VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1929-1932 Horn Bushing Installation in Steering Column

I am about to install a new bushing in my ”˜31 Chevy’s steering column. Naturally I didn’t measure the old bushing’s distance in the column because it didn’t work anyhow and appeared to have moved further down into the column.

The bushing came out easily at the gear box end of the column by just pulling on the horn wire, so I assume the new one goes back in that way. It will be a tight fit, and I see that there is a notch in the steering column near the top steering wheel side of the column to integrate with the cutouts in the horn bearing.

How far should the bushing go into the column from the end of the tube? What keeps it in place? How does one line up the bushing cutouts up with the notch in the steering column?

I thought this would be an easy project. Famous last words! Anyone have experience with this?

Peter

If its like my 29, the bushing comes out, and goes in, from the steering wheel end. It should be a friction fit, fairly tight. The notch in the column is the stop for the bushing. If you don't seat the bushing against the stop the horn button prongs will contact the bushing before the horn button is fully installed. If the bushing goes in too far, the horn button prongs wont contact the bushing when the horn button is depressed. To seat the bushing I used the back side of a socket, from a socket wrench set, that just fit inside the column. I installed a long extention into the socket from the side that the nut goes in, and used that combination to pound the bushing in. Make sure that the extention doesn't stick through the socket and damage the hole that the steering wheel shaft goes through. Using the long extention helps in guiding the bushing square down the column. I found this all out the hard way. Hope things go better for you. Good luck.

Bill is correct.....you always remove and install the bushing from the steering wheel end, not from the bottom of the steering column because of the bushing locating tab that is inside of the sttering colum.

I did exactly the same, and it has worked twice. To be extra safe, I assembled the steering wheel and horn button with the horn wires in them and measured the distance the wires protrude from the steering wheel hub with the button pushed and released. That confirmed how far down the new bushing needed to be driven into the steering column. Then I marked the socket set extension with a grease pencil and drove until it was flush. Worked like a charm. Good luck with it!


All the Best, Chip

The supplier of the reproduction steering column bushing should have send installation instructions with the bushing. If not email me and I will email back a copy. As the manufacturer of the bushings we try to get people to install them correctly the first time. No need to destroy one before learning to install it. Because of the difference in the inside diameter of the column jackets we had to make the bushings so they would be tight in the largest jackets. That makes the smaller diameter jackets really tough to install. You can sand off a little of the "rubber" if they are too tough. But make sure not to sand off too much because if the bushing rotates in the jacket you will have problems.

I did get an instruction sheet with the horn bushing, but I want to be sure about a couple of things. The more I think about it, the more confusing it becomes.

Bill said: “The notch in the column is the stop for the bushing.” With that being said, why are there furrows (or cutouts) along either side of the bushing as if the notch should fit in one side or the other to allow for height adjustment of the horn bushing once inside the steering column?

It would seem that Chevrolet originally provided a standard height location for the horn bushing. However, if there is a bushing locating tab that is inside of the steering column, there should be no need to measure anything, wouldn’t you say?

Is the press fit with the horn bushing sitting on top of the locating tab enough to secure the horn bushing in place without moving? If it is a press fit, why would one use a lubricant to insert the horn bushing? Wouldn’t that negate the advantage of being a press fit and allow movement once in the steering column?

I appreciate everyone’s experience and recommendations. Hopefully with your assistance, I will be able to reassemble it properly the first time!

Peter

Installing the bushing is a simple operation. The bushing is pressed into place from the top of the steering column until the bushing bottoms out on the locating tab. Once there you are done.

Lubrication is used to allow the bushing to press into the steering column a little easier. Once in place the bushing will not move.

OK, I finally got it in! HOORAY!

I had to sand the rubber down a little with my rotary tool and a flapper sander bit. With some silicone spray, I than tapped it down to the stop. It fits tightly at it's resting spot.

I might mention that prior to putting the bushing in, I dropped a another plain wire from the horn wire outlet hole on the steering column up the column to the steering wheel side and soldered the wire to the horn bushing wire.

Therefore, all I had to do is easily pull the wire with the horn wire attached down and out the horn wire hole at the bottom of the steering column. No fussing with trying to get the wire out the little hole!

Thanks to all who guided me through this project.