’ll admit, as much as I love retaining factory steering columns in 1940s-50s pickups, when an independent front suspension swap has been done, it’s not always the easiest—or the best—solution. Case in point: my 1948 Chevy.

When I received the truck, it had (and still has) an earlier Mustang II–type aftermarket IFS—actually, the entire front frame section was replaced. However, the stock non-shift column had been retained and modified to adapt with the manual rack-and-pinion. With a hand-filed DD on one end (with a homemade “column saver” that kind of did its job) and a blown-out mast jacket on the other, let’s just say it was rather sloppy, but more so, potentially dangerous. Because it was a “truck” column, I was unable to use any of the early GM factory steering wheels with a tall centersection due to the shorter stick out of the steering shaft (or so I believe—I may be wrong on the car versus truck column, but I do know none of my ’40s Chevrolet deluxe wheels fit!). So, my initial plan was to source a decent stock replacement, rebuild, and modify accordingly with a CPP Column Saver. That was until Ryan Manson and I wrapped up the American Autowire harness install and realized the importance of the dangling GM column plug with nothing in which to attach to!

Without a GM steering column, my truck would be without turn signals/hazard lights and a horn. Now, while I don’t really care much about having hazards, here in Southern California both turn signals and a healthy horn are a must! So, onto Plan B with the steering column …

Obviously, a huge tilt column was not in the cards for the ’48, so my options seemed kind of (really) limited at first, until I came across Flaming River’s Nostalgia column (their polished stainless FR1909PL in 30-inch length/1-1/2-inch diameter) and my search was over! Not only was the bell the perfect size for the aforementioned early GM wheels, it also perfectly accepted the metalflake Mooneyes three-spoke wheel I’d just been gifted from Chico at the Grand National Truck Show. Most importantly, it not only solved my wiring situation, it also removed any worries of mechanical failure previously posed by the modified-stock column—plus it looked a helluva lot nicer!

For the install, we (Ryan Manson and I) also ordered a length of polished 3/4-DD shaft with a 3/4-DD x 3/4-36 polished U-joint to complete the connection with the existing manual steering rack. Also, for reference purposes, even though we ended up having to retain the stock column drop and fabricated toeboard mount, Flaming River supplied a universal-swivel floor plate as well as a polished 2.5-inch adjustable column drop.