Is there a power steering box off a new car that will bolt up on a 1962 GT Hawk? I like the front suspenion but it takes alot to turn it. Please email me at tdfansler@yahoo.com.
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Here's my thoughts on Studebaker steering, FWIW.
First of all, there is no "power steering box" for a GT. It used a ram-type power assist, with the control valve built into the reach rod.
That said, there's stuff you can do before you dive in and convert to power steering. IMHO it's not required on a car that is in good shape and well greased, even with radial tires, although parallel parking is a bit of a chore for those not used to driving without PS - the trick is to not try to turn the wheel unless the car is moving, even at a crawl. The easiest thing to do is to crawl under the car with a grease gun and lube up the front end. Sounds basic, but you have to do it right! This means when you get to the kingpins, keep pumping that grease in there until it comes out the big thrust bearings at the top - all the way around! When that old grease in there gets hard, it makes a dramatic difference in steering effort. If you've pumped a big gooey pile of grease out through the bottom of the kingpins and still none is coming out the thrust bearings, you're going to have to take more dramatic steps. I've heard tell of people gently warming the top bearings with a torch in order to get them to take grease, but every time I've tried that it hasn't worked for me. What I usually end up doing is to disassemble the kingpin and remove the bearing, then let it soak in a can of gasoline or other solvent overnight to loosen up all the nastiness. If you're not as frugal as I the correct thing to do would be to just buy new bearings. You'll need new cork seals for the bottom of the kingpin anyway. You can do this without major disassembly, just remove the brake backing plate and wire it out of the way, leave the shock in place to keep the spring from violently decompressing, and just bump the kingpin out of the lower knuckle with a hard plastic or brass hammer, then you can pull the kingpin up out of the knuckle while it's still attached to the upper control arm. Don't lose any of the needles in the lower bearing!
Just put everything back where it came from now that your thrust bearing is all nice and clean, don't forget the cork gasket (an O-ring works too; not sure if this has any negative implications for the needle bearing though.) Now you should be able to get lots of nice fresh grease out of the thrust bearing. Go ahead and hit the tie rods, reach rod, and also the little fitting for the center pivot that is hidden in the back of the front crossmember. Also check the gear oil level in your steering box and top it up if required. Then go for a drive and see if you still need power steering.
If after all this, you decide you still want PS - the easiest way to do it would be to find a complete setup from someone that is parting out a similar car. You will need the pump, brackets, pulleys, I think maybe a longer crank bolt? also the power cylinder, associated frame bracket, Pitman arm, bell crank (with PS there's an extra arm on it for the power cylinder), hoses, the little spring retainer to tie the hoses to the frame, and the control valve/reach rod assembly. The reach rod is body style specific as are the hoses, so make sure you get those parts from a Hawk not a Lark type.
Finally, I will probably have for sale at some point in the vague future a complete PS setup from a '55 coupe; it will need to have the steering box rebuilt however. It is the Saginaw integral type. Also a nice setup but it would be wrong, wrong, brimming over with wrongability for your car and would also require that you change your steering column, and I don't have one that would work for you. Would be much easier to use the Bendix ram-type as I've described above.
good luck
nate
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55 Commander Starlight
62 Daytona hardtop
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55 Commander Starlight
http://members.cox.net/njnagel
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What size tires are you running on this GT Hawk[?]
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1957 Transtar 1/2ton
1960 Larkvertible V8
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1951 Champion Biz cpe
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Check your front tire pressure. That manual steering wasn't designed with radials in mind. If your pressure is low at all, it would be shoulder-wrenching to try to parallel park. I would jack the front tire pressure to like 40 pounds. It will wear the tire centers out prematurely, but at least you could park the beast, and those radials will still grab better than a pair of properly inflated bias plys. Oh and get yourself a make-out knob.
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quote:Originally posted by chey
Thank you for this information. I just inhereted this nice little car and am not use to not having PS.
Dale
'63 Hawk
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