RE: [Chrysler300] recasting a steering wheel

[Ray Melton <rfmelton@xxxxxxx>]

The urethane resin was recommended by Don Eads and Dennis Crook, who both said that if I were going to do this myself, definitely DO NOT use something widely available like metal-filled J-B weld epoxy because the coefficient of expansion of the J-B stuff is significantly different than the original plastic, so I would likely end up with hundreds of new cracks where the old ones were in only a few years.  The urethane resin  is also pretty flexible, whereas most epoxies are typically quite rigid and brittle, and even the flexing of the steering wheel as brace your arms against it during a sudden stop could break the repair loose.  Both materials are somewhat related in their chemical makeup and cross-linking polymerization processes -- “urethane”  and “epoxy” are merely generic labels for an entire class of  materials with a very wide range of chemical and physical characteristics, much like there are thousands of different “plastics” – another extremely broad category.  

 

Note that virtually ALL the steering wheel restorers mention their use of “urethane resin” when describing their full restoration process, wherein they strip the wheel down to its steel rim frame, then re-cast the entire urethane plastic part onto the rim in their own special mold that yields the final ribbed and finger-grooved shape that needs only minor final sanding and polishing before delivery to the customer.  Since their new plastic goes all the way to the rim, everything is the same color  so they don’t have to go through the labor-intensive fill/sand/polish/paint routine like I will, and of course they will never have to contend with the possibility of paint debonding, chipping or wearing through, etc.  But for the price difference, I think I can take that risk! 

 

Ray Melton

 

From: Chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:Chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Bill Huff
Sent: Thursday, November 22, 2012 1:25 PM
To: Ray Melton; 'Steve Simon'
Cc: chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: RE: [Chrysler300] recasting a steering wheel

 

  

A question...why urethane resin as opposed to epoxy?

Bill Huff

At 11/22/201211:10 AM, Ray Melton wrote:
>
>
>Yeah, but OMG! It cost what, $1,500? I don’t 
>begrudge those high-end artists for their 
>consummate skill and the money they get for it, 
>but many of us don’t have the resources to 
>devote such $$$$! to that singular item among 
>all the other competing demands of restoration.
>
>I am currently restoring the typically cracked 
>steering wheel from my late father’s 1957 
>300C, but I will NOT be re-casting the entire 
>wheel (only the light-colored part was cracked) 
>– I will be using modern hhigh-quality Lord 
>Fusor urethane resins, cleaners, primers and 
>paints (as recommended by others intimately 
>involved in the business of restoring urethane 
>parts) to “putty” up the cracks, then sand 
>to correct finger-groove contour, coat with the 
>special recommended primer, then go for probably 
>two coats of ivory-beige color, followed by 
>several coats of urethane clear coat. No, it 
>will not be a complete re-cast of the whole 
>wheel (the lower black part was essentially 
>perfect), and it will not be done in one evening 
>(but I can work long hours on the cheap for 
>myself, and have only myself to complain about 
>if I‘m dissatisfied! And I can re-do and re-do 
>until I am satisfied or go insane!) I will be 
>doing all the work of grinding out and enlarging 
>the cracks with my Dremel tool, mixing the 
>dozens and dozens of small, two-minute pot-life 
>batches of urethane resin to putty into each 
>individual crack; then, when all are filled and 
>hardened, re-contouring the finger-grooves by 
>hand and sanding to final contour and 
>smoothness. I will leave the final priming, 
>color-painting and clear-coating to the expert 
>at my local body shop, who has agreed to 
>complete that part of the job for $75.00. I 
>expect to have less than $200 invested in the 
>entire job (all the materials are in hand for 
>less than $90.00) –“ but will spend a bit on 
>different grades of sandpaper, in addition to a 
>few bucks for several new bits for the Dremel to 
>clean out all the hundreds of cracks.
>
>I am taking pictures along the way, and when 
>finished, I will post the exact part numbers, 
>sources and costs for each of the ingredients 
>needed, as well as incremental progress photos 
>along the way. No, I won’t have an absolutely 
>gorgeous $1,500 totally re-cast steering wheel, 
>but I expect to have a really great-looking 
>wheel for a very modest investment (not counting 
>my own labor with a dozen hours grinding, 
>sanding, cleaning and re-contouring along the 
>way!) And I will want it to withstand scrutiny 
>from barely 25.4mm away! At least, I think it 
>will be worth the investment for those of us who 
>can’t afford the total mega-buck re-cast, and 
>can take some satisfaction in doing some of the 
>simple handiwork on our own cars along the way.
>
>And of course, if my own job comes out crummy, 
>you can bet you’ll never hear about it again!
>
>Ray Melton
>
>1957 Chrysler 300C convertible
>
>White/Gauguin
>
>S/N 3N572517
>
>From: 
><mailto:Chrysler300%40yahoogroups.com>Chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx <mailto:Chrysler300%40yahoogroups.com>  
>[mailto:Chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx <mailto:Chrysler300%40yahoogroups.com> ] On Behalf Of Steve Simon
>Sent: Wednesday, November 21, 2012 10:48 PM
>To: Rich Barber
>Cc: Leona Aumann; 
><<mailto:Chrysler300%40yahoogroups.com>Chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx <mailto:Chrysler300%40yahoogroups.com> >
>Subject: Re: [Chrysler300] recasting a steering 
>wheel for a 1961 300g can someone tell me of a good place to have this done.
>
>I had Dennis restore my G steering wheel and it came out great.
>
>Thanks,
>Steve Simon
>Sent from my iPad
>
>On Nov 21, 2012, at 7:31 PM, "Rich Barber" 
><<mailto:c300%40ez2.net>c300@xxxxxxx <mailto:c300%40ez2.net>  <mailto:c300%40ez2.net> > wrote:
>
> > Dennis Crook is highly regarded. I have no personal experience with him.
> > 
> <http://www.qualityrestorations.com/>http://www.qualityrestorations.com/ 
> Click on Chrysler.
> >
> > You can do a Google search on "steering wheel restoration" for other shops
> > and a number of presentations on do-it-yourself kits. Good luck, whichever
> > way you go.
> >
> > Rich Barber
> >
> > Brentwood, CA
> >
> >
>
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>
>

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