STEEERING WHEEL QUESTION

[diemert66@gmail.com]

I brought this subject up before and received several nice replies. Unfortunately am not sure what the ideas were so here goes again. I am in the mood to replace my steering wheel on the 65 CYCLONE and asked for some ideas on how to proceed. several guys said that the "Palamino" Mustang wheel is a pretty good alternative to a VERY expensive rebuild of my original wheel. From a safety stand point I need to do this because my horn is almost nonfunctional due to cracks in the hub and along the rim. If anyone can throw some light on this I would be very thankful. Maybe even a suggestion or two. I am rather picky about maintaining original looks so an after market such as Grants etc. is not on the table. Thanks to all who do reply!
Kind Regards, TOM

[lavron]

Tom, you can repair it with some PC7 or PC9 most likely, JohnO basically built his wheel out of that stuff. I repaired mine and I can tell you the first layer you put on you feel like you really messed stuff up but I was able to get it worked down to looking pretty nice

See Ya,
Mike

[comethead]

I repaired my Cyclone steering wheel with PC-7 as well. Problem with the wood grain is you can’t really duplicate the color after the repair. So I painted it black which actually lasted a long time.
I decided to remove that wheel and replaced it with a reproduction black 65 Mustang wheel because the hub was warped enough that it made the horn contact rings uneven, affecting the operation of the horn.
Now all is well with the horn and wheel and the Cyclone horn ring/center fit it perfectly.

Tom it’s a tough call for yours. If you’re set on originality then getting yours repaired and painted like the original wood grain may be the only viable option.

Joe

[Boss/Cyclone]

There was a guy selling them on eBay. I messaged him a few years ago. He was airbrushing palamino mustang wheel. Looksedreally good and very close to original, but not sure how the air brushing would last over time.

[smithhe]

i am about restore my steering wheel on my comet, what would you guys suggest i use to paint it one i am done?

[comethead]

http://www.secondchancegarage.com/public/475.cfm
This guy repaired and painted his.

Joe

[lavron]

I sprayed a combination of rattle can black and truck bed liner on the textured parts, my intention is to eventuslly wrap my wheel with leather like JohnO did, I can't really speak for longevity yet because mine is still in the closet awaiting the final assembly of the interior, of course, mine was black already and not wood grain or anything.



This is a picture where I am in the process of repairing it, I know this wheel is gold but I bought it several years ago to do the repair so I would not potentially screw up my original, plus less than perfect items like this wheel are usually much cheaper than pristine parts



I had used a Dremel to cut out the cracks in this wheel so the epoxy would have a better chance of staying well bonded, I slightly undercut so it was keyed in there
Adding the epoxy you are pretty sure you made a major mistake
I had soaked the wheel in degreaser for about a week before I started woking on it because the rim can get pretty grimy from oily hsnds touching them for 50 years or so.



But a little bit of sanding and some filler primer followed by some wet sanding and a coat of paint it looks pretty good. I used satin black and I need to wet sand again sometime and reshoot it because the day I painted it it decided to blow rain back into the shed so I was moving it and dropped it, it landed on the upper rim, of course, onto to the dirty floor, but before that happened it looked near perfect I did try to resand it and put another coat on but it was too soon and the paint had not fully cured.



I would think a 2k paint with hardener would make a more durable finish but enamel can get pretty hard if you give it enough time to fully cure (this is why mine has been stowed away in a closet for so long).

I am pretty happy with the results so far but Joe has had his wheel out in the California sun after his similar repair so he can answer to how well it holds up better than me, like I said I want to do a stitched on cover like JohnO because I have never not had a wrap on the steering wheel as long as I have owned it so something on there feels right to me, I just want something a little nicer than the Walmart type that wrap around it with plastic lacing. even though after 40 years that wrap is still on the current wheel.

Someday I might repair one of my other wheels I have and do it woodgrain just to see if I can, I have done a little faux woodgrain on steel doors in the house so I know it can be done I would just have to find some good pictures of a woodgrain wheel to see what they look like, but that won't happen until the Comet is done.

Good luck on your project.

See Ya,
Mike

I nearly forgot here is a glamor shot of it in the car temporarily.

[diemert66@gmail.com]

WOW, I sure appreciate all the replies on my steering wheel post. Thanks to all who shared! Along the same lines, I have a related question about the similar wood grained shift knob that was stock on CYCLONES. Does anyone know of an after market for those as well? I'm highly doubtful that they are available but one never knows.
Thanks again for all the kind and helpful replies. Kind regards, TOM

[poboyjo65]

Those knobs aren't repopped yet Tom,& hard to find. & like a good cyclone steering wheel,when they pop up for sale they go for big bucks!! BIG!

Mike if you decide to stitch up your own cover watch all the youtube vids you can.I like this guy who doesn't speak, but he points a lot!! & you get it ! you can see what he's trying to tell you. sometimes he'll have something in print but he's a quiet mouse!
https://www.youtube.com/c/Cechaflo/play ... helf_id=36
some of the other vids tell you how to lay the leather to cut it, hides stretch more sideways than head to tail,& other details but his hand stress how important it is cut it perfectly,& to lay out the hole pattern & punch those out straight & even to make the stitch look better. I made a jig to hold the wheel & it worked good using a drill press vise & just a strip of leather to wrap it tight on the side . the weight of the vise really helped & the jig ,I dont think I could done with out it .

[A/FX]

Here is the fixture I made to hold my Cyclone steering wheel while my upholstery guy installed the leather cover. It has lock screws to hold it from rotating and can be adjusted to make it easier for sewing the leather covering.

[lavron]

Wheel looks good Jim,

See Ya,
Mike

[poboyjo65]

Jim I looked all over my shop & thru other junk of mine looking for an apparatus like that that would clamp & hold the wheel still & came up empty. so I built one like the video guy had . he had one ,fancy store bought one that would hold it any position with all kinds of swivels but his simple one seemed the easiest . That's a good looking wheel & stitching!!

[A/FX]

Jim I looked all over my shop & thru other junk of mine looking for an apparatus like that that would clamp & hold the wheel still & came up empty. so I built one like the video guy had . he had one ,fancy store bought one that would hold it any position with all kinds of swivels but his simple one seemed the easiest . That's a good looking wheel & stitching!!

Thanks guys. (Sorry I do not know how to quote multiple replies in one post)
I used an old steering shaft so the wheel is on a spline. The wing nuts hold it in place and allow the wheel to turn or lock in any position. My upholstery guy is the best, he did the wheel, dash pad, and door arm rests in leather that matches the interior. He actually made the arm rests because the factory foam units always pull apart.
Jim

[poboyjo65]

Thanks guys. (Sorry I do not know how to quote multiple replies in one post)
Jim

For additional quotes while you are making your post with a quote just scroll down to desired quote & click on the '' quotation marks in the left top corner,that should bring that quote to your box for making a post. this is on a desktop or laptop,I'm not sure about a phone.

[A/FX]

Jim I looked all over my shop & thru other junk of mine looking for an apparatus like that that would clamp & hold the wheel still & came up empty. so I built one like the video guy had . he had one ,fancy store bought one that would hold it any position with all kinds of swivels but his simple one seemed the easiest . That's a good looking wheel & stitching!!

Thanks guys. (Sorry I do not know how to quote multiple replies in one post)
I used an old steering shaft so the wheel is on a spline. The wing nuts hold it in place and allow the wheel to turn or lock in any position. My upholstery guy is the best, he did the wheel, dash pad, and door arm rests in leather that matches the interior. He actually made the arm rests because the factory foam units always pull apart.
Jim

[quote=A/FX post_id=102637 time=<a href="tel:1613427375">1613427375</a> user_id=45]
Thanks guys. (Sorry I do not know how to quote multiple replies in one post)
Jim

For additional quotes while you are making your post with a quote just scroll down to desired quote & click on the '' quotation marks in the left top corner,that should bring that quote to your box for making a post. this is on a desktop or laptop,I'm not sure about a phone.
[/quote]

How is this? Did I do good? (I use an iPad)
Jim