Power or Manual Steering?

As I put my Charger back together this winter, I have to make a decision with the steering. It is a 69 Charger with a 470 stroker. I like the simplicity of Manual steering but how good/bad would it be for a street driven mopar? All the experience I have with the vintage mopar steering is the over boosted power steering. Thanks for any advice!!

A lot will depend on front tyre sizes and wheel alignment .
Like I you I like the simple no leak no belt etc for street strip . I have no problem driving mine around parking etc , this was my daily up till a year ago. Though i have a 185R15 front tyre , and no excessive positive caster only about 1deg+ . Also standard steering wheel . I have a World iron block so there is also an extra 90lbs on the nose
I also found out there are 2 steer boxes , 1 with needle bearings and 1 with bushes .

Tex

Thanks Tex for the response. Eventually, like a few years from now the car will have a Keith Black hemi in it, but for the time being it is a 470 with all the aluminum stuff like heads, intake, etc. I won't be using wide tires in the front either, although I am undecided on size.

Yup, tire size & nose weight play into it, as does usage.
My Hemi RR w/manual steering & 265/50R15s on the front was a bit of work parallel parking, which I rarely did.
Going down the road it was fine, and I never wished for PS on it.
If you use your car like a normal car - parking, urban/suburban driving - you might want PS for one-handed operation.

look into EPAS systems. electric power steering is great you can adjust steering feel with a rheostat. No hoses or fluid mess . Its like manual steering only with assist. I've installed several systems and they have all worked out well. It is a bit pricey but they work

street car, I'd go Borgeson power steering - any that I do in the future will be that.

The Mopar power steering boxes are really heavy compared to a stock standard steering box
I've had a bunch of Mopars street cars with both, I like the standard steering cars the best for two reason, easier changing spark plugs and more room to work on the motor installing them and or removing them

It is a lighter car but I have manual steering on my 69 Cuda and it is easy to drive. It has a fairly wide tire in the front as well. On the highway you don't even notice it at all. I have installed a Borgeson power steering box on a couple customers cars and I second if you have the money, they are a quality unit and work very well. I could not put power steering on my Cuda because it has a procharger bracket where the pump would go.

my charger also has power steering.
i installed a small, 13" wood steering wheel, and as the pump is a saginaw pump, i shimmed the relief valve as per the mopar action article of several years back.
it seems to have a very good feel to this old coot, but as is always the case, your mileage will vary.

Manual all the way. I hate the power steering that came in these old cars. It's too easy to steer and finicky.
My 77 year old dad, who's fighting cancer, still drives his '69 road runner, 440-6 4 speed w/ manual steering and normal size tires up front...not skinnies.

Overall I really like the simplicity, lighter weight and extra space underhood with manual.

But....I don't like the slow steering ratio very much.

With a stick shift I like driving power steering better, it's just easier to whip the car around with one hand on the shifter, and the faster ratio
is more comfortable for me.....even though it comes with the downside of usually being overboosted and lacking quite a bit in road feel.

My GTX was originally PS, I converted to manual decades ago but might go back to power someday.

Took the power steering off my 74 Charger and swapped in manual a long time ago (I was young and strong). It was ok and it cleaned up the engine bay. I am not a young man anymore and trying to swing that big old boat around with manual steering is a PIA. I have the Borgeson kit and will be swapping that in this winter. I cant wait to cruise the car and actually be able to enjoy it again. Plus the wife will be able to drive it as well. She cant do the manual steering at all.

I like them both ways, just depends on the overall car. Manual is a bit better with a 4 speed I think since you can get the car to roll just a tad as needed at low speeds. Easy to use the clutch to take advantage of gravity in a lot of places.