The new truck has a failed upper steering column bearing. It's much cheaper to get a replacement steering column out of a junkyard and throw it into the truck than it is to repair the original, not to mention a lot faster. So I went to a junkyard and obtained a complete column.
Unfortunately, most junkyards do not keep the keys to their cars so no key was provided with the column. More importantly, on a Ford of this era you have to have the key (or at least have some way to turn the lock) in order to get the lock cylinder out of the column without damaging it (so you can fit another in its place). You can drill it out, of course, and some people use slide hammers to get it out (without realizing that they screwed up the column when they did that) among other techniques. My solution? Break out the pocket lockpick (the blue thing in bottom center.)
Not wishing to freeze my hands solid by trying it outside, I brought the 'new' column inside to work on. With Indy watching with interest, I had the column ignition lock picked and the cylinder out in less than a minute.
