Steering wheel restoration advice.

[jenovi]

Decided that I will send my steering wheel in and have it restored. I used Steering wheel bob a few years back and the work was very good. He looks to be closed now. Looking for recommendations.

Thanks
-Shaun

[Commander Eddie]

Try Shrock Brothers. http://www.shrockbrothers.com/steering_wheels.html

[jenovi]

Looks like they are doing some interesting work. I'm not to keen on giving up my original steering wheel for a reproduction though.

[Commander Eddie]

Looks like they are doing some interesting work. I'm not to keen on giving up my original steering wheel for a reproduction though.

Shaun,
I felt the same way with my car so, despite everyone telling me it was doubtful I would ever find an NOS wheel like the one on my car, I kept watching EBay and Voila - one suddenly appeared one day. NOS, in the box. I got into a bidding war with another person but prevailed in the end. I could have had my old wheel re-cast by Shrock Brothers for less money but I was happy to score the new original. The lesson from this story is that if you have patience and are persistent, you may get lucky and find a new one.
Whichever way you choose to go, having a nice steering wheel does not go unnoticed by folks admiring your car.
Good luck!

[Kdancy]

I've purchased several steering wheels from Shrock Brothers. Excellent reproductions, I think better than the originals using more modern materials. They just did some unattainable delco radio buttons for the 58 PH, again excellent.

[rockne10]

Shaun,
The Shrock Brothers do not "restore" a steering wheel. They have created precise molds of original wheels. They strip all the original plastic from your steel core and mold a completely new wheel in a vacuum pressure chamber. This is not a fill the cracks and paint job. Theirs are of modern polymers and will grossly outlast the originals, while looking as precise as the factory originals. If you can afford them, it's the best of all worlds.

[STUDEMAC]

Some jb weld a good sanding job and paint is all you need. Me and chris just did two for fun.

[Chris_Dresbach]

Some jb weld a good sanding job and paint is all you need. Me and chris just did two for fun.

And they turned out NICE. Better than original I think. I learned that trick from the best Studebaker restorer I know.

[mmagic]

I'll admit to using Bondo and shaping with my Dremel on a few steering wheels where function without much cost rather than forever or perfection was the goal. The Champ has at least a half dozen Bondo filled cracks buried under Black Rustoleum plastic friendly paint. So far no one has made insulting remarks to my face about it.... in fact I doubt if anyone but me knew before tonight !

As for the Speedster, I could get a bit anal.

[GThawkwind]

Some jb weld a good sanding job and paint is all you need. Me and chris just did two for fun.

I repaired a vintage slotted spoon this way, it was dropped and the handle shattered. I finished it with a coat of cardinal red. I looked better than before, but was not dish washer safe, as the person who did not heed my warning found out.

[jenovi]

I'm not sure a DIY is quite the right course for me when it comes to this. My hat goes off to anyone who can do it and have a solid result in the end. The Shrock Brothers is defiantly a interesting path. $700.00 does seem a bit steep. Has anyone actually compared the feel of the repo to the original?

[JBOYLE]

Another forum member suggested I try Gary's: http://www.garyssteeringwheel.com/ . He's well known in the MOPAR world and has a good reputation. And for my Avanti wheel, he's a lot (about 30%) less expensive than the Shrocks. Anyone have first hand experience with Gary's?

[Kdancy]

http://www.steeringwheelbob.com/id3.html

Their guarantee tells the tell, all new Shrock Brothers wheel made with modern material or bits of old and new where you are just waiting for problems as the older material just gets older and continues to deterioriate and break down?

[RadioRoy]

I looked better than before, but was not dish washer safe, as the person who did not heed my warning found out.

What is it with people not heeding warnings from the technicians who repair things for them? Do they think we give warnings just for the fun of warning someone?

[WilburV]

There are several tech threads on the HAMB forum and even youtube videos that take you through step-by-step tutorials on repairing steering wheel cracks. You might want to take a look there first before you decide to send out your wheel for restoration.

A lasting steering wheel repair can be accomplished with a needle files or dremel tool, two-part PC-7 epoxy, sandpaper and high quality flexible primer/paint combination. I've used SEM brand paints in the past-most local automotive paint suppliers will carry it. You would be able to accomplish professional results for about $75 in materials. PC-7 is sold by the Eastwood Co. in their steering wheel restoration kits, but its also available at most ACE Hardware stores.