Who's best at steering wheel restorations

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Doug -

I have a steering wheel from C Body with tilt/tele. It is a two spoke affair and the whole wheel is that sort of green/clear translucent plastic, like you used to see on the knobs on cigarette machines. Can you re-do those wheels?

Another wheel I have and like, that doesn't need restoration, is the 67 three spoke wheel which does not have the crossbars in the spokes - it has just two long tines per spoke. I heard they recalled these? If so I'll bet I know why...if you're not careful you can get a knuckle stuck between the tines while you are turning the wheel and it hurts a tad.

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Hi Greg, can you e-mail me a few pictures of both wheels? Then I can tell you if I can recreate the translucent plastic for the C-body wheel.

e-mail: stwheels@shaw.ca

LOL, yes I call them the finger cutter wheels, I always mask off the spokes as soon as I get one in! It's too tempting to put your fingers in the slots when your driving but once you slice yourself it would be the last time

There is no evidence those wheels were ever re-called so it's more of an urban legend kind of story but there is some merit to it.

Thanks, Doug

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Doug - Here is the tilt wheel, I'll send it to your email as well.

That wheel you show is like mine but mine does not have those (what appear to be) horn bars in the spokes.

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Yes, the only way to repair (restore) that kind of material is to make any repairs needed, recreate all the details, make a mold of the wheel and then re-pour it in modern , stable clear plastic resin. I wish I had the room necessary to store all the hundreds of molds for the never ending styles of wheels out there !!!

So it is possible to get that wheel re-cast but I don't have that kind of operation. I believe there are at least 3 shops that can pour you a new wheel but I don't have their contact info. One shop is called WW Motorcars and I think they are on the East coast of the states.

The picture I posted of the "Recall wheel" is from an early ad and no one has ever seen a wheel with the horn paddles in the openings of the spokes. I'd love to try and create that very horn mechanism once I can find one of those wheels for my Coronet.

Talk to you soon, Doug

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I still have a "recall" wheel for sale. I sold the horn ring off it to someone at Carlisle a few years ago. He had a wheel and a horn pad but no ring! The horn pad is pretty hard to find so I tried to buy it off him, but he offered me good money for the ring so I sold it to him. I have a couple of the pebble grain wheels, hopefully someone will figure out how to restore them one day.

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http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/NOS-MOPAR...sQ5fAccessories

First one I've ever saw with something in the spokes.

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OMFG I knew there had to be one out there somewhere. That is absolutely gorgeous !!!

Other than the picture of the one in the ad I posted I've never seen another till now either ... stunning.

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Who's best at steering wheel restorations

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ME!

Well, at least for my junk anyway...

Really bad shape teal steering wheel that was cracked and busted to where plastic was rotating on steel core in some places.

We'll see how well the PC7 epoxy holds up but I'm worried that it'll have issues after a few heat cycles...

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What is the starting cost/average restoration for a 69 three spoke (wood) wheel?It's in pretty nice shape only one crack or seperation.
Thanks Joe

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Hi Joe, if you e-mail me at : stwheels@shaw.ca

I can send you a list of questions I need answered to give a price and turnaround time.

Thanks, Doug

Attached File

6173994-Sportwheel#11  (72 downloads)

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I have a Good 69 wood grain wheel that has been sitting for sometime and the spokes have some medium/light surface rust starting.
WHAT would be a Good thing to use on them???
A liquid cleaner, 000 steel wool, SOS pad, etc????
It has rust right up against the wood part and I don't want to damage the wood.
Thanks for any suggestions you can give me.
David

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Hi David, any mild cleaning agent or gel rust remover will get light surface rust off. Whenever you rub the spokes with anything always go down the length of the spokes, never in circles or across the spokes.

For any rust spots in pits and along the recessed lines down the length of the spokes and around the rectangular openings in the spokes you can use a bamboo skewer to pick out the rust. The bamboo is hard enough to dislodge the corrosion but soft enough not to damage/scratch the plating. A pointed skewer is great for rubbing off that surface rust up near the rim too. The strands on the length of the bamboo are fairly tough so you can put a little metal cleaner on the rust, let it soften any crud for a while and then use the skewer to rub off the rust and such.

Once all the rust is removed to your satisfaction you can use a non abrasive metal cleaner on the spokes followed by carnuba wax. Spread the wax all over the spokes and let it dry thoroughly before buffing with a soft rag or microfiber towel.

If you've been careful the spokes will come out with a beautiful satin sheen that will be protected by the wax.

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Thanks Doug for the tips.
I will have to try it after we get back from the races this weekend.
Any brand of product you like Best???
Thanks Again.
David

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Your Welcome David! Good Luck at the track this weekend

I use a rust removing gel made by Dominion Sure Seal ltd. It's just an off the shelve product that is available at Canadian Tire here in Canada. I'm sure there is something similar at any one of the many auto stores in your area.It's made for removing rust from any plated surface and leaves a protective coating to prevent further problems.

I also use Mothers mag polish. Remember never use a mechanical polishing device (Dremel etc ...) as they are too aggressive and will leave the surface too shiny. The best material I found is microfiber cloth and make sure you only rub down the length of the spokes, never in circles or across the spoke.

For extra protection a bit of Carnuba wax will seal the deal.