[Dens71TA]

I just checked the original Formula wheel from my dad's '78 T/A(original owner) and the anodizing is dark black just like Norwood's wheel.

I wonder if gun blueing would work good for recoloring the spokes?

[njsteve]

I guess I have the sunfaded California version! I will have to check on the gun blueing angle. That might be another way to get the dark color. It may also depend on what metal is in the steering wheel.

[Norwood]

The spokes on my wheel are made from Alum. They are brushed and Black anodized. Black anodize sometimes from different angles has a slight blue tint to it.

[njsteve]

You're correct as to aluminum as the material. I just did some research and gun blueing only works on ferrous metals and does nothing on aluminum, so that idea is out.

I just recalled that when I did the surgery on the foam and saw the inner ring, the anodizing was glossy black, having never been in the sun. I guess it's back to the lab for more spoke research! Well, that's what happens when you only have old faded parts to compare your work to!

[tdavidl]

Originally Posted by Norwood

.... Black anodize sometimes from different angles has a slight blue tint to it.

if you click on my gallery, there are two pics, one straight on, the other from the drivers side door & you can see exactly what you're referring to...

[superdutybob]

Steve:

Not to sound cocky but you could have asked the opinion of your friends here at PY. Many would have told you that the spokes were originally black anodized.

I love this thread by the way. I look forward to reading and seeing your progress each time there is an addition to this thread. I hope to see the car one year when you get her all done.

[Norwood]

Originally Posted by superdutybob

Steve:


I love this thread by the way. I look forward to reading and seeing your progress each time there is an addition to this thread. I hope to see the car one year when you get her all done.

Steve, is there a completion date on the calander? We all have been following your restoration for like the last 20 years LOL

[Norwood]

Originally Posted by tdavidl

if you click on my gallery, there are two pics, one straight on, the other from the drivers side door & you can see exactly what you're referring to...

At work we get a lot of stuff anodized. I see this stuff almost daily

[njsteve]

The tentatitive completion date is May of 2005. As you can see there has been a slight delay....

As for the anodizing color, I was simply matching what I had initially around the house but stay tuned I found another way to darken it.....

[Norwood]

I'm thinking some kind of ink, Like whats in an Magic Marker.

[sixgunsblazing]

How do you think your steering wheel job would look on a dashpad?
I have a couple of small cracks in my dash with no missing material, I was thinking of super gluing them then sand and dye,,

[njsteve]

The stuff would work fine but the problem is the ability to reproduce the grain into the repair.

[njsteve]

Ok, so how's this? I used another wash technique using my wife's black acrylic stenciling paint, water and the same foam brush over the prior enamel washing. I applied about 15 coats over the course of the afternoon and then, once it dried, sprayed some clear Rustoleum spray paint over it from about 3 feet away so it was almost dry when it hit the wheel rims.

The comparson photo on the right is for color reference purposes. (Thanks to TDavidl -beautiful car by the way!)

[njsteve]

Being the tinkerer that I am, I decided that the finish on the rubber rim was a little too flat so I used a can of the black Plasti-Dip Rubber Coating Spray and sprayed several coats on the rim. That stuff is amazing. It leaves a nice rubbery semi-shiny finish on the surface that duplicates the original foam rubber finish perfectly, and I had no problems with spraying the coats immediately after one another even though the can says wait 30 minutes between coats. I think they mean if you stop spraying, and let it sit for more than a minute, it may craze the previous layer. So, I ended up just spraying continuously to fully cover all surfaces of the rim. I then just left it to sit overnight. Here is the result from this morning.

[ErikW]

njsteve, where did you buy the Plasti-Dip from?

[RicksGTO]

I think you hit it about perfect that last time, the spokes look great and the finish on the rim looks better than new. It will be interesting to see how the new material and plasti-dip will hold up, but from what I've seen you do so far, I am betting you can fix it if it ever needs a touch up.

[njsteve]

I got the Plasti Dip Spray at Home Depot in the spray paint aisle. I think it was about $8 and one can goes a long way.

I imagine that it is going to hold up to abuse better than regular vinyl paint since it is basically made for constant handling like on tool handles, and walkways, etc. We'll see!

Just for giggles, I tried a little experiment on the Parts Place reproduction fat wheel I bought last year. I used the orbital sandle with 220 grit and sanded the edges more round where they meet the spokes and partially sanded down/smoothed the outer surface of the rim and especially the fake seam they had molded into the outer cirumference of the wheel. I then sprayed it with several layers of the Plasti Dip spray. I think that is the trick for the repro wheel if you want to use one of those. It really got rid of the plastic repro look and now looks like the original black foam.

I might install this wheel as my primary wheel and use the original one for shows (in the event I ever finish this confounded, eternal project)

;-)

[RicksGTO]

speaking of finishing, how is the paint going, they were getting close to finishing your paint the last time you posted some pics, any updates? Mine is getting closer to going in for soda blasting. I'm trying to keep it on the under 2 year plan but after watching yours I'm not sure if I can make it. The small details seem to eat up a lot of time...

[njsteve]

They still are working on the front end sheetmetal. I still have the shell at my house. I think it was the right thing to do since I would have dreaded having a fresh, fully running drivetrain sitting in a car gathering dust at a body shop for a year and a half now.

[RicksGTO]

I agree, the guy I'm going to use talked me out of doing the underbody and engine bay/sub-frame before he got it and I think that may be the best way. Mine will be metallic silver so I won't have the option to let then do it in parts as you have with your solid color so I will be better off this way.