To maximize my available space utilization, I wanted to incorporate the entire steering mount / dash panel into one assembly with the braces I had made for installing the front sheetmetal body, but with all the projects I’ve been working on during this last week I ran through a full spool of welding wire and will have to run out tomorrow in the AM before I can finish this piece that was only in my mind before today.
In need of the small pillow-block bearing you see holding the steering shaft/wheel to the dash panel (click images to enlarge), I stopped by Whisler Industrial Supply (aka: Whisler Bearing) today on my way home from work with the the rusty steering shaft in hand. I got the usual "Can I help you?" from the counterman when I walked in.
Well you know as well as I do that you never know if a counter person in a parts place will be more of a help or a hinderance anymore. Like when you walk into the auto parts store and want spark plugs for a 350 Chevy or 302 Ford and the kid needs to know, "Automatic or Manual Transmission?"… You know right then that you know his business better than he does, but you want what you want so you deal with it or go down the road next time, appreciating all that much more when you find a real professional.
The man that I bumped into today, Dieter, Outside Sales; is just such a professional, not only knowledgeable in his business, but also helpful, informative and courteous. The kind of old school approach to Customer Service you don’t find all too often.
Since I have the U-joints from the original PTO shaft, to move the steering from its original "driver’s side" location from when this was a truck to the center more like a tractor, all I needed was the one small part, but Dieter took the time to make sure I was getting exactly what I needed, treating me like a valuable customer.
Leigh was along-side while I sat on a box on top of the frame (I don’t have a seat yet) telling me how the steering wheel looked as I held it in a couple of comfortable positions. We agreed on a spot and cut the shaft to length.
Since the panel fits well, centers & adequately holds the steering shaft, all that’s really left is to layout and cut the holes for:
- key & light switches
- choke
- throttle
- PTO Actuation
and I’ll still have room for a couple of gauges. I’ll install the u-joints tomorrow to get the whole steering set-up working again and maybe attack a few other "incidentals".
So if you’re in The Springs and looking for any sort of industrial supply, you may already know that you’ve got a good chance of finding it at Whisler (even if their website doesn’t seem to be built at the time of this writing) but ask for Dieter, he’ll get you what you need and treat you right while doing it.
