mustang box

Hey gentlemen and ladies I am running a Mustang steering box on my 28 sedan and wonder is there any negative s to this or what. I find that it hangs a bit low off the frame but other than that do they work as well as the vega box? I got my HAMB calendar very nice indeed. Thanks guys. John

 

John,a buddy of mine has one in his moadel A cuope.He says it steers alright.I think they do hang down a bit but if they work good run it......Shiny

 

I have one on my 28 sedan, it works great. If you have one on hand, use it. -Joe

 

I haven't heard any negatives about it.
In fact, it was my first choice when building the 32.

I skipped it after I learned how expensive they were.
$80. at the junkyard as compared to $25. for the Vega.

Even in 1985 they were in demand by the restorers and lord knows what they cost now.
Course, the Vega's are getting scarce and their price is going up so it may be a moot point.
Even so, I'd bet the Mustangs are still expensive.

Far as the Vega's go, there is a very similar box with a slightly longer - but not so long it isn't usable - sector shaft. These found in the next size up GM cars and they fit a Vega bracket.
If you have an old Harwood catalog, pics of their chassis show this box in use.

One thing I do like about using the Vega style box is the steering column can be a little more horizontal than a column would be for a Mustang box plus there's a little more flexibility about steering shaft length.
Not to mention you can find GM steering shafts with the right splines and right lengths.

I keep reading about and hearing about guys using the Duster aluminum - and good looking - steering box.
The only Duster install I saw was in a magazine and the pitman shaft went through the cowl - which is a good look to my eye.
If I wanted a fore and aft drag link I think I'd give that a shot.
Unless you found a Mustang box that was reasonably priced.

You may think that running the fore and aft drag link would make it easier to build headers, but most times not true.
Specially if you used a modicum of care in steering box placement with the Vega.

 

use the power box. it has a better ratio the manual

 

Thanks guys for the info. Much appreciated John

 

I put this together with the Mustang 20 years ago. It's still on the road doing well.

 

the duster box that C9 speaks of is the same unit used on all A(small) and B(midsize) body mopars from 1962 up til maybe 1980. it's basicly a heavy duty reversed corvair box. the output shaft is quite a bit longer though.

it's quite a good looking piece of forged aluminum, with some nice fins and would look pretty sweet all polished up. if you have room next to the motor, you could fab up some brackets to mount it in the stock location. i couldn't use one on my coupe because the starter is on the driver side on a mopar... otherwise, that would have been a great box to use. four-thirteen

 

I'm using a 67(rag joint style) one in my 31 coupe, it handles like a go kart and hav'nt noticed any problems or bump steer in 7 years.

 

On one hand, I wanna say shhhhhhh about the Duster boxes, as they are still rather cheep comparatively, and I don't want that to change, plus I have a couple , but on the other hand, I'd like to see how these setups have been done... so if anyone out there is listening....

Jay

 

The Mustang boxes were popular because of their small size,and cheap price(then).
As supplies dried up,Vega boxes became popular for the same reasons.
Now you won't find either in a scrap yard,but they are both available repop.

The Mopar boxes I've seen look great,but are HUGE.
I would be suprised if one would fit beside a V8 for a side steer application.
The output shaft is pretty long,so they would be suited for cowl steering.

Some people say the boxes used in the full size cars used ball bearings,
while the Duster boxes had bushings.More than 1 ratio may have been available.

 

The other box C9 is reffering to is the Monza box - pretty close to the Vega but is larger, comes in manual and power.

One I picked up is from a DJ mail jeep - it's small and looks fairly easy to mount drag link style

 

[ QUOTE ]
One I picked up is from a DJ mail jeep - it's small and looks fairly easy to mount drag link style

[/ QUOTE ]
Are those the right hand drive Jeeps?
Do they originally mount to the inside of the frame rail?

As a drag link set upwould the Pitman arm point up or down?

Have you got a picture?

 

The box I have on my truck has a longer steering shaft but a Vega pittman arm will not fit it. Is this a Camaro box or a Monza maybe??

 

This is great thanks ,again the hamb comes through. John

 

I have a GREAT one page print explaining the relationship between mustang boxes and rods. It explains very simply and effectively why you tend to get bump steer with a mustang box and how to avoid it all with great geometrical diagrams. I can't compress the page enough to post it on the board but I can email it to anyone whom PM's me an email address...
Not to spam on the board but I also have a MINT mustang box with the bracket for an A frame and correct pitman arm. I have NO idea what it's worth but it is avail. It came with a car I just bought and the gentleman I bought the car from said he took the box to have it rebuilt, they took it apart and said it needed nothing so they pumped it full of grease and re assembled it. It is the 4 turns lock to lock model as opposed to the slower ratio. Jason...