Power steering swap

[movinman]

I have been (finally) driving my 66 around for the past several weeks, and the 302/AOD combo with a dana 44 rear have been awesome. The truck runs up the highway at 70 miles an hour with minimal effort. I am completely sold on overdrive transmissions. I still have the stock manual steering though, and its a bear to steer. My girl won't even get behind the wheel, and I struggle with the steering and I am 6"4 and just shy of 300lbs. My question is this. What is required to change my 66 to power steering? Are there any boxes that bolt up to the original holes? This is my first Slick, so please forgive me if this has been covered before.

By the way, I love this site! The info found here is amazing! Thanks!

[BigMike]

You need:

Steering Gear
PS Pump and all the brackets and hoses
Driver side engine perch
Steering column

Make sure you get the Ford and not the Bendix. I'm not sure what year Ford stopped using Bendix but I want to say it was '67. I got all of the stuff from a '71 F250, but you can get it from any truck up to '79.

[banjopicker66]

Big Mike is correct. I would also add that you would do well to add in power disc brakes at the same time.
The best way to do these upgrades is to find a '73 - '79 F-100 or F-150 to use as a donor truck. Make sure it has power disc brakes and power steering.
You will need the complete setup from the donor, including all the steering linkage, everything between the steering wheel and the dust cap over the outer wheel bearing.
Getting the complete truck means you have everything, and don't have to make multiple trips to the boneyard.
You will probably have to get new parts like the calipers, master cylinder, tie rods etc, but the donor truck will begin pay for itself in the cores you will need.
Many of us have done this upgrade, and it is a safety as well as a convenience factor, so don't hesitate to ask questions.

Best of all, you can sell all the parts you do not need off the donor truck, and then sell the shell for scrap metal. My donor actually let me make a profit on the project!

Plan our work and work your plan, get everything together, and you will be glad you did this.

PS: Mike is also correct to avoid the Bendix power steering setup. Although the Ford power steering was used before '73, I recommend getting a '73 or later donor for the disc brakes which were standardized and better by '73.

[movinman]

Thanks for the advice, guys. Banjo, I already did the power disc brake conversion. Looks like a donor vehicle is in my immediate future.

[Frank Kelley]

I found a Bendix power steering box on ebay that was the same as my manual steering box. I was able to use it with my original steering colum. I just had to pull the colum up a little and I used the pump and bracket out of a 76 F100. I couldnt believe it when I was able to use it with out making any modifications. I think you can find the bendix box by doing a search on the internet or some times on ebay. It seem like all the Bendix boxes I have found are in California. By the way I am 6'2" 275lb and the steering wheel is pretty close to the old tool shed. I plan on putting a smaller Grant Challenger steering wheel in mine to give me a little more room. Good Luck.