Borgeson steering box - does the column need to be cut?

Just assisted my buddy with a 72 Scamp with a 68 340 w/aftermarket exh manifolds. We were replacing a factory power steering box. I was surprised it was unnecessary to cut the factory steering shaft. We did unbolt the steering column and move back a few inches to gain room to install the Borgeson coupler. We used a 12" 3/16 drill bit to drill the holes in the shaft for the pins. The car has power disc brakes and the booster did not allow the use of the Borgeson-provided drill bit.