Steering Wheel Options -- Wide Tires -- No Power Steering

[mattfranklin]

So I have a 1970 short-step that I bought about a year ago. It has 255R15-60 tires on the front, a 13" steering wheel, and no power steering.

It's a bit hard to park. Sure, I'm 6'4" 265 so it should be ok, but it's still not very convenient sometimes. I'd like to keep it simple without PS. What I'd really like to do is upgrade the steeering wheel from that crazy little 13" billet thing. Would a stock diameter wheel make it all better? I'd actually like to go with a 'Vette looking wheel from ~1970. Can I just get a repro 1970 Corvette wheel (I've seen them for around $200) and bolt it on, or are trucks different? Does anyone make something that looks like that in a larger truck diamater?

When I ran a search it seems that everyone was saying "just convert to PS," but I really like the clean simple stock look under the hood without all of that extra complication.

Will just a bigger wheel be enough?

[TheSeeker]

I have a 69 sb with wide tires and no PS, Its my daily driver and when I received it from my dad it had an old 13" wood wheel that he had put in the truck from his duster. It was terrible in tight spaces as well. My wife bought me a nice black 15" wheel from mooneyes a few years ago and its been better since. The stock wheel in these trucks were 17" I beleive, and the more leverage you have the easier it is to turn these rigs with no PS.

Dont quote me on this, but im fairly sure that any GM wheel up to the late 70s/early 80s will bolt onto these columns. So the 70s vette wheel would be a viable option. Good Luck! ( I too refuse to go power steering, I am saving the extra slot in my pulleys for AC haha)

*here is the product page for the wheel I have, it required a hub adaptor http://www.mooneyesusa.com/shop/prod...oducts_id=2550

[mattfranklin]

Thanks for the link. Those wheels have the right look, too. In a perfect world I'd be able to find one of these 'vette-look wheels (like these: http://www.mooneyesusa.com/shop/prod...oducts_id=2551) with a 17" diameter.

Along that line of thinking, this one is kind of cool, too http://www.speedwaymotors.com/Compet...nch,28107.html, but it's not quite the retro-vette look that I had in mind.

[mattfranklin]

Just to complete this thread, I wound up putting on a stock-style wheel I got on eBay. See my build thread for pics.

[nobolt]

and...........

is it easier to steer?

[Steeveedee]

My truck has a Caprice steering wheel, looks like from around '74. I'd rather have the stock wheel in it, to be honest, if for no more reason than that it is stock. Also, my wife's arms may be pretty big, but it ain't muscle. She'd have a hard time wrestling it to the curb if it quit.

[mattfranklin]

Yes easier steering, although once I fixed that I just backed into the garage to do a fuel system upgrade and broke some things. So it wasn't much of a test, and I won't be able to do a more thorough test untill I get the rest of that fixed.