One of those days - Part 1:
Today started well enough as I tided up the enlarged hole in the steering column cover with a hand file.
I'd taped some cardboard over the wheel boss to ensure I had a sufficient gap all the way around.
I also need to seal off the hole in the steering column cover for the windscreen washer lever.
So I cut out a small section of metal & bent it a little to see if that would do the job.
I'll come back to finish this off another day, but it should work.
I also put a hole in an old tennis ball to cover the end of the column once it was fitted.
Then it was back to crawling around inside the bulkhead trying to set up the steering column.
For some reason it was easier to see what I was doing today and this helped me work out what the problem was.
Whilst the boss of the new steering wheel doesn't help, it is actually the column itself that is not right.
Unfortunately it did take me a very long time to to work this out.
And it was with a heavy heart that I undid all the clamps and removed the column completely.
This cut out section sits over the lower steering shaft connected to the steering rack itself.
Then this clamp holds the two sections together.
Which means the outer column can only be pushed down as far as this clamp.
However, this still doesn't leave enough room for the steering wheel at the other end.
I tried the original wheel again and there was barely any thread available.
Plus the wheel was not butting against the taper in the steering column.
Instead, it would be hitting the plastic indicator cancelling "thingy".
So if the steering wheel is pushed as far as it needs to go on the column.
Then this is the problem at the other end.
Clearly there isn't enough room for the clamp to be fitted and the steering to work.
When I first bought my donor car the "old" steering wheel came off in my hand, as it wasn't bolted into place.
At the time I thought this was because the "new" steering wheel was meant to be fitted instead.
Now I think the previous owner came across this problem and never got around to fixing it.
Based on
Scottie's comment from the other day I went back and had another look at what he did.
He actually cut 2 inches off the top of the outer column like so.
So I think I have two options and I would value any feedback.
Option 1 - Cut a few mm off the bottom of the outer steering column.
( I can't remove anything from the top end as I am using the ignition switch, indicator stalk, etc.
Option 2 - Extend the "cut out" in the inner steering column by the same few mm instead.
( This would allow the clamp to fit with the outer column untouched. )
Personally, I think the second option would be
slightly easier for me to do.
But I don't want to try this option if there is a risk of weakening the inner column itself.
Please let me know what you think, as for now, I've put the steering column to one side.
I'm not sure if I spend too long with my head upside down in the bulkhead.
But at one point I really felt terrible and actually had to lie down for a bit to recover.
End of Part 1...