1970 C10 Mud Truck Project

[tmacpherson]

Its a 1970 Chevy C10 sitting on a 1976? 4x4 chassis. The truck came from a young kid and it seems like nothing is working/fixed right. So far I have replaced the alternator, ordered a remanufactured SM465, I'm rebuilding the NP205 transfer case myself, and the list goes on....

At this point I'm waiting on the transmission, flywheel, and clutch kit to come in. Right now I'm trying to resolve the major steering issues this truck has. The amount of lift plus the 4x4 steering box makes my turning impossible. To help resolve this I'm going with cross over steering with maybe hydro assist.

The problem I'm currently trying to tackle is the steering column. When driving the truck it feels like its scrapping and sometimes binding. I snapped some pictures and I'm pretty sure what the issue is but not sure how to go about fixing it. In the one picture it looks like a part of the column came apart but not sure what holds it together. I would love some input to help me resolve it.