Picked this up for two bucks. Not finding much online aside from "60s-70s". The delicate Hollywood script on both of the straps has me thinking closer to early sixties despite the overall great shape. Anyone know anything on these? I know not exactly rare as despite little info I found plenty of variants for sale. Also is it possible to disassemble and change the display? Either way it's going in my 53 lol
At 16 years old I put one on my first car, probably the first week I owned it, drove it around town and removed it after nearly breaking my finger. Lasted about an hour. I still think that was a smart move for a teenager.
Those things are really hard to date...... partly because similar pieces were made over many years, sometimes with only minor detail differences or perhaps no differences. Another reason they are hard to date is that they weren't often sold by brand name companies so they were thought of as a generic item. A Google search only helps if somebody cares enough about them to write tidbits of information. Spinner knobs have devolved into cheesier, lower quality in the past 20 years or so. Yours is a nice quality piece so it has some age but I couldn't guess how old. I don't notice any threads for the clear plastic dome. My guess is it snaps tightly into the bottom half and would have to be pried off, most likely damaging the clear plastic. The etched "Hollywood" script is a very nice detail and what you paid for it is the best "detail" of all.
Around here they were called suicide knobs because guys would get their long sleeve shirt caught up in them or neckers knobs because you could drive one handed easier when you had your arm around your gal friend's shoulders. Back when "distracted driving" was driving down the road with your hand inside your galfriend's bra. My grandfather hand on on his Farmall C tractor that made it easier to drive through the field but could wack your thumb if you hit a ditch and the wheels turned quick. I don't remember seeing any on cars around here in the 60's except on junked up cars that the fruit pickers from the Ozarks drove. You saw them more on larger trucks.
I guess something else that MIGHT help date it is I tried to put it on my 53 last night. Unfortunately the speedway metal flake wheel had too fat a rim for it to fit. So I'd assume it was from when all steering wheels were skinny
Hey now. I used to live in the Ozarks. And when I was real broke I was known to pick blueberries to get paid by the bucket lol
This is a Public Service Announcement, not just singling you out but for everybody. Those spinner knobs mount slightly offset. They need to be clamped on with the offset to the inside of the wheel hoop so that when the steering wheel free-spins, like when it's recovering from a turn, you can lightly palm the wheel, with your fingers and thumbs safely to the outside, until it returns back to straight ahead. If you mistakenly offset the spinner knob to the outside of the wheel hoop, it's only a matter of a short time to a painful, broken thumb or other digits. But of course, there's always the possibility of a finger injury anyway you clamp the spinner if the driver isn't staying fully conscious of the potential of sudden movement of the knob. Let's face it. Spinner knobs are known to cause cancer in California.
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