Close Ratio Steering Box for '66 F100

[brute66]

Does anyone happen to know if I can get my factory manual steering box rebuilt with a ratio closer; something closer to 16:1 ? I just rebuilt my front suspension with DJM beams and poly bushings and would like to go one step further and reduce the amount of steering input that is required with these factory boxes. If not, is there a good aftermarket box available? thx

[lineman1984]

Hey Brute,
I am not sure about the rebuild you are asking about, but I was wondering if you had considered going to power steering? I ask because I started a post a couple of months ago about converting our '66 F100's to power steering. The post is full of good info from very knowledgeable folks and I will begin this upgrade as soon as the weather is fit. I intend to update the thread as I make progress.
Also, just thinking about a possible rebuild. Seems to me that you would increase steering effort by reducing the ratio. Makes sense to me that these old slicks have such a high ratio to reduce the amount of power necessary to steer the truck. A lot of people way smarter than me around here but I hope this helps.
Justin

[randyr]

I recently put DJM beams on my '66. It was also time to replace the leaking power steering gearbox I had previously installed from a '76 F250 back when I converted to power steering. After reading several online reviews I decided to purchase the rebuilt steering gearbox from Redhead Steering Gears http://www.redheadsteeringgears.com/ I got the "quick-steer" version which is 3.5 turns from lock to lock. It really makes the truck feel a bit more sporty and handle a little more like a modern vehicle. I don't know if they have a similar gearbox for manual steering but like lineman1984 suggested, you might wanna consider converting to power steering because the reduced ratio will make it harder to steer, depending on your tire choice.

[brute66]

Thanks for the excellent responses, guys. I didn't realize that a tighter steering ratio would increase effort. But for me, the effort really isn't the problem, it's the amount of input required to turn the wheel. Especially at lower speeds and when manuevering in tight spots, the amount of cranking comes secondary, to me, to the delayed input to the front wheels at speed. I would prefer the quicker response the tighter box would offer at the expense of effort. In other words I would accept the demand for more muscle in exchange for fewer arm motions. Also, I'm not in favor of adding more weight to the front of the truck and power steering will do just that, I'm trying to remove as much weight off the front end without straying too much from originality. I'll contact the Redhead guys to see if they offer a quick ratio manual box.