Steering column extension

[Eddy]

Afternoon all,

I've searched on here and on locostbuilders/the net generally but can't find anything definitive.

What is the best solution for the column extension? I know the book says to chop the donor column and extend with tube, but I've read that others have used a couple of UJs and splined shaft (chopped and sleeved to suit) from rally design to make a new one.

If using the donor column is good enough, where do I cut? I've marked a pic up with red and green...

Also what size ID and thickness tube?

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y204/eddycorsa/Donor%20Car/steering.png (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/eddycorsa/media/Donor%20Car/steering.png.html)

Cheers

Eddy

[voucht]

Hi Eddy,
As I had the same question one year or so ago, I will try to reply.

If you have more than 2 UJ's, you will need a bearing to hold one part of your column. Keep in mind that the lower flexible part of the Sierra steering column (the one with the rubber piece) which connects onto the rack is considered as a UJ.

I also wanted to use 2 splines shafts, connected with a UJ, and a bearing, but I gave up on that considering the troubles : the total cost, the installation of the bearing, and so on. If you want, Rally Design sells 380mm long splined shafts, which are a bit long to my mind (my extension was 610mm only), but of course, it depends of the angle you'll have between the 2 half-shafts. They also have UJ's.

If you want to do that, for your inspiration, you can see a very neat installation of 2 shafts + central UJ + bearing on JanneE's build thread for example.
http://www.haynes.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=3168&page=4&highlight=Janne+E

On my side, I finally decided to do as explained in the book.

The diameter of the lower part of the Sierra steering column you'll cut is 9/16'' = almost 15mm. So the tube you'll need for your extension will need to have a ID of 15mm. My supplier had only 5mm wall, so that is what I used (OD is quite big: 25mm, it is pretty close to U1, about 5mm, but it fits), but I'm pretty sure other builders used 3 or 4mm wall only.

Also, it is better to use a seamless tube.

Here is how it looks:

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2872/9556399934_ea8d7a44b6_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/99498333@N06/9556399934/)
2013-06-02_17-03-14 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/99498333@N06/9556399934/) par Voucht71 (http://www.flickr.com/people/99498333@N06/), sur Flickr

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3712/9553612045_1ff46ca549_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/99498333@N06/9553612045/)
2013-06-02_17-03-30 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/99498333@N06/9553612045/) par Voucht71 (http://www.flickr.com/people/99498333@N06/), sur Flickr

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3774/9553611733_7facbd8a18_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/99498333@N06/9553611733/)
2013-06-02_17-03-21 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/99498333@N06/9553611733/) par Voucht71 (http://www.flickr.com/people/99498333@N06/), sur Flickr

Hope this will help :)

[Eddy]

Thats a perfect answer, thanks so much for taking the time. Should help people in the future as well as me

I think I was getting confused, thinking I only cut one part to extend, whereas - if I understand correctly - I cut both parts.

I'll start the hunt for some appropriate tube

Thanks again

Eddy

[alga]

In my view the only reason to go with more than a pair of UJs is if something is getting in the way of the straight shaft that voucht and I have. This is often the engine leg, intake manifold, alternator, etc.

Looks like your shaft is a bit different than the one that Sylvain and I have. Any of the places you marked will do, I guess. Perhaps green is better as the shaft passes pretty close to the tube the suspension bracket is welded on (read: 3-4 mm clearance with ø25 tube). Also, it's possible that you'll have radiator hoses passing around the rack, so it's better to keep the flappy part away from these tight spots.

[Eddy]

I think mine is a bit different - The parts where I'd be cutting, from memory, would be thicker than 15mm diameter, meaning the sleeving tube would need to be larger. Given that its already close to the upright, this might be a problem.

Should I consider buying something like the column in this link:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FORD-SIERRA-STEERING-COLUMN-U-J-AND-JOINTS-STOCKCAR-KITCAR-AUTOGRASS-PROJECT-/300950779572?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item46121076b4

[ozzy1]

I recall reading somewhere recently that MK make or will make a one piece shaft to fit for I think 40 GBP. Maybe worth considering and looking into.

[Eddy]

Just a little update on this - I emailed MK as suggested above (the extension is listed on their website for £40 as Ozzy said) and had no reply and they didn't pick up the phone when I tried to call, so won't be using them.

I went on to eBay and managed to find a new old stock lower column that looks more 'extension friendly' than mine:

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y204/eddycorsa/Donor%20Car/steeringlink.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/eddycorsa/media/Donor%20Car/steeringlink.jpg.html)

Fingers crossed this will work with the thick walled tube I have.

Cheers again for the help guys

[TheArf]

Just been reading the reply's on here, Albert the only time that the inlet manifold on any ford installation which is what most people start with on this forum is if your steering column, like yours, is on the wrong side of the car.
When your steering is on the correct side of the car you need to dodge the exhaust.

Arfon

[Stot]

Just been reading the reply's on here, Albert the only time that the inlet manifold on any ford installation which is what most people start with on this forum is if your steering column, like yours, is on the wrong side of the car.
When your steering is on the correct side of the car you need to dodge the exhaust.

Arfon

Hi Arfon,

Crossflow, CVH and Zetec E engines all have the inlet on the UK drivers side too so there is a mixed bag.

Cheers
Stot

[Oscar]

Just the stage I'm getting to, I'll probably have to reread this thread a couple more times before I'm ready to anything though :o
Also, my steering column is different again, got an extra join in it and different ends, annoyingly.

p.s. DOHC has inlet on uk (correct) drivers side, exhaust on the other at just the right point for exiting bodywork :D

[Eddy]

A further update

The new part arrived. Here it is next to the original, you can see how it is more suited to extension, without the extra joint:

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y204/eddycorsa/Donor%20Car/20130920_174611.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/eddycorsa/media/Donor%20Car/20130920_174611.jpg.html)

I then cut the brand new part in half, which just felt wrong!

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y204/eddycorsa/Donor%20Car/20130920_175632.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/eddycorsa/media/Donor%20Car/20130920_175632.jpg.html)

The cross section of the cut has a diameter of about 17mm, which is too big for the 20mm OD 3mm wall tube I bought based on what I had read previously, so I'll need to get some more tube. Let me know if any of you have anything suitable you would like to sell.

A quick look on eBay found some 22mm OD 2mm wall tube which should fit. Will this be up to the job?

[voucht]

Hi Eddy,
Very strange your new steering column has a 17mm outside diameter. Is it from a Sierra ? Anyway, if the tube you bought has a 20mm outside diam with 3mm thick walls, the inside diameter is 14mm. That should be too small anyway to fit on a "normal" Sierra column which is 9/16'' (14,29mm). I think 15mm inside diameter would have been the way to go.

If I had been you, I would have used the first (old) steering column. I would have cut it anywhere above and under the central UJ as Alga says, keeping in mind you want to leave enough length to guide the column inside the tube to keep it straight. I would have used a 3 to 5mm thick wall, 15mm inside diameter seamless tube for the extension.

Are you sure you can not force the tube you already have on this column? It would be worth to try I think. Or perhaps you can find a 9/16'' or 15mm drill and machine the inside diameter on its length.

If you think it is too late for that, you have to find another extension tube to fit the new column which has a 17mm outside diam. To answer your question, I would NOT use 2mm walls, in my opinion, it is too thin. 3mm should be the minimum, 5mm might sound overkilling, but on the safe side. Also, better buying a seamless kind of tube.

Hope this will help :)

Good luck.

[Eddy]

Thanks for the comments

I was expecting the new column to be a smaller diameter than 17mm. It was advertised as for the Sierra and has the triangular connection one end and the correct splined shaft at the other.

I must admit I took a bit of a guess on the tube as I was placing an order along with some other bits and wanted to combine postage. It was as someone had suggested on locostbuilders and I was away from the build so couldn't check. There is no way it will fit on the column I have without drilling a lot of the inside of the tube, which will reduce the wall width considerably.

The problem with the first column is that the diameter is even bigger than the 17mm replacement one. I had read that the extension tube can't be too big or it will foul one of the uprights.

I will keep my eye out for some 17mm ID seamless tube with a wall thickness of 3mm.

Cheers

Eddy

[Eddy]

Right, I bought a digital caliper to measure the thickness of my cut column accurately - It comes out at 17.8mm:

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y204/eddycorsa/20131011_101104-1.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/eddycorsa/media/20131011_101104-1.jpg.html)

It comes out with that measurement everywhere except where the part number is raised, but I can grind that down.

What tube should I be getting - I'ver found some 25mm OD, 3mm wall stuff for sale. Will that be a tight enough fit?

Cheers

Eddy

[jps]

Can't you just turn down the cut part until it is 14mm and then use the tubing you already have? Can't imagine it'll compromise strength if it's correctly welded?

[voucht]

Actually JPS is right. Here in Sweden, SFRO (equivalent of your IVA in the UK) even recommends to turn down the column to get a perfectly smooth and regular surface before welding.
Now, if you don't have a lathe, you have to compare if it would be cheaper to buy 1m of 18mm ID thick-wall tube (and 3mm wall being the minimum, you will have a 24mm OD tube. Check in that case that you will have enough clearance beside the U2 upright tube) or to give the 2 parts of the column to an engineering shop to turn them down.

Good luck:)

[Eddy]

Thanks guys

I hadn't thought about turning the parts down - Seems counter intuitive when the part needs to be as strong as possible, but I suppose it will still be strong enough if some standard parts are thinner anyway.

I've got some time off at the end of the month, so will try and find a friendly local engineering shop

Cheers

[Eddy]

Just to follow up on this, I got a 600mm length of seamless 25mm x 3mm wall tube. The cut column fit reasonable well inside the tube, so I welded it up.

The result, although not neatest of welds, seems to be strong - I turned the steering to full lock and put enough pressure on it to flex the steering wheel with no movement elsewhere!

There is also enough clearance on the upright.

I may add some 6mm dowel through the tube/cut column for additional peace of mine - What do you think?

Some pics:

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y204/eddycorsa/Donor%20Car/20131109_085943.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/eddycorsa/media/Donor%20Car/20131109_085943.jpg.html)

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y204/eddycorsa/Donor%20Car/20131109_085951.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/eddycorsa/media/Donor%20Car/20131109_085951.jpg.html)

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y204/eddycorsa/Donor%20Car/20131109_090157.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/eddycorsa/media/Donor%20Car/20131109_090157.jpg.html)

[Stot]

IVA like to see more than just the welds at the join. Some people slot the extension and weld through the slot for extra support.

I added 2 x 5mm roll pins each end on mine and welded them in too.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-TpBpV1GJ1Dk/UiIsHlmRApI/AAAAAAAAHwQ/bMkbt6GExBI/w958-h539-no/SteeringColumn3.JPG

Cheers
Stot

[MikeB]

Might be useful for others.
This is the tube I used from ebay.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/321206594646?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

I think 3mm wall thickness if fine, from recollection the triangular section further up the column is hollow, smaller diameter and similar wall thickness.

I've only tacked mine up so far, but reading this thread I may put a roll pin in once fully welded but need to find someone with a more powerful MIG than mine to do the full welds.

[Eddy]

I used the same supplier - I just emailed and asked for a 600mm length

He did initially send a 400mm length, so I have that spare if it is of use to anyone, but would imagine it is too short for most people to use.

[voucht]

Mike,
I have a 145A mig. The certification company here in Sweden (SFRO = your IVA) wants you to make sure the mig you use to weld the steering column extension is powerful enough, and for that they ask you to try cut the original steering rod just by melting it with the mig.

My 145A MIG at full power did the job. See pictures in the middle of this post on my blog:
http://vouchtroadster.blogspot.se/2013/11/colonne-de-direction-2-steering-column-2.html

So bead welding the edges and plug welding the extension tube at three different points at each end of the extension (as they require) was OK with this mig. And note that my extension tube had 5mm walls. See pictures on this other post of my blog:
http://vouchtroadster.blogspot.se/2013/06/colonne-de-direction2-steering-column2.html

So, I don't know how powerful is your mig, but it might be enough to do the job.

Eddy, plug welding your extension might be the safety solution you are looking for too

Hope this will help :)

[flyerncle]

Just a personal thing,Rally design do a splined rod that will fit the group 4 steering coupling and if you cut it in half and weld it in a tube you can do away with that crappy ford coupling near the rack,bit better feel to steering too.