I won a good used steering wheel for my '54 on ebay. It arrived today. It is in great shape. It has no cracks. The only place where the gloss has worn off is on the vertical spoke that points to the 6.

What is the best way to clean up this wheel without hurting it. How can I make it shine even greater. Mild detergent then somethng to shine it? Armorall? Wax?

My plan was to fix my original wheel. But I knew that with my schedule it would be off my wheel for more than a couple of days. Then I thought I would buy a used wheel to put on the truck while I fix my original wheel and still be able to drive the truck.

I wanted to keep the original wheel since it is the one that Grandpa had his hands on. But after looking at the cracks on my wheel and where they are located, like on the spokes that have the grooves and then seeing the new used wheel, I had second thoughts about the work involved to get my wheel up to speed. I asked my wife for advice and she said why don't you hang it on the garage wall along with the other old parts from Grandpa's wife.

Not a bad idea. I have the old rusty tailgate, the worn out clutch and brake pedals, and the rusty, pitted F-100 hood letters and the Ford crest hanging on the walls of my garage.

Any advice? Fix it or hang it up?

 

I ran across a steering wheel repair kit on POR15's web site when I was looking for some frame paint, maybe it will work for you. http://www.por15.com/s.nl/it.A/id.1480/.f

 

Is the color worn off or just the shine? If it's just the shine have it clear coated. If the paint is worn through have the color matched and then have it clear coated. I filled the cracks in my '49's wheel with POR-15 and then had it painted black and had about a half dozen coats of clear so I would wear through the clear before getting to the black paint. It's over seven years and the shine is still great although it has developed cracks again, but that's for another post.

 

Abe,
I have started repairing a steering wheel for my F1 under the tutelage of my father in law. He does restore them also. I ground the cracks down to the steel and then started filling them with some material, sorry I can't remember what it is. You then try to form it using tape before hardening to get the grooves for your fingers and then clear coat it as Bob says. He also says it's very important to get all the air out as thats how new cracks start to form.
Good luck. I vote restore. When and if you grind the wheel , wear some kind of mask as the steering wheel rubber smells awful and is probably some kind of carcinogen. Just my .02
Jeff

 

I'd hang the old wheel on the wall, since after you restore it, it won't really be the same wheel your grandfather's hands were on (in a way).

 

Are you referring to the PC7 two-part epoxy?

 

Cracks, Smacks, Shine, Schime, the best way to honor your Grandpa is to use it. Just throw some wax on it and enjoy

 

A word of warning: Don't wax your steering wheel. My wife Armoralled my steering wheel in my daily drive one day and I almost got in an accident, that sucker was slippery Clear coating woudl be the best, it'll shine but won't be slippery.

 

I repaired cracks in mine with PC-7 epoxy putty. Grind out the crack, fill with putty, wait for it to harden then sand smooth. I thern gave the whole wheel a once over with some fine sandpaper, cleaned it really well with soap and water and painted with Krylon black paint for plastic. It looks like new.

 

1952Henry,
I believe thats it . Thanks for filling in the blank. I'm not a body man, I just married his daughter.
Bob, It just makes common sense not to armor all your steering wheel. With apologies to your wife.
Jeff

 

Jeff,

She hasn't done again

 

OK, you caught me, I've never really waxed my wheel, just meant to make a point about using it. Probably good advice not to "wax" the wheel.

 

I have always filled cracks in steering wheels with "JB Weld" and then sand it down and paint with Testors model paints. Seems to work the best for me.

 

I bought severl tubes of JB Weld. It is lying on my shop table. My questions were:

1. what is the best way to clean up my new fairly good wheel with the gloss off on the vertical spoke.
2. Should I just keep my new used wheel on the truck and relegate the original wheel to my "Grandpa's Rusted Parts Wall of Fame"? My doubt is, will I be able to make the old wheel look good with all the cracks in it and how long will it take me, and will it be worth it?

thanks for your advice!

 

I agree with others. I restored a banjo wheel on the 38 Woodie in my gallery many years ago using PC-7 after I vee'd the cracks some. I painted it with arylic enamel that was color matched (not a black wheel). I added flexthane additive to the paint. I did the wheel in the 80's. Unfortunately I sold it in the 90's. One comment, A rusty rim will be a problem. If it is badly cracked with rust on the rim, pass on fixing that wheel.