FWIW, back in the mid-70s my Dad cut a 62 Fury in pieces so he could haul it off in a stepside pickup.

I remember him swinging repeatedly with a sledgehammer on the steering wheel -- and it took some serious hits to flatten it into the dash. (we were poor and hillbilly and Dad didn't have special tools like a steering wheel remover)

Based on the 'clamshell tool' originally described:
A steering wheel close enough that you could consider massaging back into shape isn't going to become an eggshell because of the massaging.