Thursday, February 5, 2009

Steering Wheel Restoration - Stage One

The "Econoline Pickup Special" came with a white steering wheel in place of a black steering wheel.

From May 1, 1965 through July 20, 1965 Ford offered an "Econoline Pickup Special" version of the pickup truck. The truck was upgraded with Bright Body Side Molding, Falcon Wheelcovers, Chrome Bumpers, Chrome Driver's Side Mirror, Rear Corner Windows, 6.95 x 14 PR W.S.W. Tires and Special Poppy Red Paint. The value of these items was
$251.90.

Since this was a Ford factory promotion program, buyers got the package free of charge or at least they were supposed to get it for free!


In this blog entry and two subsequent entries I will document the restoration process of this steering wheel. When it is finished it will be sold on eBay because I have a NOS (New Old Stock) steering wheel to replace this one.

These photos show how the years and environmental damage have been cruel to the hard rubber causing cracks to develop.



Click on photos for larger versions. Click "Back" on your browser to return to this page.



It is important to enlarge and clean out the cracks so that they can be filled with epoxy paste.



In the next entry I will post photos of the steering wheel after it has been media-blasted to remove the paint. Photos of the filling process will also be posted.

As usual you can see larger versions of these photos at flickr.

If you have any questions or would like to comment you can email me.

ENJOY THE RIDE !!!!

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