I need to shorten the column of a 94 Dakota to fit the 41 excab Dodge. Are there any special things to look for or beware of? Also does anyone make a brake booster can that is smaller than 12" dia? also for the Dakota. Thanks, Patrick
I always heard it was "illegal" to weld steering components in some states. I dunno if that's true or not , but I definitely know I've seen some welded steering parts where the ought to have thrown the welder in jail!!! I resplined one I didn't want to weld. One I did weld I machined one half with a "hole" the other with a "pin" and TIGed the halves back to gether. Then I made a sleeve which was cut at 30 degreee angles which was fully welded and rosetted. Over kill?? YEP!
Not sure if it would work on a Dakota column, but on old columns I usually use a tube cut to take the bottom of the outer column down to the length I want, then I cut the inner shaft and mill the flats on it to take a quality Double D U joint. The cap on the end of the outer tube, where the bearing is just fits back on - you might need to make a couple of little slots for the clip. On older style tilt columns you need some special tools to take the top of the column apart - like an inverted Torx bit and a pusher to hold that disc down, whatever it's called.
The 77 Datsun column in my 59 Datsun was collapsible. We just pounded the shaft on the ground till it was short enough and then welded it to make sure it stayed that length. Then we cut the tube to match. We did add a piece of D shape on the end to use new joints.
There is always a guy on ebay that sells master cylinders w/7" boosters for about 90 or 100 bucks. You might want to look that up. Look under " master cylinders"....Ole Pork
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