1983 Leather Wrapped Steering Wheel needs rewrapped... where do you get leather?

[foot2floor]

I am making further progress on my 1983 Capri RS on Christmas Break and need to redo the factory 4 spoke leather wrapped wheel. I was taught how to sew as a boy and still can manage my way around a thread and needle (or a sewing machine if I have to) but I have no idea where to get the material to tackle such a job. Has anyone seen a supplier for this? It’s a little bit unique because the material also wraps down around the spokes about a half inch as well.

Many thanks and merry Christmas

[wraithracing]

These guys can make a custom leather wrap for you, but they don't currently offer one for the OEM 4 spoke. They will custom make one if you are willing and able to send them your steering wheel.

https://www.redlinegoods.com/Mustang7986shiftboot.php

Here's another option that can do the work also. http://www.dallassteeringwheel.com/

[foot2floor]

Thank you so much Trey, you are a depth of knowledge. Have you, or anyone ever recovered their steering wheel? Or paid someone else? If so how much did you spend?

[vintageracer]

Call Dung at Dallas Steering Wheel to have your wheel redone.

Not necessarily cheap however their work is PERFECT!

[ZephyrEFI]

Just watched this the other day. He makes it look easy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sStxk4mv_DY

[wraithracing]

Thank you so much Trey, you are a depth of knowledge. Have you, or anyone ever recovered their steering wheel? Or paid someone else? If so how much did you spend?

I have not done one in years nor paid to have one done recently. The last one I had done was around $300 all in. That was an SVO steering wheel without the center horn pad. I would say you can easily spend $300-$400 for the average steering wheel today. That cost is going to depend on what exactly do they do for the recovering. A quality job is going to strip the wheel down to the base shell, then most likely wrap the wheel with padding (how thick depends on preference and model) then sew a quality leather cover and finally glue and stitch that cover over the wheel. As with any type of upholstery work, the finesse work, and details make all the difference. A steering wheel that has been stitched together with a perfectly straight and matching pattern will always impress more than one that is uneven and off in regards to the pattern. Everything is labor intensive and takes a true craftsman to get it right the first time without issue.

Can you do one yourself, sure as long as you have the skills, time, and patience to do the work. I am sure you can stitch up a cover from Redline on your steering wheel and be very happy with it. There are plenty of videos out there that show the process. I may very well do the same on my 82 GT and my 82 RS once I get to that point with those vehicles. Although I will admit that if I have the budget to pay to have it completely done by Dallas or another I may very well just pay the cost so I don't have to deal with it. Best of Luck!

[wraithracing]

Just watched this the other day. He makes it look easy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sStxk4mv_DY

He does do a nice job, I do wonder how the glued down sections at the spoke will hold up long term.

If you want to see a true craftsman at work, check this out. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IaSm3zoWrAo this is not a steering wheel, but I believe he has a video on that too. I love to watch any of his work. The skills and techniques are awesome. Would love to have him do so many interior projects of mine as I am sure the results would be amazing.

[Basin Motorsports]

I had two different places quote redoing my factory 3-spoke wheel and both were $300-$400. Redline wanted to work with me, but required sending my wheel to Poland to make the template for the factory 3-spoke since they didn't have one made yet. The other was in Texas, but is not Dallas Wheel. I would bet $300+ is the going rate currently.

[ZephyrEFI]

He does do a nice job, I do wonder how the glued down sections at the spoke will hold up long term.

If you want to see a true craftsman at work, check this out. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IaSm3zoWrAo this is not a steering wheel, but I believe he has a video on that too. I love to watch any of his work. The skills and techniques are awesome. Would love to have him do so many interior projects of mine as I am sure the results would be amazing.

That was cool to watch. Good info for sure!

[ddx77]

Yes I have had three wheels recovered by redline and they came out perfect. I want to say I paid $150-200 per install. This didn’t include the cowbell itself. I had to send the wheels to NC I believe.

Two wheels I had done in a smooth leather these photos are of the leather with the deeper grain.

I had them do the horn center from an SVO as well. But they don’t have the stamp for the logo so it’s plain. I also sent them a center from an 85 mustang without cruise control. They could not recover this center either.





Again, they did a perfect job for me and I could not have been happier.

I know another member on here whom had to send his wheel back to redline to have them fix a not so perfect job. I saw the photos and I agreed with the member, it was not perfect. I’m not sure what his final option of the company would be. Nor do I know how his final wheel ended up looking like.

Thank you so much Trey, you are a depth of knowledge. Have you, or anyone ever recovered their steering wheel? Or paid someone else? If so how much did you spend?

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