After reading around a bit I decided to try the jeep steering shaft swap for my 85 S-15 2.8L automatic column shift. Also my steering column is out so the swap is opportunistic.
I captured a shaft from a 93 Cherokee at the junk yard. At home I removed my stock shaft and measured the both (with a tape measure, so these numbers are not all too precise). The stock shaft installed length was 19", and it collapses to a minimum of 15 1/2". The Cherokee shaft had an installed length of 20", collapses to a minimum of 16 3/8", and stretches to a maximum of 21 1/2".
I was thinking about cutting it down, so I heated the wider portion of the Jeep shaft, as suggested by this thread
http://www.s10forum.com/forum/f178/first-generation-rag-joint-cure-196484/
Some plastic inside the shaft melted and I was able to pull the two parts apart. The wider portion measured 12 3/4" long and the narrower, 12 1/2" (for a total of 25 1/4"). Thus, if I were to cut one inch off each end, I would achieve a minimum collapse of 15 3/8", and at a 19" installed length, would have a little more than 2 inches overlap.
93 Jeep Cherokee steering shaft by crice63, on Flickr
However, I don't have a sufficiently large cutting tool, so I decided that the extra 7/8" of uncollapsible length would probably not represent an undue additional danger in a head-on collision. The two portions fit together smoothly--no rocking or shifting once they are together, despite the missing plastic guide, so I decided to put it on without modification.
The splines on the steering box seemed to accept it with no problem. I did need to grind down a very small portion of the column shaft so the bolt could go through, as shown in this photo--dremel tool worked fine for this.
http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u219/MC87SS/Jeep Shafts/IMAG0560-1.jpg
When I install my steering wheel I will see if it is upside down or not--if so, I'll just remove the upper portion of the shaft, rotate it 180, and reinstall. When the truck is back on the road I will report on the steering quality.
If anyone has comments on the safety issues involved here, it would be great to hear them.
I captured a shaft from a 93 Cherokee at the junk yard. At home I removed my stock shaft and measured the both (with a tape measure, so these numbers are not all too precise). The stock shaft installed length was 19", and it collapses to a minimum of 15 1/2". The Cherokee shaft had an installed length of 20", collapses to a minimum of 16 3/8", and stretches to a maximum of 21 1/2".
I was thinking about cutting it down, so I heated the wider portion of the Jeep shaft, as suggested by this thread
http://www.s10forum.com/forum/f178/first-generation-rag-joint-cure-196484/
Some plastic inside the shaft melted and I was able to pull the two parts apart. The wider portion measured 12 3/4" long and the narrower, 12 1/2" (for a total of 25 1/4"). Thus, if I were to cut one inch off each end, I would achieve a minimum collapse of 15 3/8", and at a 19" installed length, would have a little more than 2 inches overlap.
93 Jeep Cherokee steering shaft by crice63, on Flickr
However, I don't have a sufficiently large cutting tool, so I decided that the extra 7/8" of uncollapsible length would probably not represent an undue additional danger in a head-on collision. The two portions fit together smoothly--no rocking or shifting once they are together, despite the missing plastic guide, so I decided to put it on without modification.
The splines on the steering box seemed to accept it with no problem. I did need to grind down a very small portion of the column shaft so the bolt could go through, as shown in this photo--dremel tool worked fine for this.
http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u219/MC87SS/Jeep Shafts/IMAG0560-1.jpg
When I install my steering wheel I will see if it is upside down or not--if so, I'll just remove the upper portion of the shaft, rotate it 180, and reinstall. When the truck is back on the road I will report on the steering quality.
If anyone has comments on the safety issues involved here, it would be great to hear them.