--Hi guys, I tried to find threads about this- I know there are some out there but haven't been able to find. I have seen some outside of HAMB that are OK, but pretty general. I noticed some use PC7 filler- some JB Weld, Some 2 part high tensile strength epoxy out of a special applicator??? I also saw the Eastwood kit- seems pricey at $93.00. -- My worry is that after getting wheel all done and nice looking, the paint or whatever covering will come off-wear off fast. My F100 has stock "Armstrong" non-power steering and requires a good grip and lots of friction on the wheel. I have a couple 56 wheels and I think I will use the worst wheel to try a restoration- that way I can still use the other one while doing it. --I'll get some pics of the wheel- it has some pretty big cracks. Thanks for any advice you can give, Greg.
I had real good luck with JB, Key is make sure you V out the cracks well.. Had Willy's jeep wheel broke at hub on all three spokes, Painted with foam brush single stage/catalyzed..Mint!
long time ago, an old bodyman friend of mine said he painted wheels and to make them last, used lots of hardener
I have 3 years on my wheel now and it was repaired with JB Weld and sprayed gloss black. Manual steering, so it takes some grip to turn it, and has held up great.
I used PC7 epoxy on my F100 wheel and it's held up great. My understanding is it has the same expansion/contraction characteristics from temperature changes as the original material, so it doesn't crack again. My wheel was painted with automotive paint to match the rest of the interior, rattle can paint won't be as good. No matter what you use it will require a lot of filing and sanding to get the surface to match, so be prepared for that.
Here's a general guideline video on the process. I've used that epoxy on the three that I've repaired. I used the single stage I painted the car with - with extra hardener. The middle wheel has been on the car for 8 years and shows no sign of wear (manual steering).
I did this work in 2012 and it still looks good to this day. There are many different ways to repair a steering wheel,,this is how I did mine. I decided to repair my cracked and damaged steering wheel for the '54 "Ranch Wagon" and thought my photos might inspire someone that is thinking about repairing their own steering wheel. This is what I started with, Basically the wheel had a lot of chips and hairline cracks and a few really deep cracks that needed filling. The tools are simple and I would think most of you have them in your tool box or in a kitchen drawer. Files,***orted utility knives,hacksaw blade,sandpaper,bondo spreader,***orted toothpicks and pieces of wood and a screwdriver and PC-7 epoxy, your tool list may be different but I think you guys get the idea. After all the gouging and spreading the cracks to get a slight V groove I started trying to wipe the PC-& on smoothly with the plastic spreader and small pieces of wood, it became quite apparent within a few minutes that I had the best spreader for the job attached to my hand, my fingers worked extremely well. At this point I let it dry until the next day and started to sand, I'll point out my mistake now so you guys can avoid it, this stuff doesn't sand as easy as you would think so smear it on just enough to cover the chips and cracks and don't cake it on in spots like I did. This is what the wheel looked like after a few hours of sanding ,I did have to go back and address a few small hairline cracks I missed. After the final sanding I wiped the wheel down the final prep and shot it with etching primer. At this phase of the project the wheel sat idle for a while, the time between priming your steering wheel and painting it may differ from my time frame, you could paint it the next day, mine got put on hold for a few months. And this is how it looks in the wagon. I used the same color on the wheel as the outside window trim, Dupont urethane base coat/clear coat. I think it turned out pretty good. HRP
I filled the cracks in my wheel with a plastic material called "Bondic". It squeezes out of this eyedropper type container. It works good because you have time to move it around to shape it because it doesn't harden until you shine the little LED light onto it. Once you shine the light, it hardens instantly so it doesn't take a long time to build it up when you are trying to work it.
Jeezus, it's getting harder to keep up with stuff. Earlier today I was reading trying to understand how an LED works, way over my head.......now this.
Isn't Bondi kind of like the stuff dentists use to fill your teeth. They put it in the cavity and shape it, then use a light of some kind to make it harden.... I wonder if that light would work on other parts of the body?
FWIW, I did the wheel on my '36 Chevy in the early 80's using PC7 and sprayed with epoxy made for appliances out of a spray can. After all these years of use, it hasnt cracked and the paint has held up fantastically. I have a Banjo wheel for a '35 Chevy that needs a complete rim rebuild so I plan to use PC7 on that also. Good luck. Mitch
This may sound crazy, but a late friend of mine used to repair cracked steering wheels using bowling ball putty! He did several of them for early Ford club members when he got done with repairs and paint nobody could tell there was ever any damage. He would get the putty from local bowling alleys.
Whatever material you choose. PC7, JB. Weld or Bondic. I'll second what HRP said. Don't cake it on as it's a pain in the *** to sand & blend it in. I'd rather hit it a few times & work my way up slow then to overfill and try to sand it down like I did on our 52.
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