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[George P]

Any particular make of leather steering wheel cover recommended?   

I went with this one

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/261751131889?hash=item3cf1954ef1:g:DFoAAMXQVERSv2cd&amdata=enc%3AAQAHAAAA8LB%2BwDxmzMgZcClNYPEUPFZKqyHzLEBja3VicxadGxdqTXOzkWXyiXkEw0pG90rkkojX6bvL8ZcRDcKAD2Lm4iYjGY8%2FYQD8nLUruWL6fzIX0YKJBrw0JZMR%2F%2BeBT8SmmRBXT99u2mX09lVE37z0xg6qm0Rci8CtF1pFH0KcU51FL1B5BziULzYYYtlmAtlDojGDiZyn0BBs9XKolZJrpqnYoX0jEts%2BbP9JUy61AavX%2FbvhLvErTuoncjgfeX5Q4wl0%2BUnPhyht0mBSh1oAMBHwh7CpeRvVmeLuX1O%2FiSedw%2B6qgPjVmte6mw05Yy00JQ%3D%3D%7Ctkp%3ABFBM8JzshqBg

[Wittsend]

Now there's a question - it was a while back and I can't remember.

But I'm pretty sure it was off eBay and less than £30.

Quite a few people seem to do these now - they should know the size of a Land Rover steering wheel, but for the record it's 17" diameter.
My "kit" included plenty of stitching thread and 2 needles.
All the sticking holes were pre-formed and so (sic) it was plain tacking sailing.


 

[Sunny Jim]

Steering wheel restorations turned round a wheel for me in less than two weeks from me sending it, to getting it back. The boss was in good condition, but it had two broken spokes at the boss end, which they repaired very nicely at no extra cost. The overall finish was excellent, and probably better than could be done at home. Whilst it is not cheap, about £350 including two way postage and VAT, you do have a wheel that will last for years.

I collected quite a few wire spoke wheels over the years looking for one to restore; the main problem is not that the coating wears off the rim, but that the rim becomes very thin. On one, the boss'd had 7 bells knocked out of it by a PO, presumably trying to remove it. I did a post a few months back showing how dents and gouges in the boss can be rectified, almost back to normal, with the minimum of filler.

I managed to get one of a batch of new ones discovered by Dunsfold (presumably in a job lot of crates that they bought) so ended up selling off all but one of my collection. I only had the broken one restored, as it was unsaleable, and unusable as it was. I will get my 'spare' done at some point. The last un-restored wheel I sold went for about £200 in typically cracked and worn condition, but perfectly restorable. I have seen some appalling ones, only fit for the skip at stupid prices.

I am sure there are other wheels that might fit, but try getting one in decent condition!

Sunny Jim

[Alan Drover]

Many years ago I bought a new steering wheel for my Series 3 from Dunsfold. It has a much thicker rim than the usual ones and after all this time the paint hasn't come off all over my hands. It seems to be a plastic material and it's much more comfortable than the standard one. Anyone come across anything like it?

[Sunny Jim]

Back when I was a student in the early 80s I had to replace my steering column and got a second hand one of the later type. Later, I got a brand new steering wheel which lasted until I fitted a wire spoke one again in 2017 (with a column I made new from individual components) - that was over 30 years. It was a 'Series 3' type, which were a different plastic, and was in good enough condition to sell it on for more money than it cost originally! The later 2A wheels seem to be a similar material to the old spoked ones (ebonite I believe), with a painted finish whereas the later Series 3 ones seemed to be a solid, harder plastic.

Sunny Jim