I have a FirmFeel stage 3 in my 66 barracuda. The change is very noticeable in a positive way over stock. It holds the road way better and there isn't any slop during driving.
Before the wheel could move side to side well driving in a straight line. Now the car feels like a modern car - I haven't had it much over 90 yet but holds the road very well
It was worth the money - (the installation was a major pain in the arse (but that was plymouth's fault ))
Thanks for the feedback. I guess part of the problem is that I'm having a hard time imagining the power steering coming out okay with how terrible the stock setup feels. Either way I'm definitely not looking forward to the install.
I like the idea of going manual because it would allow me to drop a little bit of weight and parasitic load. That could be beneficial especially since I may add in A/C somewhere down the road. On the other hand we don't have room for a bunch of extra cars, so I need to make sure my wife can drive this one if our family car is down for maintenance. I think at this point I'm leaning toward keeping the power steering and going with the FirmFeel Stage 3 unless someone has something to say against it or a great argument for going with the manual.