http://members.shaw.ca/gregtsmith/Steering%20wheel.htm

Steering Wheel Recover

I just finished re-covering my leather wrapped steering wheel and it looks great.  Good used ones often go for over $100.00 professional upholstery  firms prices start at $250.00.  This is not a difficult task and anyone can do it with some basic tools,  but don't get me wrong, about half way through I was seriously considering professional help. 

TOOLS Needed:

First, here is a list of what tools you will need to complete this:

SUPPLIES Needed:

Disassembly:

Remove the Steering Wheel from the car

1. Remove horn center pad from the steering wheel, by gently pulling it off with you fingers and a flat screwdriver. 

2. Remove the horn contact wire from the pad by using a finishing nail to help poke out the indentation on the brass connector.

3. Remove the snap ring and center nut from the steering wheel.

4. Install your steering wheel puller and remove the wheel.

Remove the original leather from the wheel.

1. Using a utility knife and/or a razor blade cut the criss-cross lasing that "ties" the leather around the wheel, aka. baseball stitching.  Go slow and be careful not to cut the leather, you will need it intact to make a pattern

2. Pull the leather "loop" off of the wheel.  Try not to stretch the leather too much.

3. Use a solvent to remove all remaining brown factory "foam" from both the leather and the plastic wheel.  Gasoline worked for me.  Take care not to stretch or rip the leather.

4. Carefully cut the two seams that hold the two pieces of leather together and make the loop.

5. Lie the leather flat (unfold the all of the edges) and let it dry.

6. You should now have:

   1. One clean plastic wheel

   2. Two clean pieces of leather, one about 31" long the other about 16" long

Now is a great time to refinish (i.e. paint) the two metal spokes on the wheel if desired.

Re-assembly:

Cut two new pieces of leather

1. Using two pieces salvaged from the wheel, lay-out two new pieces and cut them out with a utility knife. The trick here is to add 3/8 to each end to serve as a seam allowance where these two will be machine sewn together.

2. If you didn't get your leather shop to custom dye the new leather now is the time to do this.  Dye about 25' of linen "leather tread" at the same time

 Punch Holes

You will have to devise a way to punch several dozen 3/32" holes spaced 1/4 from each other.  The first row is 1/8" from the edge the next is      1/2"  the edge.   My technique was as follows:

1. Find a small scrap of 1x2 hardwood

2. Using your drill press lay-out and drip 12 1/16" holes, 6 1/8" from the edge, 6 more 1/2" from the edge.

3. Make a puncturing tool by driving 12 finishing nails into the holes so that their points extend evenly beyond the wood about 1/8"

4. Use this tool to layout and pierce the leather all the way around

5. Once this was completed I chucked a 3/32 finish nail that was ground flat into the drill press and punched the holes as above

This is the tool I made to mark the holes. Very slow, very tedious, but it worked.

Fold and baste the Edges

1. Using some thin thread, line up a pair of holes, fold the edges over and baste the seam (just go in an out)

2. Don't be to fussy the idea is just to hold the edge down while you do the baseball stitch later

3. If the leather is really stiff a little warm water will soften it.  I did mine dry.

4. Count all of the holes on the top (the side that won't be getting the foam) The number of hole on the front of the top MUST match the number on the back of the top.  This is also CRITICAL for the bottom.  If numbers of holes is off check your work and if required drill an extra hole where there is a large gap. 

5. If the holes don't match the lacing will look lousy (imagine a running shoe with 5 eyelets on the left and 6 on the right, now try and lace it up.)

Sew the Loop together

You can see the seam in the image two above.

1. Buy a leather sewing machine needle, trust me you'll need it.

2. Go slow and sew the two pieces together to make a loop.

3. Leather is hard on any sewing machine.  I did mine on the machine "manually", no motor just turned the machine by hand one stitch at a time.

4. Trim the extra seam allowance from the inside.  On the factory wheel they are within 1/8" or less.  Careful here cut too much and you are back to "consider professional help"

Glue Foam

1. I used standard 1/8" "foundation" foam that you can get at any lumber yard.

2. Trim it for width so that it fits between the folded over edges

3. Trim it for length so that it doesn't cover the seam allowance from the sewing step

4. Cut extra to fit in the "thumb" area at 4 and 8 o'clock

5. Use a good quality spray foam and glue the foam to the leather

Glue Leather and Foam to the Wheel

1. Fit the leather and foam to the wheel.  If its the right size this won't be easy.  It should stretch on and be a little tight.

2. Line up the seams from the sewing step with the groves in the wheel.

3. Spray glue all the way around the wheel on the top, front and back,  try to avoid the inside.  You are going to want to adhere the foam to about 3/4-7/8 of the surface of the plastic wheel.  You will want to try and keep the glue away from the areas where you are about to do the baseball stitching (i.e. the middle).

4. Glue the front of the thumb areas down as well.

5. Clamp the whole thing.  I used a couple dozen rubber bands across the wheel every 10 degrees or so and a spring clamp on each thumb pad

Knit one Peril two

WE ARE JUST GETTING TO THE HARD PART! 
This step alone takes over 4 hours to make perfect

1. Start on the "top half" of the wheel with a length of about 15' of dyed linen. Tread the linen through the wheel at the "V" crotch by the thumb pads. You will start on the left, go through one layer, across the gap, and through the other side (most stitching will go through two layers on each side in the crotch the leather is trimmed so there is only one).  You will want an even amount of linen on each side.  Remember think running shoe lacing

2. Do not pull it too tight (just yet).  If you do you will either break the linen (bad) or rip the leather (terrible)

3. Start stitching the wheel.  As you can see above this is the same pattern you use to lace up a running shoe. Under, through, over, across, skip a hole, under, through, over, across, skip a hole, etc.

4. Go slow (ha) work from both sides and only do a few (five or six) rows at a time

5. Go back and tighten your work.  I used a crochet hook to catch the linen and then CAREFULLY pulled the leather and stitching tight with needle-nose pliers.

6. If you are having trouble getting enough stretch soak the trouble area in warm water.  I managed to do the top half of mine dry.

7. Once you are at the other thumb pad loop the ends around twice and tie it off.

8. The bottom half is much the same you will need 10' of dyed linen and this time you will start at the bottom of the bar and will sew up the thumb pad. 

9. You are almost guaranteed to need to soak the thumb pad areas to get enough stretch

10. Make sure that the pads look good and cover the start and finish areas from the top half

11. Proceed to finish the bottom half using the same technique as the top.  If you think it goes faster because you are getting good at this...  Forget it.  It is only 1/2 as long.

12. Tie off and tuck the ends in and under.

Finish and reinstall your new wheel

So now you're thinking that this took 4 hours and boy this looks only kind of OK.  About a 7 out of 10.  The leather is kind of bumpy and the linen is really rough.

1. Take a rubber or polyurethane hammer and place the wheel on a pliable surface, telephone book worked for me and carefully pound the threads into the leather.

2. I know this sounds crazy, but it works.

3. The result, a truly professional looking job for about $15

4. Install the wheel on the car.

5. Enjoy!