Steering: Steering wheel spline difference

[Daan]

My understanding is that the splines on the steering column are different between pre-and post-56, right? I have a 56 with a ruined wheel, and I want to figure out if a different wheel will work without having to buy one and return (or resell) if it doesn’t fit...
anybody got a spare steering wheel that’ll work on my Hawk? I was gonna get mine redone by the Shrock guys but it looks like they retired...

[RadioRoy]

You are correct. It's not just splines, but it's about shaft diameter.

Steering wheels from 53 to 56 will work on your 56 Hawk. The C/K wheels are an inch smaller in diameter than the sedan wheels.

We have had several lengthy discussions on this same subject within the last year.

[StudeRich]

The '57 to '60 Steering Wheels have the "Deep Safety Center", so if they were adapted to Fit a '53 to '56, the Wheel would be too close to the Driver without shortening the Steering Gear Shaft.

[RadioRoy]

The '57 to '60 Steering Wheels have the "Deep Safety Center", so if they were adapted to Fit a '53 to '56, the Wheel would be too close to the Driver without shortening the Steering Gear Shaft.

57 to 60 steering columns also have a smaller steering shaft diameter, so those steering wheels will not fit on a 56. Maybe Studebaker engineers did that on purpose?

[Daan]

Does anyone have a picture of what the back of a 56 steering wheel looks like?