I am in the process of putting my steering column back together. I am just past putting in the turn signal arm . Just installed the white plastic cancelling cam with the brassed metal on it . The cancelling cam fits into a heavy black metal plate that needs to be compressed so that a metal c-clip can be put on to retain all parts below.My question is - how or what tool can I use to compress enough to get c-clip on . There is a heavy metal center shaft that would be nice to use as a anchor point but it is loose and slides. I believe because of the telescopic steering. What can I use to assist in pushing down on this plate ? Thanx Brent

 

there's a tool for it, you can borrow them for free from autozone or buy one at your local auto supplier. It is however possible to compress it yourself if you have really strong fingers. Those little springs are STRONG. Depending on how strong the spring is you can either reach in with 1 hand, compress it and use your free hand to put the clip in. You can also make this a 2 person job. I've run into one on my el camino that was so strong i had to get a block of wood, stick it in the column, push the wood down with my feet and slide the clip in with my hand. After about an hour or two of swearing you'll get the clip in, dont worry. Make sure you have the horn contact (the plastic/brass round thingy) in before you put the lock plate on.

and to quote carcraft...



The lock plate is retained at its center with a spring clip, but the plate itself is under spring tension. The easiest way to remove the lock plate is with this special Lock Plate Removal Tool (shown in a factory illustration). They’re available at parts stores, dealerships, or you can fabricate your own out of bar stock. Crank down on the lock plate and remove the spring clip. The lock plate will come off when you remove the tool. Remove the coil spring and horn contact.

If you have tilt and need to use the tool you need to put the tool into position, and slide the long rod that locks the telescope in place, and put the big star bolt in the hole so that the telescope mechanism does not move while you're using the tool.

 

My problem now is that I can push the plate to the point of bottoming out and still cannot make the c-clip fit into groove on shaft. Brent

 

I had the same problem. You need to pull of the lock plate and turn the little plastic piece under it 180 degrees and then put it and the lock plate back on. I had mine apart 18 months ago. I am a little unsure of what the parts are called but put it this way.

I tried many methods and you will nether get the clip on its current configuration.

Pull it apart and see if the pieces underneath it can be rotated and still fit.

Once it is right the C-Clip almost needs no force to go in.