Ebay steering box warning

[iamflashman]

There is a man selling Delphi 600 steering boxes on ebay claiming them to be a "bolt-on" operation.  He advertises them as being for 52-59 Ford Delphi steering.  I purchased one of these boxes to try and it has been a nightmare.

The problem I have with this man is that he did no research and clearly has no understanding of how steering for these cars works.

Mounting the box is fairly straight-forward.  You have to cut a clearance notch in the frame and then make a bracket for the two rear holes on the box.  He provides a joke of a template so you just have to start small and slowly make the notch the correct size.  He does state you have to make a clearance notch in the ad so I do not hold this against him.

The real trouble comes in after you have the frame ready.  The bolts he provides are laughable.  The ones he sent me were 3/8" X 4 grade 5 bolts.  The bolts are to go through the frame, then through the thread hole in the box and use a nut on the back side. 

There were several problems with this.  Aside from not wanting to put my life in the hands of some sorry bolts, they were also too short.  Did he ever try these bolts?

Instead of using these, I went to the bolt shop and just got the proper 19mmX100mm grade 8 (10.9) bolts.  Why did he just not include the right bolts? 

The next problem was when bolting the rear holes to the bracket.  The bottom rear hole is so close to the frame that there is no way to get a hex head bolt in there.  This is solved by using a socket cap which I also got at the bolt shop.  Did he never even actually try to bolt one.  Even by his template he should have known that would not work.

Then it really got intersting.  He states that he has pitman arms for sale but what he fails to mention is that the pitman arm is just a 7" center to center flat steel one.  These have to be shortened to have the proper center to center length.  When I told him that the pitman arm was too long, he asked me if length was a problem!  It seems basic knowledge that the pitman arm and idler arm must be the same to have the proper geometry or you would always wear one tire out faster than the other when turning.  Not to mention other issues.  Again, he demonstrated he has no idea what he is doing.

The next issue was that the centerline of the output shaft actually is further back than original.  You then have to relocate the idler arm to compensate.  Not a big deal but this is sounding less bolt on by the minute.

The worst part in this whole deal was not the fact the installation was challenging.  We all love a challenge!  It was his lack of R&D.  When you ask him a question, he just responds with pictures from some installation out there.  I am actually concerned that these other folks installing the box are going to have problems.  Only one guy's installation pics he sent actually looked like it will work.  The others clearly have problems...

He also does not respond to emails once you have a problem. 

So, lesson in this, buy the Borgeson (or some other) box if you want an integral box.  This one is clearly a bad fit.

Sorry for the rant, just don't want others making the same mistake.

[JPotter57]

Excellent write up on an apparent poor quality product.  Thanks for the heads-up...