351 Cleveland swapped MII

I got the motor mounts welding done and they are now painted. I’m about to start the manual steering conversion. There are obviously many available options for the rack since everyone seems to like the Mustang II front suspension and steering for there hot rods. A quick search revealed different manual steering rack options. A 2.5 turn lock to lock. A 3 turn lock to lock. A 4 turn lock to lock and even a 4.5 turn lock to lock. I had no idea so many options existed. The number of turns lock to lock obviously comes down to the gear ratio. My simple mind assumes a 2.5 turn lock to lock will give quicker steering response but be much more difficult to turn in tight spots like parking lots. And at the opposite end, a 4.5 turn lock to lock would be much less effort to turn but would be way less responsive for spirited driving. My current power steering rack is 2.5 turns lock to lock. I checked yesterday.

Does anyone on here have experience with different ratio steering racks? I’m trying to decide which one would be the perfect compromise. I know my current rack is pretty tough to turn when moving around in the shop. So I obviously want to go with something more than 2.5. But I also don’t want my car to feel like my 69 F100 steering either. That thing can do a 1/4 turn of the steering wheel before you get any response in the front end. I definitely want this car tighter than that. So basically, I’m looking for recommendations on which manual steering rack to get.

Can someone with a factory manual steering Mustang II tell me how many turns of their steering wheel they get from lock to lock? Trying to determine what will be acceptable for ease of steer but still not feel like I’m sailing a ship.

I’m running 195/60/15 on the front on I believe 3.5 or 4” wide welds. Can’t remember exact wheel width. It’s been too many years since I ordered them. But they are pretty narrow. So hopefully that will work in my favor as far as turning effort.

I see several posts of 4 to 4.5 turn lock to lock racks. I assume they are the same just depending on the accuracy of the person counting. You’ve definitely got me convinced the 4 to 4.5 turn lock to lock is the way to go.

Does anyone know for sure if this is the Mustang II factory original ratio?

Flaming River website lists PN FR1502 as having 5.0 turns lock to lock. They sell shortened version like PN FR1502 2x2 and list it as having 4.0 turns lock to lock. But it has been shortened 2” making overall length 43” rather than the factory 45” length the Mustang II came with. I don’t think I could use the 43” rack and still have enough adjustment to get my alignment correct. I’m confused why the original length 45” rack from flaming river is advertised at 5.0 turns. Also flaming river is damn proud of their rack at $370 plus shipping. They do list PN FR1502 9 as a kit that comes with rod ends and bushings and an advertised ratio of 4.0 turns lock to lock for a whopping $505.

Rock auto lists a Mustang II manual racks for around $120. But they don’t specify the ratio or turns lock to lock. I assume they will be whatever was factory original. But I’m still not sure what the factory rack was turn to turn.

LILCBRA. You didn’t specify if your rack is the factory one or not.

Summit racing, Jegs, and Speedway Motors all list racks in the $170 to $220 price range. But they all say 3.5 turns lock to lock.

It seems getting the correct 4 - 4.5 ratio and not over paying for it requires a ton of research.

If the factory rack is 4 to 4.5 turns ratio. Then I’m golden. Rockauto has them cheap. The front suspension and steering is the only thing on this car with excellent aftermarket support where I shouldn’t have to pay custom special order prices. There for I am trying to take advantage of that and not have to over pay for once during this build.

The key to me taking advantage of this savings is knowing, is the factory mustang II manual steering rack 4-4.5 turns lock to lock?

That does help. I can order the rockauto one and then count the turns when it arrives. If it isn’t 4 to 4.5. I can always return it. But the fact that’s what you were given gives me more hope. I’ve heard of people ordering a 4 turn rack in the fox body world and getting a 2.5. That’s why I was so adamant. Like they say. 1 try is worth a 1000 theories. So I’ll give it a shot.

Now about that joint. I did read about that in my research. At this point in time, my understanding is I need a single u joint that is 3/4” round on one end and 9/16-26 on the other to adapt the manual rack to my power steering shaft. Soeedway Motors sells them for like $69. I did assume cutting the rag joint off would be necessary. But I was questioning if having two u joints on the steering arm was normal or acceptable. I obviously have one u joint further up the steering rod right at the firewall and will now have a second down at the steering rack. Is that how yours is now? I’m sure that is right, but my brain just keeps telling me that would create some slop.

Also, is the 3/4” round end of your adaptor smooth inside? Or does it have some sort of splines or flat spot to grip the shaft and not slip?

I did get the trans tunnel clearanced today. Wow does that section of metal push in easy. And you honestly can’t even tell. It clearanced so well that it didn’t dent. The whole section just moved in. So I’m happy with that. Sorting out the steering and building an inspection plate are my next steps.

Oh and I also need a Holley Red electric pump if anyone has a spare laying around. Otherwise that will have to come next month.

Also. Any regrets going from power steering to manual? I’m assuming yours was out of necessity like mine is. But just curious on your real world opinion. I really wanted to keep my power steering. But I just isn’t possible with the engine plate. And I need all the room I can get for headers.

Still waiting for the rack to come in from Rockauto. I also ordered the u joint adapter to replace rag joint from Speedway Motors.

In the mean time, I decided to complete my fuel cell setup. I installed the roll over valve and the vent tube.

I’ll most likely start making the inspection plate/motor to tranny spacer today. We all know the Mustang II has a special sized one and I can’t find one anywhere. So I’ll be modifying a standard small block ford one to fit with the Mustang II bell housing.

I cut out the rear frame rails, factory wheel tubs and all sheet metal from the rear seat back. That included the spare tire well. I custom built frame rails, wheel tubs, and fuel cell cage. Once everything was in place and final welded. I only had the small areas around the fuel cell to worry about. That area got plated with thick sheet metal.

Heres a picture of that work in progress. I have more pictures somewhere but can’t find them right now. In this picture I was putting in the frame rails and was planning to save as much factory sheet metal as possible. But plans changed as soon as I decided to go the fuel cell route. Then everything got cut out.

Well I thought I was going to have it easy. I just so happen to have a spare manual bell housing laying around for the mustang II. So I started to mock up and cut the plate to fit.

Cut it and tacked it in place. Did a test fit with my automatic tranny.

Well, I’m sure many of you on here smarter than me already know what happened. It didn’t fit. Apparently the auto bell housing puts the start in a slightly different location than the manual bell housing. I had no idea.

So here we are starting all over again. Lol