The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Original Steering Wheel--Hairline Cracks: Option

Hey Everyone! Yesterday I'd posted a piece of this in the Welcome Center Forum and Achipmunk suggested I put together something about this for this forum. I was pretty much done with my rod-storation and really wanted to keep my original steering wheel, for all kinds of reasons, but it suffered from the typical cracks in the corners and would not have looked right as it were, with everything else in the cab looking fresh and new. Unless you're a purist, an option is to get the wheel Line-X coated. (or Rhinoliner or etc). The Line-X bridged the 1/!6"+ cracks in my wheel and left a grainy texture which feels right, plus it makes the wheel a bit fatter for a better grip. Line-X holds paint real well so I decided on Rustoleum grey to match my interior. I continue to get all kinds of favorable comments when I show the truck. Cost: $30 and a rattle can of paint. Here are some pics: Steering Wheel

I don't know if any of your signature means "power steering", but in my truck (no power steering) that wheel might cause some serious blisters.

Dont get me wrong - your wheel looks great and thanks for posting this. I like the functionality of the material. I sprayed the stock & forearm of a pump skattergun with the liner, but hadn't considered it on a steering wheel. I'm afraid the slipping the wheel does in the driver's hand (coming out of turns, etc) might get hindered but please let us know how well it performs.

Sissyhands Brad

Do any of those liner companies sell a smooth version?

Surely you could sand to "taste"? Anyway the other option is, of course, groove out the cracks, fill with epoxy, shape and paint. That's what many do. Then it looks and feels totally stock.

I forget the brand name coating I've used, but it was two part, and precise as far as procedure.

I honestly don't remember if both the parts were gritty, or just one. It's designed to be anti-slip so I guess we could axe 'them' what they'd recommend doing... probably something proprietary in the bonding mixture. The Reynolds materials company that Denny linked to a while back (on this same topic) has an epoxy casting option/starter kit for $25.

Brad

Flatblu's steering wheel looks cool either way- hope he checks back in with some after action reports.

Brad

Bartomos is correct with his "sand to taste" comment: before I painted the grey on it I knocked the wheel down with some 220 as the initial surface was just a little too rough. Also as far as getting a "smoother" finish from the Line-X guy, yes, that may be possible as once I got to know "Joe" at the Line-X shop it appears that the rate at which it is applied determines the texture as evidenced by his experimenting on the underside of the running boards I had done at the same time: some areas were relatively smooth, other areas not so much. That stuff is very unusual: the 2 parts set up in 4 seconds after leaving the nozzle. And Uncle Brad, I only have 1100 miles on the truck, the surface still looks as good as when I just started using it...no indication of any wear at this point......

Thanks for the info. I've already gotten the underside of the front fenders liner-coated (the paint shop did this for me & tinted it the body color).

I'll have some of the kit left after doing the rear fenders & bed sides, so I may get to experiment some with my steering wheel. We'll see!

Brad

flatblu4748 I am so blessed. I learned something else today. How to make your steering wheel look really nice. Yours looks great. I never thought of that. Mine will look like yours if you don't mind. Great looking wheel. Steven

Flatblu4748

Your steering wheel looks great. Good idea!!

Just checking back in. Thanks for the great response to my suggestion. Steven, please go right ahead and copy my idea...that's why I posted the information. One last thing though, if you've not thought of it yet: if you are getting your wheel Line-X coated (or with whatever else material) make sure you mask off the areas where you don't want the build of of the coating, like especially inside the horn button area. Regards....

Blu;

I finally had a chance to zoom into your steering wheel pictures for a close look at the finish. It doesn't appear to be that gritty. Up close it has sort of a brain like appearance. Doesn't look like it would grate your hands too badly. Do you have any miles driving on the road with the new wheel finish? Can you address Brad's question/concern about "hand abuse" by the new finish? This is an intriguing solution to the cracked wheel problem.

Larry, Brad, I've got about 1100 miles on that steering wheel, it looks as good today as when I finished it 1100 miles ago; I have every confidence that it will probably wear much better than the factory surface/finish. It is not at all abrasive and, yes, zooming in on my pictures pretty much shows a total lack of any sharp edges In the finish. The surface is more analogous to that of a bad case of "orange peel". And that Line-X stuff is tough as nails, I've got it on my running boards, it does not scatch noticeably and does not chip. As I'd said earlier,Id knocked down the initial Line-X coating minimally with some 220 just to get everything looking more consistent and eliminate any high spots before I painted it. I've seen other similar products that result in an almost sandpaper type surface. This Line/X is not like that at all. I'm totally happy with it. IT IS NOT ROUGH ON YOUR HANDS! Keeping that wheel with the truck was important to me, this option covered and hid the cracks perfectly, I love the result.

Blu;

Ok. I'm sold. I'll put that in the kit bag for whenever I get around to "finishing" the interior on my Suburban.