TR4/4A tr4 steering wheel-modifications

[trfourtune]

Ok,
I want to use my original steering wheel on my tr4 but i want to modify it to be 13.5"-14" diameter with a deeper dish to move the ring back. I do not want to put an aftermarket steering wheel on it, i just want to cut the ring off and adapt a 14" ring from some other steering wheel that is "plastic" like the original. Yes i know of the company in Australia that will do this but they charge $900 AUS. Yes, you heard me correctly, $900.
So, does anyone know of any old "plastic" 14" steering wheel out there? colour is not an issue (epoxy paint will take care of that).
any suggestions other than an aftermarket non original looking steering wheel appreciated.
thanks
Rob

 

[TR4]

I don't know of a plastic wheel available but what about having a shop bend an aluminum tube to the size you want and then hit it with the epoxy paint?

 

[trfourtune]

need the finger grooves and it would need to be stainless (same as the original spokes). Just metal is too cold for canada.

 

[trfourtune]

oops, and that price was $950 from "pearlcraft".
I near messed myself when i read(red) the price.

 

[TR4nut]

Rob-

Not positive, but if I were you I'd look for a similar age Spitfire or GT6 Mk1? wheel - they look very similar to the TR4, have the same boss for mounting, and I think are slightly smaller diameter. Someone with an early Spit may be able to confirm. You are probably looking at a $50-$100 investment if it worked.

Randy

 

[MGTF1250Dave]

Aloha,

I am assuming that the TR4 steering wheel is built very similar to the TR3 steering wheels. Inside the plastic rim of the wheel is a metal core. The spring rods extending from the center hub are attached to the metal core with some sheet steel welded to the rim and wraps over the core and holds the spring rods in place. the plastic outer rim material is then cast around the metal frame. Eastwood has a kit to rebuild steering wheels using a two part epoxy material, PC-7. Here is a link to their deluxe kit:

https://www.eastwoodco.com/jump.jsp?itemID=2571&itemType=PRODUCT

I've used it to repair a cracked steering wheel and it worked reasonably well, but I covered the patched rim with a leather steering wheel cover.

 

[Andrew Mace]

Rob-

Not positive, but if I were you I'd look for a similar age Spitfire or GT6 Mk1? wheel - they look very similar to the TR4, have the same boss for mounting, and I think are slightly smaller diameter.

They'll fit right on without modifications, since it's all the same Triumph Herald steering column. However, Rob said he was looking for a slightly deeper dish, and many Spitfire and GT6 wheels have -- if anything -- less dish, and the size isn't really much different than what would be stock on the TR4.

 

[TR4nut]

I may be thinking of a Vitesse wheel. Pretty sure they are 15", TR4 is 16" so it would be a little smaller. Looks dished a bit more than the TR4 I think, but that may be an illusion. Still doesn't get to 13.5-14 though.

Randy

 

[Andrew Mace]

If you're willing to forego the dish, the earlier Spitfire 1500 wheels (up through 1976) are only 13" (maybe 13.5"; I don't remember for sure) diameter. But they don't have the same "banjo string" spokes of the TR4 wheel.