Unable to find a steering wheel that suits my challenge budget and other requirements I have turned to designing my own.
All I really want is a flat top / flat bottom steering wheel that can be bolted/welded to my existing Ford Escort steering column, small enough that my tall co-drivers can hop in and out of the car over the door bars without removing the wheel (since it isn't going to be removable to save cost and complexity), and works. By works, I mean is strong enough to withstand gripping it during a panic stop without yield, and feels like a race car to hold. Here's the concept:
The button head screws are there for finger grip, obviously I don't need that many to hold the thing together.
I suspect I can make what is rendered here for well less than what I can buy similar wheels for. Then I'll have to cover the assembly in something nice to touch. Suggestions? Source?
Any one else want one? Cost will likely be about $50. I can make a different pattern in the center if needed.
In reply to sporqster:
Oh, the bottom is shown. thus all the finger bumps (screw heads)
Looks great! You could probably just use the center from an existing wheel. Should work great.
I would make sure to cover it with something soft or that will really hurt after a few cones/vibrations.
Maybe you could sandwich some rubber sheet between the layers and have it extend over the edges slightly?
Just a thought.
Cool wheel! Just off the top of my head, they sell foam insulation for water pipes at Lowes/Home Depot. You might be able to take a short length of that and wrap it around at least the hand grip area, if not the whole thing. We have some kicking around in the house at the moment (leftovers from a physics assignment) and it seems to be able to hold about a 6-inch-radius curve without kinking. (Strategic snipping would let it do anything, of course.)
Look at go-kart steering wheels. 
Cool concept though.
gratuitous use of hockey tape? Not elegant, but cheap, and easy to replace over and over. IIRC after a number of layers it has a little give to it and is softer......Come to think of it I might be thinking of something else that isnt hockey tape.
Javelin wrote:
Look at go-kart steering wheels.
Cool concept though.
Kart steering wheels feel strange when operated at normal driving positions. They are a "flater" wheel than a normal car would use. We tried them on our FSAE car and it just was to strange to use.
That said they are cheap a chips (Like $20-40 for decent ones) and could probably be re-wrapped to change the shape. Also it may not bother you as much as it did when we tried them.
failboat wrote:
gratuitous use of hockey tape? Not elegant, but cheap, and easy to replace over and over. IIRC after a number of layers it has a little give to it and is softer......Come to think of it I might be thinking of something else that isnt hockey tape.
I was thinking the same thing. Hockey stick wrap or tennis racket wrap.
In reply to nocones:
Where do you get cheap kart steering wheels? The Margay ones cost $160 and those were the cheapest I found.
I need a few desperately.
chaparral wrote:
In reply to nocones:
Where do you get cheap kart steering wheels? The Margay ones cost $160 and those were the cheapest I found.
I need a few desperately.
Ebay, or any number of kart parts suppliers. Here's one:
http://host0114.csmhosting.com/iw_products.m4p.pvx?;products_no_tree?company=APS?CAT=STE
road bike Gel-Grip handlebar tape
I've got a leather Logitech Momo wheel that I've been saving for a formula car project. You may want to think about one of them. I'm not sure you can build a nice wheel for $50.
From Comet Kart Sales:
Kart Steering Wheels
Specifically, and for $50...
Only trouble with the kart wheels is the mounting to the ford hardware. I would have to make an adapter to get from the kart (or 6-bolt standard pattern) to this thing:
?
Just drill some holes in it. Thread them and move on.
If you're going to have something CNC cut, then you can CNC a spacer and use less material/less cost.
$26 shipped off ebay a few years back. Not a flat bottom, but they're not that expensive if you look. Ask your local kart track too, they'll know who has an old wheel sitting around the garage.
In reply to turboswede:
The holes overlap. Having access to the CNC, my cost is mostly material.
Have you ever driven a car that needs a normal amount of steering input that is equipped with a flat bottom wheel? I do not like it, Sam-I-Am. Its no fun to reach around to regrip the wheel, only to have it not there.
I took an unknown brand (Grant?) 12" dished wheel and cut all the spokes at the hub. Then flattened it and rewelded to hub. Used on my freebie rat-Midget built from all my junk parts. Made adapter from old steering wheel center. Works good!
Crap photo, but you get the idea.
