I'm going the conversion on the Detroit powered 76 F-250. I have a Bendix vacuum pump on it now and it's pissing oil, also my master cylinder is leaking fluid. That's enough for me! I'm going to buy the early 90s Astro HB unit, the lines for a superduty, and a late 80s K30 dually master cylinder, but my problem is I really need to stay with the stock power steering pump. Has anyone done it this way? I've searched all morning and can't find an example of someone running one successfully on the stock pump.

My current pump setup looks like this and is a mess of custom brackets to get it to fit on the Detroit. The A/C compressor is mounted directly above so there is no room for a different style pump.





Here's a shot of the A/C compressor, the PS pump is right underneath it.

 

I used the SD pump which in the end I had to mod the bracket slightly to rotate the pump a bit to get the belt to clear the radiator hose.
Suggestion: If it's that tight couldn't you extend the bracket toward the driver fender to get the clearance you need. It looks like there might be enough clearance for the fill tube. I guess there is only one way to find out.

Swap is well worth it. Good luck.

 

When I originally did the hydrobbost swap I used my regular Thompson power steering pump. It worked fine for the most part.

However, parking lot situations somewhat strained it cranking the steering wheel with the brakes applied. Not a big issue and I somewhat got down the technique of not being heavy handed with the wheel or heavy footed with the brake and it worked out fine.

I would do a search as I believe the SD power steering lines have slightly different fittings than the Chevy Astrovan unit. I saved myself the headache for the most part by using the Russel adapter fittings and having custom lines made, total price was much cheaper than autoparts store SD power steering lines.

Josh

 

I don't see how the Superduty line would be of any use. The booster will have metric o-ring fittings while your pump and box have compression flares. Plus your steering box is behind the crossmember so the lengths will be different. Sounds like a custom deal to me. When I did mine I cut the steel ends off a bunch of lines at the junkyard with the ends I needed for my connections. Then I made custom hoses with ferule type compression fittings that hook up the the steel tubes. I can take pictures later when Mama get home with the truck.

Also, is there a PS pump available for the Detroit in a truck application? I don't remember if those were ever used in trucks but if they were it might be something to consider as long as it has an internal relief.