so i just bought a ford about a month ago driven it a handful of times. the body is great the engine is great with the original V8 the only thing i really want to do to it right now is go ahead and add the power steering to it but dont know where to start. Looking to do it on a budget thanks

 

Is the truck hard to steer now?

First, thing I will ask is does it have a stock front end and what kind of shape is it in - shocks, springs, kingpins, drag link, etc. These trucks won't drive like a new car, but a wore out front end and / or steering box really makes them a pain to drive.

Second, what size of tires do you currently have on the front.

And possibly a third would be is it at stock ride height.

If the above items are already an issue power steering is not going to solve your problems.

If everything is in good shape & you don't have a wide tire on the front they really aren't bad to drive.

 

I am going with the toyota power steering.

Good resource here if you haven't read yet. https://www.ford-trucks.com/article/idx/10/218/5379_FSeries_Steering__Suspension/article/Toyota_Steering_Box_Swap_For_19481960_Trucks.html

You can do it on a budget if you are willing to look around. Check craigslist, ebay, pick a parts, etc.
I bought the bracket from mid-fifty, the pitman arm on ebay, ps box on craigslist. I still need the hoses and will likely try a hydraulic shop for those.

 

I did the swap. Not finished just yet, but the box swap itself was a cinch.

One thing to consider... You need to decide if you're going to re-use the stock steering column/shaft or move to an updated unit.
If going to an updated column, whether or not you want a column shift or not. If you want a column shift, you are more or less stuck with buying a spendy aftermarket column as most used GM columns will not work without major fabrication/shortening. Using a floor shift would b a bit cheaper, butn then you have to add-in the cost of the floor shifter now.

Adapting the stock column and shaft is probably the cheapest and quickest way of doing it.

 

the biggest chunk of money is the toyota box. you can buy the pieces, where are you located (oc?) I have a spare toyota box for sale if you need it.

 

Has anyone ever done the manual toyota swap?

 

I would suggest the toyota power steering assuming you have the original suspension. I bought my box on craigslist for $50, the pitman arm is the CPP one on ebay also for $50. The weld on steering shaft coupler from midfiftys for $10.

I made my own pump and steering box mounts but would suggest just buying them as it will go faster.

For hoses I was able to reuse the ones that came with my 80's pump and re-flarred the box ends with fitting from the junkyard.

My install took me 5 hours that includes making and welding up the box bracket.

 

Did you find a double pulley dampener to run the pump or add a pully to your existing pump? What did you do about your horn wire? What kind of pump did you use?

 

Because my Y-block had the high mount fan, which I had removed and installed a thunderbird electric fan, I had an open pulley spot on the crank. The crank pully is solid though not an add on or dampened.

For the horn wire I drilled a hole in the side of the shaft right above the welded on coupler. The wire comes thru the hole and wraps around the shaft a bunch of times and then goes to the connection.... this system is going to need a little refinement but should work eventually untill I get around to doing some sort of little brass wiper system.

For the pump I modified a bracket of a 70's Ford the flat one with the three clamping bolts on top and one on the end to tension the belt. The pump itself is a later one with a plastic housing and large fill port, 80's vintage.

 

Thanks Jules!

 

Note to Self. Check out high mount water pumped Y-Blocks for Balancing Dampers with two grooves....

Thanks for the info Jules The Great!

 

Welcome to FTE,

Need a little more info as stated above to help you out with power steering. You can buy power steering kits from several sources; CPP, POL & MidFiftys to name a few.
These trucks have large steering wheels to assist with the "Arm Strong" steering and if maintained correctly don't take too much effort. If yours is hard to steer or all over the road, get it looked at by a front end alignment shop that can align solid axles. You'll need this done even if you go with the newer power steering units.
Again Welcome aboard and we'll be looking for what you did!

 

Well my pulley does not have a damper it is just a solid pulley, here are a few pics of what I did. Bracket looks kinda crappy because that is what happens when you butcher an existing bracket.


Also note that the outer groove is wider than the inner one.



I had to install the rams horn as the cross over tube was right where I wanted the pump filler to be.

 

B6TZ-6312-A .. 3 spoke design Harmonic Balancer (damper)-contains a double sheave pulley / 6 1/4" damper diameter, 6 timing marks.

Applications: 1956 trucks with 272 H/D engine.
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B5AZ-6312-A .. Harmonic Balancer (damper)-contains a single sheave pulley / 6.575"/6.625" pulley diameter / 6 timing marks ~ 4.86" overall length.

Applications: 1956 F100/600 272 (except 272 H/D engine) / 1955/56 Ford Passenger Cars 272/292/312.

To add P/S to these cars, a single sheave accessory outer pulley was bolted to this balancer.

FoMoCo procedure: Bolt single, double or triple sheave accessory outer pulleys to the balancer to add P/S, dual belt generators or alternators, A/C.

 

Well you can see in the picture I attached mine is a single piece with two grooves, the outer one was there to drive the high mount fan.

What do your books show for truck pulleys?