The optimum steering wheel: 73T hot rod.

[goodtogo]

I've currently got a 360mm Racemark wheel on my '67 with a small Porsche horn puck that has been well used and driven some miles by the looks of it.

I'm going to replace it with a stock 420mm VDM wood rim blighter (off this site), so I'll be looking for a horn puck as well and quite propably the electrical gubbins behind it.

[911hillclimber]

Andy:
Car SOS had a rim re-cast with a resin ton an original steel rim but not a 911 but some classic. A guy, one-man-in-a-shed, had a series of molds of different dia and after casting and fettling it looked great, a perfect base for double leather.
Maybe google can help find the episode.

[andytat]

Thanks Graham. I'll take a look.

Regards.

Andy

[911hillclimber]

Thinking about it more, it was Wheeler Dealers as Brewer was screaming in ecstasy as usual...

[andytat]

You are right Graham, I'll give them a call and see if they are
working at the moment.

Andy

[Bootsy]

Heritage have a rang of repro steering wheels - noever seen them in the flesh.

They do a 417mm but do a 395mm in wood which maybe suitable for wrapping

https://www.heritagepartscentre.com/uk/ ... 395mm.html

[911hillclimber]

Had a good look at the wheel that came on the car to me in 1989.
Hub part number is 901 347 081 10 dated VDM 8 69 which I presume is 1969.
How a 73 T came to get a 69 wheel I'll never know, but it was/is a bitza car.

It is 400mm OD, and at 380mm OD the difference is not exactly marked! Have a 380 and a thick pair of gloves = 400mm.

Seems a pointless exercise to me for 20mm.
My current Momo is 360mm OD.

Think I'll take the car for a drive with the 400mm wheel on and see how that is.

[Sam]

You be surprised how much difference it makes.

A 350mm wheel makes the steering notably heavier and less feel some especially with a really thick rim, a 400mm is a bit like steering The Black Pearl, especially with a really thin rim.

370-380 with a medium-thickness rim is absolutely definitely where it’s at.

[911hillclimber]

I put the mono 360mm on when I started to hill climb the car in 1990 so I'm very used to the steering as it is, but, maybe I'm getting slack as I get older and too used to modern power steering I find the casual driving of the car a bit too heavy esp at low speeds.

When I was very young, all my cars had a 13" Mountney wheel fitted automatically, but I'm talking about Triumph Heralds, 105E Fords, Morris Minors.

Maybe the cars weighty feeling is more geo based.

Porsche obviously thought 400mm was right for the purpose of the lesser 911 spec cars.

If the wheel I have is not worth much (?) I'm tempted to have a steel tube rolled to 375mm and welded to the 4 spokes and cover, the tube being larger dia than the T wheel rim dia so when covered gives the thick grip of the Momo I have.

[Gary71]

Graham, I can send you my 380mm 'prototype' wheel for a test run if you like?

[Ian 2.2S]

Graham. I've swapped my standard 400mm for 380mm and it is surprising how much sportier it feels for little visual difference.
I managed to find a nice leather 914 from Ebay in USA at reasonable money. Stayed with narrow rim as I have ickle hands .Nice leather but I ended up restitching, modded cancelling ring, original butterfly, so looks bog standard but feels less like a tiller. Up to you.

[911hillclimber]

Thank you both.
The factory gave the RS a 380 so it must be better for the sports feel, and my moms at 360 is markedly smaller to the stock 400
I think I'm looking to a middle ground:
Sporting feel
Close to stock feel and weight at slow speeds
Capableto take a puck just for the looks.

Going to a prototype 370mmsound like a middle ground, but that will not allow the butterfly, the two side strips will clash with the cuffs on the 4 spokes.

I need to contact j Parr to discuss what frame diameter if steel thin wall tube, is needed to end up with an RS dia rim after covering and if double leather is the best direction to take for feel in the hand.

It will be a good lockdown project with a good benefit.

Need to crack on with it as it sounds like UK Motorsport might get released in early July!

Just need to find someone to roll a tube in a continuous circle! (Notthat easy)

[Gary71]

The rim isn’t round though, the relatively soft over moulded foam rim section is a 15 by 23mm rough ellipse that angles outwards at about 30 degrees. So the widest diameter is near the top (rearward in car) if that makes sense.

The rim itself is a 10mm solid steel bar with longitudinal ribs to get the foam moulding to stay in place.

[911hillclimber]

Thanks, understand the geometry.
My moms is a simple circle and the rim a simple diameter, no contour to it, so was going in that direction.
A rolled thin wall tube could well be an eclipse in section after rolling.

[Lightweight_911]

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Graham - I have the bare 'skeleton' of a 380mm 914 wheel hanging in the garage.

It has had the splined section removed (I used that when I adapted an old '60's Nardi woodrim wheel to fit my 356), no rim covering, etc.

If it's any use as a starting point, you're welcome to it - there's a chance I might even have some of the bits to go on the front to accept a hockey puck ...

I'll dig it out tomorrow & take some pictures.

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