Seems like there's some sort of bushings (or something) missing from inside my steering column. On rough patches of street, highway etc, I get an insane amount of LOUD rattling... is there any way to get rid of this?

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-Anthony
1962 Plymouth Valiant Signet 200

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Do you detect any slop, looseness, play in any of the parts? Steering wheel, turn signal switch, column gearshift if so equipped?

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Wheel in general has several degrees of play. i.e., you can jiggle it back and forth a little but without really engaging the wheels to turn. Turn signal arm is fairly tight from a recent new cam put in... this shaking/rattling has occured pretty much since I've had the car.

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-Anthony
1962 Plymouth Valiant Signet 200

So were I to pull off the wheel and some etc, would it be possible to place some kind of grommet or bushing in there to prevent this jarring rattle? Rough patches translate waaaay up all the way into the horn ring, I don't think this would've been a standard feature in automobiles at the time... what to do? Hasn't anyone else had this problem?

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-Anthony
1962 Plymouth Valiant Signet 200

You can’t have rattling and banging without looseness somewhere. If it’s not loose on the steering wheel end, check the other end of the steering column and all the steering parts between the wheels. You may have to relieve it somehow for it to show. Try jacking the front end up and wiggle the tires.

Jack it in the center so the springs hang freely then jack each wheel to take the pressure from the spring/torsion bar so only the wheel hangs freely. Wiggle the wheels top to bottom and side to side.

Yeah, at this point you will need to (remove and) disassemble the column, find what's broken or missing or worn, repair it, and reassemble. Don't just try to muffle the noise with a grommet that doesn't belong; it's safety-critical that the steering column be all the way intact.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Copy that... next time I'm with my buddy who owns a jack, we'll check some of this stuff. The steering isn't quite affected by the problem, which is why it felt to me like there's just a bushing or something missing, but duly noted!

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-Anthony
1962 Plymouth Valiant Signet 200