Steering wheel strip

[ChrisW434]

Hey!

i'm considering stripping back the worn off pleather from my 34's steering wheel, until i get it reupholstered in the future.

Does anyone know if its a smooth, usable finish underneath, or is it a bad idea?

 

cheers!

[niZmO_Man]

I'd rather look for a cover, ebay etc. usually has "sales" of them from China. I got one for a Mazda 3 and Accord Euro for about $80 each

*edit*
like this: https://www.eastdetailing.com/products/copy-of-2007-2033?variant=39459553345639

[ChrisW434]

Just worth doing the cover straight up then by the looks. Cheers!

[GTSBoy]

Not strippable. Straight into the foamy substrate.

[ChrisW434]

So i guess its a real delicate job to reupholster it then? Carefully remove worn-out skin then go again?

[GTSBoy]

I wouldn't say "delicate job". I'm not trimmer/upholsterer, but my expectation is that you strip down to the steel and repad, and trim with leather

[ChrisW434]

1 hour ago, GTSBoy said:

I wouldn't say "delicate job". I'm not trimmer/upholsterer, but my expectation is that you strip down to the steel and repad, and trim with leather

Sounds good, thanks for the reply!

[tridentt150v]

Or... there are guys advertising on ebay...send your steering wheel to them...they send it to Singapore???? or somewhere like that and it gets totally rebuilt to your specs.  but everything costs!!!

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/325174893361?hash=item4bb5ef1b31:g:rAoAAOSwWP1ewS41&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAA8CUNziNNfjqZ%2BTjZbv0v6c8qhAJ1Y7VAqwwv3Vt%2FWJEQmFapzik%2B1WIBpiTGlwVfLwDZXO7k6G4KsTB%2Fv3e1QE6Pazyqgy1R1IZrF9MlRWT%2FaOBKPDcGFE8klEOpeU4TGxmTpvFZ99gcY7ooGrELCEcubz7gHGfvQQf51BWnY86ZYBWCi%2B9LgaychQ0tE9YC%2Ffk4BDju00ERhQQZAh6GKbgojKKCmg8oITNyekrksO%2B%2FXrQxZFNmhg5Otu75AoRFf7BJ4toS%2BqNP9jZLeuyAH5V8srgAnOjxVDj8uvxrnkJ5GEPo5wZ%2F3T1uwlM3qw3f8g%3D%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR-6h18jzYQ

[ChrisW434]

Whoa, not so sure about that option 😄

[GTSBoy]

A local motor trimmer can usually redo a steering wheel at a reasonable cost. I say "reasonable", but nothing involving manual labour is really reasonable compared to buying a new Momo or similar.

[ChrisW434]

6 minutes ago, GTSBoy said:

A local motor trimmer can usually redo a steering wheel at a reasonable cost. I say "reasonable", but nothing involving manual labour is really reasonable compared to buying a new Momo or similar.

Yeah thats i what i was thinking, prob still the best option, BYO cover and pay for install

[GTSBoy]

1 hour ago, ChrisW434 said:

BYO cover and pay for install

I don't know where you would get a cover that you would prefer a trimmer to use over the cover that a trimmer would build from scratch from your choice of nice leather, or alcantara or whatever. Keep in mind that with the wheel you showed, you have to re-pad and cover the entire thing (except the hornpad/airbag part), not just the rim. The rim and the spokes are all the same thing. They all need to be under the same sewn expanse of fabric (or plasti-rubber, or whatever you do on top), with seamless padding from the edges of the spokes out onto the rim.

There are a number of crowds in Oz that speciailise in rebuilding steering wheels. They can redo them to factory spec, or you could go leather. Just do a google for "steering wheel restoration australia".

[ChrisW434]

20 minutes ago, GTSBoy said:

I don't know where you would get a cover that you would prefer a trimmer to use over the cover that a trimmer would build from scratch from your choice of nice leather, or alcantara or whatever. Keep in mind that with the wheel you showed, you have to re-pad and cover the entire thing (except the hornpad/airbag part), not just the rim. The rim and the spokes are all the same thing. They all need to be under the same sewn expanse of fabric (or plasti-rubber, or whatever you do on top), with seamless padding from the edges of the spokes out onto the rim.

There are a number of crowds in Oz that speciailise in rebuilding steering wheels. They can redo them to factory spec, or you could go leather. Just do a google for "steering wheel restoration australia".

Well that actually sounds better. I'll chase that option up, happy to pay for a quality job. Thanks for the advice!

[tridentt150v]

4 hours ago, ChrisW434 said:

Whoa, not so sure about that option 😄

So....you think you will get one covered for less than $600....that's lineball IMO.  Do your homework, but it is hard to find a business that does Skyline type wheels.  We fall into a black hole that nobody cares about/  There are restorers that work on older sold wheels for Chevies and EH Holdens etc, then there are those that work on R35/Porsche/BMW wheels.  I found it very hard to find anyone that works on our era cars...nobody seems interested.

Try a few upholstery businesses, but I'd doubt you will get it that much cheaper, as GTSBoy said, labour isn't cheap.  And a Momo in good condition will set you back over $1,000.  Remember you will need to keep your airbag setup.....and that raises the cost.

 

[ChrisW434]

59 minutes ago, tridentt150v said:

So....you think you will get one covered for less than $600....that's lineball IMO.  Do your homework, but it is hard to find a business that does Skyline type wheels.  We fall into a black hole that nobody cares about/  There are restorers that work on older sold wheels for Chevies and EH Holdens etc, then there are those that work on R35/Porsche/BMW wheels.  I found it very hard to find anyone that works on our era cars...nobody seems interested.

Try a few upholstery businesses, but I'd doubt you will get it that much cheaper, as GTSBoy said, labour isn't cheap.  And a Momo in good condition will set you back over $1,000.  Remember you will need to keep your airbag setup.....and that raises the cost.

 

I'm not sure about what the work would cost locally yet, hence the question and request for info. I don't know if $600 is realistic here in Aust, just not keen to get the wheel sent to Singapore (or anywhere overseas for that matter).
 

Trying to see what others have done successfully. Seems like there's few different ways to go about it, but quality work isn't cheap, i do agree.

Maybe a company like the one below...?

Edited April 20, 2023 by ChrisW434

[tridentt150v]

Getting it sent overseas isn't a problem....the business that did mine has been doing it for a while now and I haven't heard of any negative issues.

[morboost]

that ebay retrim service seem reasonable, you can even make an offer.