings for the shafts in between the knuckles and the timing gear?

Are the timing gears steel you can weld to easily or are they cast?

 

I would love to see more on this.

 

Ive got a flex shaft steering column complete for sale on this site.

 

Since my buddy EVILT is still sleepin, and I'm his in house machinist, I'll go ahead and field these questions

I didn't design or build this unit, I just got to radius every edge/sharp corner on this *****in piece of enginuity. I am planing on building one for my coupe, maybe make a couple of extras????

 

I would think an exposed chain would be very un safe, as a rock or other **** could be kicked up by a tire and jam between the chain and sprockets or the case thus locking the steering. Brian

 

Evil T - that is one awesome piece of fabrication. I love it!

dvanecek - have you considered cowl steering? This would solve your problem pretty easily and it sure looks cool . Another approach would be doing something similar to a tbucket (small box, below the driver). The only problem is the steering shaft ends up almost verticle (like a bus). I've seen t-bucket where they have used a u-joint under the dash to bring the wheel to a more comfortable steering wheel position.

 

it's a fat fender 47 dodge. Cowl steering would not work out to well. I will be doing that if I ever build a fenderless car. It does look bad ***.

 

That point was considered when this unit was built, thats why there is a bigger plate on the side that faces the front of the car, and the unit sits inside the interior of the car. Theres little, to no chance of a rock or other road debris getting inbetween the chain, sprocket or case.

Theres not a lot of room, between the side of the chain and the plates on either side of the chain, for something to get in there and jam-up the steering.

 

Ok, the aluminum plate is machined to hold a bearing on each side for each shaft(4 bearings) The gears are welded to pieces od double D shaft ( that is what the joints attach to)..I had to machine a shim to make up the diff. between the gear ID and the double D shaft OD...You can get a new timing chain and ask around for some old gears to do this cheaply.There is no issue with jamming. Where this is located on the car it is not an issue.. This car has done several long trips and is a daily driver... Elcornus did help in the making of this item... He spent more time radiusing the edhes and making it pretty than I spent building and designing it....EVILT

 

Here are the pics of the 3 joint setup.. It is on a 1950 Plymouth. EVILT

 

I am working on a tech post on the 90 degree setup....EVILT

 

awesome. Have I said that I love the HAMB and the wealth on knowledge that is here.