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MAY 3, 2007
Do-It-Yourself
Steering Wheel Restoration
- by Earl Shifflet, of Classic Car Creations Inc.
Over the years of the 57-58 Plymouths having different owners, the long days of the hot sun beating down with the windows rolled up, having manual steering, and most of all, Father time, has definelty taken its toll on the most used part of a car, the steering wheel. Face it, except for the front seat the steering wheel is the most touched part of the car. Over time and wear, cracks develop on the wheel, and if left unfixed, they only get worse and are very unsightly to the driver and at shows.
This article will show you how to bring back that cracked wheel and keep it looking new for years to come. First off, you need to remove the wheel from the car and separate it from the horn ring, so all you have is the wheel itself and a clear bench with some cardboard underneath so the plastic wheel wont get marred or damaged when handling during the work.
Materials you will need:- Cordless variable drill
- 1/8" drill bit or larger if needed
- gloves & safety glasses
- flat file
- round file
- small angular file
- exacto knife
- mix board and plastic spreader
- Marine tex epoxy mix (the best stuff to use for this job)
- Sand paper, 80 grit (for the corners to shape) 180,220, 320 grit
- 2k primer
- Patience and time to do it right, (set aside a day, you will need it).
My steering wheel is the test subject today.
STEP 1
Carefully inspect the steering wheel for cracks, missing and/or loose pieces. The small hairline cracks must be repaired or they will show up after the steering wheel has been painted. Some cracks, such as on my wheel go all the way through to the metal. Plus if you look closely, the white grips are also shrunk away from the black rim of the wheel.
STEP 2
At each of the cracks, the material must be removed to eliminate the COMPLETE crack so that it can be repaired. By removing enough of the steering wheel material, a larger area will result, which allows for greater bonding.
The following methods work fine for removing the steering wheel material.
- An exacto knife can be used to cut away the material at the cracks. You must cut enough material so that the crack is completely gone.
- A 1/8" drill bit in a variable speed drill works as well. If you use the side of the bit rather than the point, the drill will act somewhat like a grinder to remove the material.
- Files, there are various sizes and shapes to use at some of the cracks. Either method may work.
This particular crack was removed with a file.
STEP 3
After the material for the area to be repaired has been removed, The steering wheel can be prepared for filler. Depending on where your wheel is cracked, use a small drill bit to drill (carefully) small tunnels in the area to be filled for greater bonding strength.
STEP 4
I have found that the best repair material is a two part epoxy-type filler made for repairing various synthetic materials such as fiberglass. The epoxy I use (works very well) is called: Marine Tex made by Travaco. It can be obtained through any autobody store or any restoration place. I got this kit from C.C.I. here locally.
It's excellent material to use, sets up in 30 minutes, plus it's sandable in 2 hours and sands very well like wood and can be sanded to a very smooth finish.
ISSUE 4
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