59 Apache steering column upgrade

Howdy ya’ll! ; )  Dne’ here! This blog is about my steering column upgrade~ I hope you like it!

The AD 59 Chevy Apache truck, AD meaning “Advanced Design”, maybe back in the ’50’s this was advanced? ; ) Gotta love it! These farm trucks were indestructible to some degree until left out in the pasture for years, forgotten, and to possibly become fossilized! However, and thank goodness, enthusiasts come along and rescue these treasures from our recent past to once again be put back in service, but not for service per say, but for pleasure and fun!

The original steering gear and emergency brake.

59 Apache Original steering gear and emergency brake

Of course, we car and truck enthusiasts have to make things a little better! However, by today’s standards, I’m doing things the old-fashioned way! Most would replace the entire “front clip” with more modern steering and suspension.

Trying to do things lesser expensive way, I tried making the steering column out of the donor car, a 72 Impala, but omg, I gave up quickly and had to go the more expensive route!

Steering column out of a ’72 Chevy Impala

After speaking with Justin at Scottshotrods.com, he talked me into the Ididit tilt column. A bit pricey, but saved me from having to think too much! ; ) I had a choice of chrome or unpainted. I chose unpainted because I needed to work more! ha ha! If you notice in the pic below, the column hangar? It just placed the steering column too low and so I spoke with Justin and bought a more expensive one, you’ll see it further down.

Of course I needed a steering wheel, and just so happens, the steering wheel off of the 72 Impala fit! I will eventually buy a better looking steering wheel, but for now, this serves my purpose!  A friend of mine said, “leave it the steel color”,  no, I’ll paint it.

Eventually, it was painted at the same time I painted the dash. You can go to the radio patch panel repair and see what went on in the process of that repair and the painting!

I’m proud of the Ididit steering column. I will buy a nice steering wheel as time goes on~ maybe you have an idea? ; )

I don’t have a closeup of the column hangar, but if you click on the picture, it will super size it!

Well, that concludes the steering column blog, if you’d like to see the continuation from the steering column to the Saginaw steering gear, search for Power steering Saginaw on my Classic Cars and Tools and you can see that too! ; )

I hope you are liking my build and my blog. If you have any questions, please feel free to write, or just write just to say hello! That would be nice! ; )  dne’