Paul H Posted July 13 Report Share Posted July 13 Currently using 13ins “sports” steering wheel. Considering refurbing the original which came with the car . Most of the paint is missing . Any tips as to making it look good again Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johny Posted July 13 Report Share Posted July 13 Paint the spoke ends plus hub and then finish with a stitched leather rim👍 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trigolf Posted July 13 Report Share Posted July 13 I would check for cracks, where the steel rods enter the bakelite part at the rim ,particularly on the rear face. I found cracks on my wheel yrs ago, so filled cracks with araldite which seems to be holding up well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul H Posted July 13 Author Report Share Posted July 13 5 minutes ago, trigolf said: I would check for cracks, where the steel rods enter the bakelite part at the rim ,particularly on the rear face. I found cracks on my wheel yrs ago, so filled cracks with araldite which seems to be holding up well. Yes I have small cracks which will be filled with araldite Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johny Posted July 13 Report Share Posted July 13 Worth doing as quite sought after these days😁 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul H Posted July 14 Author Report Share Posted July 14 15 hours ago, johny said: Worth doing as quite sought after these days😁 Enough to retire “again” on 🤞 Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johny Posted July 14 Report Share Posted July 14 51 minutes ago, Paul H said: Enough to retire “again” on 🤞 Paul Oh no its got to be a wood rimmed les leston jobbie for that😳 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Truman Posted July 14 Report Share Posted July 14 18 hours ago, Paul H said: Currently using 13ins “sports” steering wheel. Considering refurbing the original which came with the car . Most of the paint is missing . Any tips as to making it look good again Paul Interesting my 68 Mk2 Vitesse which I've owned since 1970 has it's original equipment leather rimmed steering wheel, I assume bakelite under the leather The Bakelite where the spokes are bonded in are in very good condition no cracks and the bakelite is still shiny black. The leather is still intact but worn in places I do rub leather conditioner into the leather periodically. I do cover it with a slip over reflective silver steering wheel protector when out in the sun. I did use a Montery wood rimmed steering wheel for years, but lost it to my daughters 66 Mk2 Spitfire, when her aftermarket small leather thick rimmed wheel looked a little worse for wear! Unfortunately, she loves it! My Dolly Sprint's original baketite steering wheel was recovered in near original style leather professionally around 2000, so it was still a thin rimmed wheel and that's still like new. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johny Posted July 14 Report Share Posted July 14 Those spoked wheels (not to be confused with the very similar TR item) I think came from the factory in plain and leather covered versions although not sure where each was fitted... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark B Posted July 14 Report Share Posted July 14 My 71 Vitesse has the original leather covered three spoke steering wheel. Makes parking easier than with a smaller wheel, and being quite thin still leaves plenty of clearence between wheel and thighs. Only down side for me is there is some flex, spring, by the nature of design, where a solid, slightly smaller, thicker wheel makes the steering feel tighter, more direct to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul H Posted July 14 Author Report Share Posted July 14 1 minute ago, Mark B said: My 71 Vitesse has the original leather covered three spoke steering wheel. Makes parking easier than with a smaller wheel, and being quite thin still leaves plenty of clearence between wheel and thighs. Only down side for me is there is some flex, spring, by the nature of design, where a solid, slightly smaller, thicker wheel makes the steering feel tighter, more direct to me. My Vitesse mk 2 is a Bitza - is the steering wheel correct for a mk2 Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Truman Posted July 14 Report Share Posted July 14 Will supply photo tomorrow too cold and wet tonight Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trigolf Posted July 14 Report Share Posted July 14 From here, it looks correct. Was the leather cover missing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul H Posted July 14 Author Report Share Posted July 14 Just now, trigolf said: From here, it looks correct. Was the leather cover missing? No leather cover when I got it . This was with the spares when I bought the car. Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trigolf Posted July 14 Report Share Posted July 14 1 minute ago, Paul H said: No leather cover when I got it . This was with the spares when I bought the car. Paul Time to trawl ebay for a new cover I guess! There is at least one company ( Myrtle??) that completely replaces bakelite rims, if your feeling flush- no idea of cost mind...🤔 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul H Posted July 14 Author Report Share Posted July 14 Just now, trigolf said: Time to trawl ebay for a new cover I guess! There is at least one company ( Myrtle??) that completely replaces bakelite rims, if your feeling flush- no idea of cost mind...🤔 The rim is in good condition though would need some prepping then painting . I’ve seen leather covers for about £30 Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark B Posted July 14 Report Share Posted July 14 6 hours ago, Paul H said: My Vitesse mk 2 is a Bitza - is the steering wheel correct for a mk2 Here's the one on my Vitesse. Yours could have come off a Vitesse, and the leather has been removed, or possibly off a mk3 Spit, the same as the Vitesse, but minus the leather wrapping as originally fitted. Think the Vitesse was regarded as a bit 'posher' back in the day. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Truman Posted July 14 Report Share Posted July 14 As said My Dolly Sprint had the steering wheel leather replaced professionally ie thin leather and a thin rim as original it is stitched on and looks like Mark B's example (& my Vitesse Mk2), whereas the $30 aftermarket versions I used in my youth were usually laced on & can overtime become loose which is not only annoying as the cover slips around the steering wheel as you twist your hands on the wheel, this is a MOT failure here in Aus! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
68vitesse Posted July 15 Report Share Posted July 15 Have recovered a couple of steering wheels using offcuts of leather from an upholsterers, when stitching, using prepunched holes, l glued short lengths using clear impact adhesive and stitched before the glue had time to set. A line marked to follow is a good idea as difficult to keep the seam straight. The aluminium centre l cleaned back to metal and used an etch primer followed by high build and gloss black. Regards Paul. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Flinn Posted July 16 Report Share Posted July 16 12 hours ago, 68vitesse said: Have recovered a couple of steering wheels using offcuts of leather from an upholsterers, when stitching, using prepunched holes, l glued short lengths using clear impact adhesive and stitched before the glue had time to set. A line marked to follow is a good idea as difficult to keep the seam straight. The aluminium centre l cleaned back to metal and used an etch primer followed by high build and gloss black. Regards Paul. That looks great, I've got the original wheel with my car (It's currently fitted with a 14" Motolita wood rimed wheel). Maybe a job for the winter. Gary 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
68vitesse Posted July 16 Report Share Posted July 16 The first one I did and fitted to my Vitesse, l also made a clamp from wood offcuts and a sponge to hold the wheel vertical while stitching. Regards Paul. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpbarrett Posted July 26 Report Share Posted July 26 On 14/07/2024 at 09:59, johny said: Oh no its got to be a wood rimmed les leston jobbie for that😳 I have one if anyone is interested, very good condition. Brought it and fitted to my Herald but did not like it... mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johny Posted July 26 Report Share Posted July 26 Already got a mortgage Im afraid😁 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Smith Posted July 26 Report Share Posted July 26 Hi Guys A few weeks ago, I spent quite a bit of time researching how to restore steering wheels. I spent ages watching YouTube videos to see if I dared to try restoring the wheel myself - when I decided I was not going to do that, I then trawled the net and made a few phone calls while looking for companies who would do the job for me. The bottom line is there are quite a few companies who will do a restoration for you but they are not cheap - if your wheel is just cosmetic and has no cracking or damage then the easy way is to do as others have said, by have a go yourself or shelling out some cash after talking to a trimmer. I know of saddlers, leather workers and furniture restorers who makes extra cash by doing little repair jobs on cars - they are worth talking to! Sadly, my cars steering wheel is about had it, as the 69 year old plastic looks it’s age and is starting to crack or has cracked at the root ends of the spokes. The cost of the restoration is a problem at the moment - “after market” wheels are a lot cheaper than having the wheel restored, so for now, my car is fitted with a wheel out of a catalogue! Eric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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