Has anyone redone there own steering wheel ? I have looked into sending it out , seems a little pricey for me but then I don't know what it take for a restore.
It seems like it would be a realtively easy thing but not sure.
Anyone ?
I saw that redone steering and it looks great. I thought it was pricey also,and they need ths steering for 6 weeks.
Before I attemp this sort of thing on a original mach 1 rim blow wheel , I think I am going to get a salvage yard one and pratice on it first,
The original wheel is very costly to replace if I screw it up.
Several yrs ago when I was at a car show , I saw a wheel that the owner restored in a wood grain style , it looked as real as you can imagine. The lady told me she would be happy to help me do mine and gave me her business card and said to call any time . Well my then girl friened who was so jelious she didn't like me even talking to anyone , took the card and tore it up. I have never seen that lady again. I have yet to see any steering wheel done as wheel as she did her either.
She had a beautifull Black Mach 1 and it was a first class car all the way. and you know what so was the lady , maybe thats why the card got distroyed.
Whoa now;
I did just that last year with an old junk yard wheel .
I used a 1970 cougar rim blow steering wheel with alot of cracks in it.
After 45 hours or body work and alot of sweat I finally finished it.
The wood graining came out ok but the staining part was a night mare.
I got on several websites and tried to replicate it to get the correct color as the dash board.
It came out looking like a chocolate bar in color.....brown with no wood grain swowing up in any sort of a contrasting color.
I used a special epoxy to do the repairs from a steering wheel repair kit.
Later this spring I just noticed that the cracks are showing under a magnifying glass so I assume that the Colorado winter took its toll on temperature changes in the garage.
Special Note:
If I would ever do it again I recomend that the whell be sent to a plastics company where they have a plastic welder. This is the best way to do the repairs according to the "rimblow buddy" restorations guy. I wouldnt do it again for all the tea in China......lol Never again
Ill gladly pay for it out the hiny.
The photo is when I finally had finished what I did. Note the chocolate looking rim section.(second photo).the black came out great.
I found a ginger colored rim blow wheel (top photo) last winter I plan to use that has no cracks at all.
I will sell this black one soon and I will send this ginger one to the "rim blow buddy" for a color change and proper woodgraining restoration.
(03-28-2012, 11:43 AM)Masterblaster7212 Wrote: [ -> ]Whoa now;
I did just that last year with an old junk yard wheel .
I used a 1970 cougar rim blow steering wheel with alot of cracks in it.
After 45 hours or body work and alot of sweat I finally finished it.
The wood graining came out ok but the staining part was a night mare.
I got on several websites and tried to replicate it to get the correct color as the dash board.
It came out looking like a chocolate bar in color.....brown with no wood grain swowing up in any sort of a contrasting color.
I used a special epoxy to do the repairs from a steering wheel repair kit.
Later this spring I just noticed that the cracks are showing under a magnifying glass so I assume that the Colorado winter took its toll on temperature changes in the garage.
Special Note: If I would ever do it again I recomend that the whell be sent to a plastics company where they have a plastic welder. This is the best way to do the repairs according to the "rimblow buddy" restorations guy. I wouldnt do it again for all the tea in China......lol Never again
Ill gladly pay for it out the hiny.
The photo is when I finally had finished what I did. Note the chocolate looking rim section.(second photo).the black came out great.
I found a ginger colored rim blow wheel (top photo) last winter I plan to use that has no cracks at all.
I will sell this black one soon and I will send this ginger one to the "rim blow buddy" for a color change and proper woodgraining restoration.
Thanks for your info , There are many things I don't mind tackling but being the rarity of the wheel , I think having a pro do it may be the best route for me too.
I was fortunate, the Rim Blow steering wheel in my 1969 Mach 1 did not have any cracks. I simply cleaned it and replaced both the center pad and the horn contact that fits into the groove of the steering wheel rim.
Now for the negative part of my post.
Before spending much time and money restoring an original Rim Blow steering wheel make certain the horn contact rings on the bottom side are in good condition. To the best of my knowledge those are not replaceable and are not being reproduced.
Also, the reproduction horn contacts that fit into the groove are extremely poor quality. They are extremely easily damaged during installation and many do not work right out of the box. Worst of all there is a no return, exchange, or refund policy on them. After you purchase one, it's yours, good or bad. The first time I replaced mine during the restoration Ford was still making them. It installed easily and lasted over 20 years. I recently replaced it because the rubber was tearing. This time it was a reproduction part. I ended up spending over $200 to purchase two because the first one didn't work. Next time I will remove the Rim Blow steering wheel, store it away, and install an aftermarket steering wheel like a Corso Ferose style with a wood rim. I don't know why some people think the Rim Blow steering wheel is the best thing since sliced bread. They can be very costly and problematic.