Tilt Rant! Ya gotta be McGuyver or Something!?!?

[wedgemon]

OK, I'm no Chevy truck novice. I've had columns in and out, probably, 6 times before in the past 30 years. So, this past weekend, the wife was away for 2 days, I had the perfect opportunity to install the 1980 tilt column I bought a year ago. I knew I needed to swap the key cylinder and I'd be ready to go.

I recruited my Chip Foose wannabe kid to help. "I said, pull that clamp off under the master cylinder." He gets right on it as I build the oddest collection of 2 thru 6 inch 3/8th extensions hooked to a Makita, to make the reach under and thru the underdash wiring to the column kick panel screws.
They're 10mm BTW... That's when the boy says, "What socket comes between 9/16 and 5/8... AND, do we have a deep one??"

Sherman, set the "WAY-BACK" machine to about 1966 so I can kick the GM engineers' slide rule outa his pocket, you know the guy that thought it would be either cool or funny to incorporate not only the infamous 19/32 & 5/32 hardware, but also to throw in a 10mm!! Dad always said “Son, when ya work on a Chevy, ya gotta expect some leftover hardware, and ALWAYS have a crescent wrench handy…”

But, I digress.

Got my column out. That was a 2 hour ordeal. I do have 2 19/32’s. One open end and one standard depth socket. The kid and I both have busted knuckles from the M/C and are grateful for the 3 foot handled heavy duty magnet, ‘cause, every time we got the socket on about a 3 click turn, it’d loosen and slide over the nut and fall under the truck.

Managed, with a framing hammer and a crowbar, to get the lock plate clip off. Who needs that dang KD Lock Plate Removal Tool anyway.

Right??

This get’s me into hour number 9 on Saturday. Figure reassembly would be a breeze in the A.M.

Wrong!!

An eight armed man with three buddies couldn’t re-install that danged little clip with a crowbar and hammer!! After three hours of frustrating effort. I spent the $10 bucks (What’s my time worth again??) on the DANGED tool.

I don’t think it took two minutes to do it right. With the danged tool.

So, now we just need to install the intermediate shaft. So, I lay the new column on the bench, strap it down, slide the end of the I-shaft up to the end of the column shaft – checking for correct orientation, and commence tapping it on with the rawhide mallet.. Almost, get both holes aligned, and the column shaft sucks right on into the column, kinda like getting ice water thrown on your - well, you know… Yep, that's when I realized the engineered collapsibility of modern steering columns. Managed to re-extend it. And managed to adjust the I-shaft to slip on, for real, this time.

I recheck everything I’d done so far, and declare it ready to go back in.

Ya ever seen the underdash area of a moderately equipped 1980 Scottsdale, WITH aftermarket A/C, AND a clutch?!?!? Not just all the wiring and ductwork, but the clutch pedal down rod goes right down thru the middle of the whole schlemiel!! Not to mention the trailer brake stuff.

More cuts and scrapes. It’s all bolted in. Turn the key. It’s stuck!! The wiring is caught up ‘tween the mount and the column – cinching the ignition shaft. So, again, It’s all bolted in. Turn the key. Nothin’!!

Like I said, I’m no novice. But, even a novice knows to plug the harnesses in to the switch!! (maybe I’m just tired of a 2 hour project that turns into 2 days!!) So, one-more-time, all bolted in. Turn the key.

VROOOOM!!! We have liftoff!!

I took the rest of the night off. And will button it up tonight.

I’m really hoping there’s no further episodes of this nightmare…

I’ll let ya know.

- Dave