Best Tilt Column???

[pharmin06]

For guys that are running tilt column's which one has the best fit, finish and function.
Thanks,
Joey


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[gray gables]

following,

 

[duffymahoney]

I have the Ididit, and it's very nicely made. Powder coating is perfect. Overall I am very happy.

 

[englewoodcowboy]

I went with the flaming river. Fit and finish is perfect. I prefer the billet levers for style.


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[pharmin06]

I have the Ididit, and it's very nicely made. Powder coating is perfect. Overall I am very happy.

Do you have a factory or centech harness?


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[duffymahoney]

I have the painless harness

 

[Pa PITT]

.. I'VE PUT IN 3 1979 ford truck or Bronco tilt columns .. BUT THEY HAVE ALL 3 BROKE .
.. I'll say I'm 5'.7'' & 225lb. My Bronco has 33's on it. So When I get into the Bronco I tough on the wheel. & my columns have all broke down.. .
... AND THEY don't tilt but about 2 clicks Up .. But they will come down between your legs. Mine doesn't need to come down any but I want it to tilt up to the wind shield out of the way..
BUT THE 78 / 79 'S ARE BACKWARDS OF WHERE THEY NEED TO GO.
...Following to see if the IdidIT'S WILL TILT UP ENOUGH .& NOT BREAK .

 

[DirtDonk]

For guys that are running tilt column's which one has the best fit...?

Well, I'm going to have to put on my salesman's badge, hat and pocket protector and say "ours does" because it's made for a Bronco specifically.
Other than inner bearings and such (I think?), it's all made to fit an Early Bronco and not generic like all others have to be.
http://www.wildhorses4x4.com/category/Ididit_Columns

Even the stock lower shaft (on '73 and later Broncos) will bolt right on if you want to reuse it.

...finish?

Here, I have not seen any one that is better or worse than the others. Most familiar with Flaming River and Ididit, but those are the two biggest players other than stock junkyard stuff anyway. And might just be the sources of choice for all the other generic private labeled models out there you see for sale.
And both do a good job of coating and putting theirs together.
No reliability issues with any that I've heard of. Other than finicky aftermarket horn buttons and wheel fitment. But that's not always the fault of the column manufacturer.

...and function?

Going to have to say the same here. All are well made and work as expected most of the time.
Can't say I've seen any difference between the generics. But our "Direct Fit" Ididit columns use all Bronco replacement items. So your firewall clamps and gaskets still fit, and your stock replacement turn signal switch and lever and wheel and horn button and all that are what you use. No trying to figure out what GM to order parts for out on the road, or whatever.

Can't think of any real downside to a direct-fit other than price.
They're never going to be as cheap as your most generic, sold through the largest distributing warehouse in the highest volume. It's just how the world works.

Paul

 

[Glass Pony]

X2 on the WH Ididit direct fit.

 

[ransil]

The ones with the built in Neutral safty switch and Backup light switch are nice, especially if you are doing a fresh wiring job, everything is right one the column.

 

[pharmin06]

Well, I'm going to have to put on my salesman's badge, hat and pocket protector and say "ours does" because it's made for a Bronco specifically.
Other than inner bearings and such (I think?), it's all made to fit an Early Bronco and not generic like all others have to be.
http://www.wildhorses4x4.com/category/Ididit_Columns

Even the stock lower shaft (on '73 and later Broncos) will bolt right on if you want to reuse it.



Here, I have not seen any one that is better or worse than the others. Most familiar with Flaming River and Ididit, but those are the two biggest players other than stock junkyard stuff anyway. And might just be the sources of choice for all the other generic private labeled models out there you see for sale.
And both do a good job of coating and putting theirs together.
No reliability issues with any that I've heard of. Other than finicky aftermarket horn buttons and wheel fitment. But that's not always the fault of the column manufacturer.



Going to have to say the same here. All are well made and work as expected most of the time.
Can't say I've seen any difference between the generics. But our "Direct Fit" Ididit columns use all Bronco replacement items. So your firewall clamps and gaskets still fit, and your stock replacement turn signal switch and lever and wheel and horn button and all that are what you use. No trying to figure out what GM to order parts for out on the road, or whatever.

Can't think of any real downside to a direct-fit other than price.
They're never going to be as cheap as your most generic, sold through the largest distributing warehouse in the highest volume. It's just how the world works.

Paul

Thanks for the replies. Do you guys offer the aluminum column it the direct replacement? Also I have a 77' so if I call to order, you guys can tell me what else I need to install?


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[pipermike]

I have the Flaming River Coloum, very happy with it, I went with the polished stainless, if I were to do it again I would get black powder coat, too much reflection in the windshield sometimes, just something to think about

 

[DirtDonk]

Do you guys offer the aluminum column it the direct replacement?

No. And really I don't think aluminum would be a good material for a truck's steering column. At the very least for the reasons that Pa Pitt and pipermike brought up.
Not everyone hangs on their wheel to climb in, but I bet a LOT of us do at some point. And aluminum would almost always be a polished version for most (street rod and custom car builders like that shiny stuff) so reflections and glare would be real concerns.
And it would naturally be more expensive. Just not much demand for it from our point of view.

Sure, it's lighter and cooler, but the first is not as important to most truck owners, and the latter costs more.

Agree totally with the shiny stuff not being for everyone. It looks great, is easy to clean (in the case of chrome), and is not overly expensive in the chrome version (same as powder). Polished stainless might be in the same range as polished aluminum possibly. Stronger, but still too bright for my tastes.

Also I have a 77' so if I call to order, you guys can tell me what else I need to install?

Sure. Easy enough if things are still mostly stock. In fact, if yours is stock, there really isn't anything else you should need that I'm aware of. Everything from your steering wheel down to your lower steering shaft should just reattach to the new column. About as easy as it gets.

However, if your lower yoke and/or rag joint are worn out or just showing their age and you want to change, you could get the replacement shaft as well.
Same for the steering wheel. We do sell replacements, but whether you want or need one is up to you.
Otherwise it's all good to go and the instructions will tell you anything you need to know about the wiring (hopefully!) and even that's pretty straightforward.

You could check out the videos too, if you haven't already. The swap shown was done in a '76, so is the same as your '77.

Paul

 

[pharmin06]

No. And really I don't think aluminum would be a good material for a truck's steering column. At the very least for the reasons that Pa Pitt and pipermike brought up.

Not everyone hangs on their wheel to climb in, but I bet a LOT of us do at some point. And aluminum would almost always be a polished version for most (street rod and custom car builders like that shiny stuff) so reflections and glare would be real concerns.

And it would naturally be more expensive. Just not much demand for it from our point of view.



Sure, it's lighter and cooler, but the first is not as important to most truck owners, and the latter costs more.



Agree totally with the shiny stuff not being for everyone. It looks great, is easy to clean (in the case of chrome), and is not overly expensive in the chrome version (same as powder). Polished stainless might be in the same range as polished aluminum possibly. Stronger, but still too bright for my tastes.







Sure. Easy enough if things are still mostly stock. In fact, if yours is stock, there really isn't anything else you should need that I'm aware of. Everything from your steering wheel down to your lower steering shaft should just reattach to the new column. About as easy as it gets.



However, if your lower yoke and/or rag joint are worn out or just showing their age and you want to change, you could get the replacement shaft as well.

Same for the steering wheel. We do sell replacements, but whether you want or need one is up to you.

Otherwise it's all good to go and the instructions will tell you anything you need to know about the wiring (hopefully!) and even that's pretty straightforward.



You could check out the videos too, if you haven't already. The swap shown was done in a '76, so is the same as your '77.



Paul

Thank you sir, I'll call you!


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[ScanmanSteven]

Glass Pony, was it really necessary to post that picture? Beautiful interior, not a spec of dirt that I can see, while mine is mainly off-road use, yours is beautiful.

 

[ntsqd]

Do any of these options have the lane-change function in the switch, and do any of them have the Hi-Lo selector as part of the turn signal stalk?

 

[DirtDonk]

Nope. We discussed that awhile back and as far as anyone has seen, no aftermarket company yet makes a multi-function switch the same as on modern cars and trucks. Modern meaning anything in the last 30 or so years.

In the case of the Direct Fit, that's an obvious non-starter, as the turn signal switch is original Bronco issue. Nothing exotic. Leaves out the nice options, but keeps it original and simple for replacement parts.

To do a reasonably good swap, you'd need to use the column out of a newer car or truck, rather than trying to retrofit the desired type of switch to an older, smallish and simple round housing.

Sure be nice though, wouldn't it?

Paul

 

[DirtDonk]

Glass Pony, was it really necessary to post that picture? Beautiful interior, not a spec of dirt that I can see, while mine is mainly off-road use, yours is beautiful.

Pretty slick setup for sure!
Notice too, the silver DiNardo tubes from the ambient cycle side of the Flux Capacitor mounted in the back?

...Or is that his beach chair?%)

Paul

 

[904Bronco]

I have the WH's Ididit direct replacement column in my 68. It is column shift for my 4R70W. With Lokar shift linkage.
I have no complaints about fit or finish.
Wiring with the Centech harness was easy.
Operationally, it works great. I did have to machine a bushing in order to mount the Grant steering wheel of my choice and have the turn signal cancellation feature work correctly. Both Vendors were called and each pointed at the other.

Now here are some observations -

The gear shift indicator, which you have to install (by drilling two small holes), is not lighted. The rotation from Park to 1st gear is not true. By that I mean when you install the GM based indicator, you set it up so neutral is in the center. Travel of the pointer, which is glued down to the moving portion of the column, can be a little more/a little less in each direction.
Being 6' 4", when I drop the gear selector down into 1st gear, there is not a lot of room for my right leg, with the T-shifter and Tuffy center console.

I am at the point in my current build, where I am not sure what column I will use... Hoping to get some insight from this thread. $700+ for a new one is a little heavy on the budget...

 

[toddz69]

Do any of these options have the lane-change function in the switch, and do any of them have the Hi-Lo selector as part of the turn signal stalk?

The 78-79 Ford truck tilt column has the lane-change function on it as does the Flaming River column.

I'm on my second Flaming River column - the first one got some squeaky bearings in it after about 10 years and when I sent it in to get it rebuilt, they said it was outdated and sent me a new one for the price of the rebuild of the original one. Excellent customer service.

Todd Z.