short steering arms

[buddymander]

Does anybody know the exact difference in length between the original steering arms on a 62 Hawk and the short Avanti arms that sell for about $110?

[64V-K7]

If you can do with anything but 'exactly', they're roughly 2" shorter, give or take 1/8"

Bob Johnstone

[jlmccuan]

Bob,
Do all Avanti's and Avanti II's use the short arms? If not, what year did they change?

Jim

1966 Avanti II RQA 0088

[buddymander]

Excellent--Thanks. My steering arm now overlaps the left tie rod about an inch, so I need to move the end forward about one and a half before I can drive over any bumps.

[sbca96]

quote:Originally posted by jlmccuan
Do all Avanti's and Avanti II's use the short arms? If not, what year did they change?

From what I have read, the short arms showed up on the Avanti II in
around 1985. It reduces the steering turns lock to lock about one full
turn which should give you about 2.5 to 3 turns lock to lock on the
Avanti with the faster box. I didnt realize that the Avanti has a bit
of a quicker box than the other models. I was going on 4.5 turns lock
to lock, but it seems its more like 3.5 to 4 turns??

quote:Originally posted by buddymander

Excellent--Thanks. My steering arm now overlaps the left tie rod about an inch, so I need to move the end forward about one and a half before I can drive over any bumps.

Huh?[?]

Tom

'63 Avanti, zinc plated drilled & slotted 03 Mustang Cobra 13" front disc/98 GT rear brakes, 03 Cobra 17" wheels, GM alt, 97 Z28 leather seats, soon: 97 Z28 T-56 6-spd, Ported heads w/SST full flow valves, 'R3' 276 cam, Edelbrock AFB Carb, GM HEI distributor, 8.8mm plug wires

[64V-K7]

I don't recall what year, it was the mid eighties. 85 seems right as it was the year that the factory started making all the sausage, with GM, Chrysler, and Ford parts, etc. The reason for the change was that the Ross boxes were all gone. The factory found another box, supposedly from a circa 62 Corvette that bolted in, but the pitman arm was a different length and the quick steer arms countered the pitman arm problem.
There was also a steering box from a Fork lift ( Clarke?) that could be used if you did a little voodoo with the mounting scheme

Bob Johnstone

[53k]

quote:Originally posted by 55Prez


I don't recall what year, it was the mid eighties. 85 seems right as it was the year that the factory started making all the sausage, with GM, Chrysler, and Ford parts, etc. The reason for the change was that the Ross boxes were all gone. The factory found another box, supposedly from a circa 62 Corvette that bolted in, but the pitman arm was a different length and the quick steer arms countered the pitman arm problem.
There was also a steering box from a Fork lift ( Clarke?) that could be used if you did a little voodoo with the mounting scheme

I know our '76 had the slow, sloppy box. It could shift on its Mickey Mouse mountings which caused it to wear badly. I got the last NOS Ross box that Don Waldecker (Craftsman Automotive, Falls Church, VA) had. He told me at the time that the original was a forklift box. Apparently Altmans weren't too concerned about sporty handling. It made a huge change. I have a set of the original Blake short steering arms- they are going on my '64 Daytona Wagonaire which was ordered with manual steering (something like 5+ turns lock-to-lock). I converted it to power steering in '69, but only from the pitman arm down so I still have the really slow steering, but it sure turns easily.

[img=right]http://www.frontiernet.net/~thejohnsons/Forum%20signature%20pix/R-4.JPG[/img=right][img=right]http://www.frontiernet.net/~thejohnsons/Forum%20signature%20pix/64L.JPG[/img=right][img=right]http://www.frontiernet.net/~thejohnsons/Forum%20signature%20pix/64P.jpg[/img=right][img=right]http://www.frontiernet.net/~thejohnsons/Forum%20signature%20pix/53K.jpg[/img=right]Paul Johnson
'53 Commander Starliner (since 1966)
'64 Daytona Wagonaire (original owner)
'64 Daytona Convertible (2006)
Museum R-4 engine