Refinishing a worn leather steering wheel ...

O

Oxen72

New member
On a 2006 Ford F-250 Lariat that spent lots of time in the Texas sun ...



2006FordF-250SteeringWheel2.jpg




The 'black color" of the leather has worn away; the leather is still smooth on most of the worn spots and only "rough" at the most heavily worn spot at the 12 o'clock position.



I'd like to "re-dye" it, and here's the two vendors I've placed interest in so far:



Leather Magic; Leather Recoloring Kit ... $49.95



Leatherique; Steering Wheel Kit ... $25.00



There's also a company in Dallas, TX (Dallas Custom Steering Wheel) that does a pretty darn good job recovering sttering wheels, but they want $250 for the job!



What does the forum recommend for the re-dye job & does anyone have any direct experience with the brands mentioned?
 
I wouldn't use neither. The biggest problem with steering wheels is a build up of hand oils. THat has to be removed before you can recoat the wheel. IN this case a steamer would help a lot followed by repeatedly wiping it down with alcohol.
 
I agree with Quality Leather, I've had many steering wheels that look like that and they come out great. The color may be a little off the origional, but it will still be very close to perfect.



I personally use some APC (all purpose cleaner, purchased on autogeek) diluted 4:1 (water/APC) and it takes it right off. The 4:1 dilution is very strong, 10:1 is reccomended for general cleaning, so just be careful and don't get too crazy. Alchohol works well too like Quality said.



Oh, and if the wheel is that dirty I'll bet the shifter, windshield wiper knob, and stereo knobs are just as nasty. Use the same cleaning method on these. Another reason I like the APC is if you spray some on the dirty areas, it almost highlights the dirt/oil/grime that needs to be removed, it turns it a light brown that is easily disguishable from the vinyl.
 
I agree with StadiumDetail and Quality Leather that the preparatory cleaning is the foundation of a good refinishing.



Question is how long we want to put this steering wheel back to practical good use will determine how we should do the prep and the refinishing.



3 months and the steering turns sticky?



or 3 years where the leather is still supple, strong and squeaky.



To determine whether the leather is exposed to alkalinity from our sweaty hands (the pH of sweat moves towards alkalinity that denature the leather resulting from tackiness and progress to stickiness when test with wet hands).



Alkaline cleaners besides using a leather safe system may also clean the sweaty contamination with good look.



But it will make the leather more tacky or sticky (test when the leather is still damp).



Alkalinity will also remove the fat, oil and water (fatliquor) from within the leather structure that make it more stiff when dry.



Alkaline exposure also result in browning of the leather - sign of alkaline exposure.





A leather-safe alternative is to used a low pH 2.2 degreaser, rinse with a pH 3.0 rinse, fatliquor with a pH 5.0 fatliquor as Step 1.



Step 2 is Dry Prep.



Step 3 is an Adhesion Coat



Step 4 is Color Coat



Step 5 is Top Coat



Step 6 is Non-Stick Protection





If done as accordingly to the universal generic tannery standard with a leather-safe system I would provide a 3 Years Warranty.



Warranty against:



Stickiness



Peeling



Cracking



Discoloration against UV fading





This should be the new standard for detailers to catch-up with the latest leather cleaning and restoration technology of the 21st Century!







Roger Koh

Leather Doctor®
 
I just refinished mine and it came out awesome. I bought a car from the same state and had plenty of wear. I thought about buying a new one, have mine rewrapped, but ended up with the following process and it looks brand new!



Refinished Leather steering wheel using 1800 grit micromesh, deglazer, black leather dye, and high gloss top coat.



I Zelikovitz products h (with excpetion of the micromesh) and followed this how-to: Refinished the leather on my steering wheel - Passat World Forums



Perfect and would never think of anything else. I might have gine with a flat sealant top coat, but I'm 9.5/10 happy!
 
David,

I looked at that thread and there is no mention of longevity. No offense, but the products that the OP used are meant for shoes, handbags, etc. You may get away with using them, but I would rather you some products with a little better quality. His steps on doing the work are correct though.
 
Quality Leather said:
David,

I looked at that thread and there is no mention of longevity. No offense, but the products that the OP used are meant for shoes, handbags, etc. You may get away with using them, but I would rather you some products with a little better quality. His steps on doing the work are correct though.
Click to expand...







In additional to what you said here is a tip about “Light Fastness Longevity�:





Dyes that stain auto leather interior will fade average 4 times faster than ordinary pigment used in home furnishing.



Auto interior uses “High Performance Pigment� that outlasts most home leather furnishing many times over.



These high performance pigments have build-in UV protection against UV fading.



You may start to see the difference in shade when Aniline Dyestuff is used after 3 months under the Texas sun.



One way to test the strength of UV fading is to cover up half of a sample and put under the sunlight.



Check the shade difference every month.





Roger Koh

Leather Doctor®
 
Quality Leather said:
David,

I looked at that thread and there is no mention of longevity. No offense, but the products that the OP used are meant for shoes, handbags, etc. You may get away with using them, but I would rather you some products with a little better quality. His steps on doing the work are correct though.
Click to expand...



So what products would you recommend? I was happy with my results but would be interested in anything better.
 
D Tailor said:
So what products would you recommend? I was happy with my results but would be interested in anything better.
Click to expand...

LRT, which is right around the corner from you. They are the distributor for Quaker Color. You can reach Jon at 267-228-5682.



Refinish Coatings is another.
 
Wanted to follow-up here ... I didn't end up trying to refinish the wheel. With all the recommendations and Leatherique recommendation "against" due to the wear having already created a "suede" condition, I decided to just have the wheel recovered.



Don Le of in Dallas, TX did the job .. it was pricey but it was absolute quality work. It's amazing how close he can get it back to a factory new look. The shop has my recommendation :2thumbs:
 
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