The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop That ol' cracked steering wheel

My 52' AD has what is probably the common 3 cracks all the way around each spoke of the wheel next to the hub around the horn button. Is this refinish-able and is there a kit that someone might recomend? I like to keep as much of the original as possible.

Yes it is repairable , though I don't know of any kits .
I have filed out the crack on one wheel and filled the groove with aluminium filled epoxy , then dressed it smooth and painted the wheel .
On another , where the wheel was so bad that some bits had come out and the crack was a 6mm gap , I wound copper wire , several times , around the steel shaft that is inside the s/wheel then did the epoxy thing .
A good mid winter job ,, ( read that as , "an exercise in patience" ) ,,

I used 'flexible' epoxy, used in repairing composite car bumpers. I started by 'opening up' the cracks with a sharp blade (some of them up to a quarter of an inch). This will allow the material to sit nice and deep.

After drying, the blade can be used to 'shave' the epoxy till it's level, then use 220 grit paper followed by a 400 water sanding. A nice coat of primer-filler followed by a few coats of lacquer in the color of your choice. Voila!

The cracks WILL eventually come back:( . The integrity of the original 'molded' steering wheel has been irreversably affected, but they will show up as hairline cracks.

Hope this helps?

whizzerick

This is just the project I'm going to start this next weekend. It's really nice having an extra steering wheel to work on. Earlier this year I found tons of ideas and helpful hints from the bolt. Many recommend using a fine blade on a dremmel, cutting a V shape grove where the cracks are, and filling it with PC-7 Epoxy. Sand it out, paint it, etc. There's no reason for it to not turn out purtiful

I think it's POR15 that makes a kit for this. That's what I used and I'm happy with the results.

When you cut a V groove you are depending on the adhesiveness between the old material and the new material. By cutting a V you increase surface area. But generally it will let go again eventually.

What you want to do is what a dentist does. The deepest part of your groove needs to be wider than the top of the groove. Making an upside down V groove. Now, even if the two materials eventually delaminate, the patch material can't fall out.

My wheel had small cracks, nothing structural but it looked bad. I mixed up a puddle of JB Weld and let it run into the cracks (flexing the wheel when the stuff is runny gets it into the cracks). Once it set I sanded it smooth and painted the wheel. I know this is a temporary fix, but it's held up well for a year and still looks great.
edit: It also worked very nicely for filling a chip next to the horn button; I just put a large (excessive) drop of JB Weld on the chip and once it set enough to stick I flipped the wheel over so the drop was hanging. Again, let it harden, sand it, paint it. You need a magnifying glass to tell where that patch is.

I cut the V grooves down to the wheel's steel core for good adhesion. Mine had cracks at both ends of all the spokes and 17 around the rim. Took awhile but looks fine now. The Eastwood Company has PC-7 in small cans for a good price. It's enough to do several wheels. If you have just a few small cracks you can get a dab of the stuff for more money at Chevy Duty.

I cut the V grooves down to the wheel's steel core for good adhesion. Mine had cracks at both ends of all the spokes and 17 around the rim. Took awhile but looks fine now. The Eastwood Company has PC-7 in small cans for a good price. It's enough to do several wheels. If you have just a few small cracks you can get a dab of the stuff for more money at Chevy Duty.

I cut the V grooves down to the wheel's steel core for good adhesion. Mine had cracks at both ends of all the spokes and 17 around the rim. Took awhile but looks fine now. The Eastwood Company has PC-7 in small cans for a good price. It's enough to do several wheels. If you have just a few small cracks you can get a dab of the stuff for more money at Chevy Duty.

Chevy duty has nice repop steering wheels available for pretty reasonable.

I received a very poor repaired and primed 1954 steering wheel from Chevy Duty. It had not been well shaped or sanded. By the time I realized that their product was of poor quality, it was too late for a return.

The repaired wheel I received from Golden State Pickup Parts is, on the other hand, beautiful.

From now on, I will repair my own, using one of the steering wheel repair kits mentioned above (or JB Weld).

Tim

Eastwood sells a "Steering Wheel Restoration Handbook," written by a former professional. Didn't cost that much, well worth it. I'm going to start on my spare wheel fairly soon, following the book's instructions.

Used the POR15 epoxy putty on two steering wheels and a dash. Works well. Cleans up with water and you can "sand" with a damp finger or cloth. Have tried other products that do not work nearly as well.

Golly Gee! Didn't expect such a response! But never too many replys. We all have different experiences and takes on outcomes and methods used.
Thank you all very much.
Now, could anyone reccomend a paint that would stand-up to 'Power Grip Steering?

Yes , epoxy paint is what you want to use .

I wimped out and had my steering wheel restored by Koch's in Canyon Country , Ca. , they primarily do old VW & Porsche wheels but they do the steering wheels for the local Corvair club and those guys are _picky_ ! .

I bought a used wheel from someone on this list ,
Had Kock go at it and now it is the most commented on part of my truck , it's been holding up quite well in several years of commercial service , ofttimes I'm working in the field and must needs drive with dirty grimy sandy hands - so far it's always cleaned up with a wet rag....

Reading the manual by a steering wheel restorer , he says it is most important to open up _any_ cracks down to the metal and clean it perfectly .
of course this is why I wimped out , I'm too darn lazy to do all that .

try this wheel repair