63-72 oval steering wheels

[james1414d]

I am in the process of putting the new interior in the super wagoneer. I noticed when I put the nos steering wheel on that it is perfectly round. I've owned several early wags and everone has had an oval steering wheel. it seems odd that age would cause a steering wheel to go oval shaped. anyone else have a round steering wheel, or are they supposed to be oval?

[KaiserMan]

I've neither seen nor heard of a round 63-72 steering wheel. All of mine are oval.

Maybe it's from an M715, Jeepster or a DJ? They used a similar (same?) wheel as the FSJ's. At least I think the DJ's did.

[originalrecipekenny]

mine came to me with bite marks:confused:

[Kenall]

Both of my Super tilt columns are oval.

[james1414d]

I've neither seen nor heard of a round 63-72 steering wheel. All of mine are oval.

Maybe it's from an M715, Jeepster or a DJ? They used a similar (same?) wheel as the FSJ's. At least I think the DJ's did.


this wheel is bright red and identical to the wheel I removed. it came from jim marski (sp?) new in the box.

definitly not m715. jeepster wheel and DJ have slightly smaller wheels.

I think maybe they came round. I've just never seen one.

[Tad]

Oval?
I never noticed, is it that much out of round?.
I'll have to look at the '67 column/wheel sitting in the truck and the '66 sitting in the pile.

[badscooter]

My son's 65 j2000 is oval.

[TPICherokee]

hahahaha!! I had my M715 wheel ready to be sent out to the wheel restoration place because it wasn't round!! Seriously, it is supposed to be oval!?!?!!

You just saved me a bunch of $$$$$!!!!!!

[Mikel]

hahahaha!! I had my M715 wheel ready to be sent out to the wheel restoration place because it wasn't round!! Seriously, it is supposed to be oval!?!?!!

You just saved me a bunch of $$$$$!!!!!!

:banghead:

[red mistress]

James, I've got a NOS steering wheel and its round.
The steering wheel on my low mile Glad is also round.

Funny, I had a nice tilt cloumn & wheel that I traded to William and it was oval.

Made me wonder if it was oval as part of the tilt package.
Even so much as to ask parts hunter about difference....

:drivin:

[TPICherokee]

Who would have ever thought Jeep would make a NON-round steering wheel...

[710 Burner]

Who would have ever thought Jeep would make a NON-round steering wheel...
Did you forget, for just a moment, that you are in the FSJ forum talking about AMC stuff?

[TPICherokee]

Did you forget, for just a moment, that you are in the FSJ forum talking about AMC stuff?

lol, good point. What we should do is figure out who made the mold for the steering wheels and find out how drunk he was when that was done and then kick him in the sack.

[chrisnsarah]

All mine are oval. I read on the Jeepster forum that they were oval to allow a little more legroom. I don't think they or the postal ones are smaller than the FSJ ones. I have a few good spares from Jeepsters, postals, and FSJ's and they are all oval and identical.

My only guess is the round ones are for an M715 or maybe a tilt column. It would be wierd how age would shrink the inner metal.

[chrisnsarah]

lol, good point. What we should do is figure out who made the mold for the steering wheels and find out how drunk he was when that was done and then kick him in the sack.

Maybe he got fired from Chrysler then went to work for Kaiser:D

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/8/8913174_d7b3fd51a1.jpg?v=0

[Tad]

...
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/8/8913174_d7b3fd51a1.jpg?v=0
It would totally freak me out to drive something that had tail lights mounted in the dash like that.

[fulsizjeep]

tail lights?
http://www.imperialclub.com/Events/Carlisle2000/59DeSotoRearPass.jpg
I'd drive that bad hemi. :cool:

Those old school steering wheels... They start out round and then warp with use and time. After 30 or 40 years, they have developed cracks where the stems come out from the center. They spread towards the dash a little and top and bottom get pulled towards the center. The 60s Rambler wheels did it too. The big ring horn buttons would usually start to show the warpage because the stems would begin to not line up with the horn ring. How many of you pull on the steering wheel? I do, especially when it won't start. ;) But seriously, I do pull on the wheel quite often getting in with the lifted ones.

[CustomWag]

tail lights?
http://www.imperialclub.com/Events/Carlisle2000/59DeSotoRearPass.jpg
I'd drive that bad hemi. :cool:

Those old school steering wheels... They start out round and then warp with use and time. After 30 or 40 years, they have developed cracks where the stems come out from the center. They spread towards the dash a little and top and bottom get pulled towards the center. The 60s Rambler wheels did it too. The big ring horn buttons would usually start to show the warpage because the stems would begin to not line up with the horn ring. How many of you pull on the steering wheel? I do, especially when it won't start. ;) But seriously, I do pull on the wheel quite often getting in with the lifted ones.

Nice car! Kinda funny, I saw a white one on a rollback on the way to work this morning, totally cherry.

ima hafta check the steering wheel on my old 66 chebby truck for roundness, got the cracks you describe and I have wondered when I pull my draggin *ss into the truck after cutting a load of wood if one of these days it's gonna snap.

[TPICherokee]

My only guess is the round ones are for an M715 or maybe a tilt column. It would be wierd how age would shrink the inner metal.

It isn't M715 cause mine is stock (still has the 'waterproof' horn cap on it) and it is Oval too...

[LRRH]

WOW. You learn something new everyday. I would have sworn the wheel out of my 70 wag was perfectly round but measurements reveal it is roughly 16"x17".

Wired.

[TPICherokee]

Yeah, so what happens in my M715 is you get in just fie but once you turn the wheel it hits my thighs... thanks Kaiser.

[380tom]

My 65 and 68 are both oval :drivin:

[KaiserMan]

That's just odd. I wonder why Jeep made both round and oval wheels?

Got a pic of a round wheel compared to an oval?

I'd be interested in seeing the two side by side.

[james1414d]

That's just odd. I wonder why Jeep made both round and oval wheels?

Got a pic of a round wheel compared to an oval?

I'd be interested in seeing the two side by side.

I will post pics soon. my interior is almost done. I think age and use makes them oval. I have three super wagoneer wheels, all different .

[KaiserMan]

I find it hard to believe that age does that. My 40K mile steering wheel is oval. I've had two wheels rim faces touching one another and the oval was the same. I doubt that they would have both warped in the exact same shape.

Both my 63 and 71 (original wheels) where oval, so it isn't a year thing. Maybe they just tires round wheels as a test and switched back?

[red mistress]

Only one part number in all of the books.

I've got 2 round ones.

[Gambler68]

I have three well used Glad era wheels and well..they aren't round. Looking at the pic in my old TSM even that looks slightly oblong, but the pic is at an angle so its hard to tell. I would guess once the bakelite cracks and you're yanking on the wire inner, it's going to bend. Two things I don't do..yank on the wheel to get in and ride with my hand on the shifter (well try not to do)

[chrisnsarah]

I have a few wheels with no cracks at all and they are oval. I can't believe rubber and metal deformed at the same rate.

It's not just the Kaiser wheels. I have an AMC 2 spoke wheel that's oval too, but all my 3 spoke wheels are perfectly round.

[H Callaway]

Oval

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j289/hcallaway/DSC02279.jpg

[KaiserMan]

I wonder if Kaiser was sourcing thier wheels from two different suppliers (maybe even at the same time) and one just made round wheels?

Sounds like this is going to be one of those things we will never find an answer for, unless some old K-J Corp. guys chime in.

[Kenall]

What about the height of the seat to which the wheels were installed into???

Make room for the thighs??

[Ronson]

My 68 Jeepster is oval. 65 Wagoneer in town is round. I just happened to peek in there today to see what is the same as a Jeepster.

[Stonebraker]

My 63 Wagoneer has a round steering wheel. I also have a spare and its round also.

[Kenall]

ok
oval for PS and round for MS??

[mic63]

My 63 Wagoneer has an oval wheel. Never noticed untill this topic started :cool: . Measured, top to bottom abt 16", and 16 3/4" across.

[moparman]

i have a red wheel out of a super wagoneer i had, it seems slightly oval, but my 63 base model wheel is round, as is the wheel inthe 64 J300 i had. good piece of trivia- the seats in my 66 super looked like mustang buckets, are thay the same?

[Dr Teeth]

ok
oval for PS and round for MS??

This sounds like the first valid conclusion... My 71 with power steering is definitely oval.

Todd

[Tonka J200]

I just checked my inventory-
6 Wheels
3 power steering
3 manual steering

All oval.

I think that maybe it's not age that distorts them but the sheer effort placed on the wheels while in use. It's a chore to park an early FSJ and I know I reef on my wheel pretty good, especially at the top. I wonder if over time, the top gets pulled down some?

I'll have to look closer at mine and see if the distortion is more at the top than the bottom.

This would also tend to support the observation that power steering equipped trucks would have less distortion, due to less work needed to steer and park, and thus would still be more round.

Wow, we're putting alot of thought into this!

[KaiserMan]

Well, both of the wheels that I have from power steering trucks are oval, and are ovaled in the exact same way.

The sides are wider then then the top-bottom.

My manual wheels (one 63 one 71) are both the same way (oval).

[Topher]

How would turning the wheel distort it in that fashion? Seems to me it would make the wheel look twisted rather than squashed from top to bottom. You're not pulling straight down, you're pulling to the side.

[Tonka J200]

Distortion seems to be pretty even top and bottom.

Huh...

???

http://i232.photobucket.com/albums/ee184/TonkaJ200/JeepWheel.jpg

[drlocke]

My '68 has an oval steering wheel. I had simply assumed that they were all that way at the time. :confused: IIRC it was a thing back in the '60s. I think my dad's '60 Plymouth had an oval one.

[Tonka J200]

How would turning the wheel distort it in that fashion? Seems to me it would make the wheel look twisted rather than squashed from top to bottom. You're not pulling straight down, you're pulling to the side.

I reach up from the center of the wheel to the top when I really need to reef on it, so alot of force is applied toward the center of the wheel as well as to the side.

[red mistress]

I asked parts hunter again, He cannot find two different part #'s.

He does know that Jeepster used oval wheels as he's seen 20 or so NOS Oval ones over time.
He's also seen NOS round ones, but not as many.

He said that in some early TV commercials, they touted the Jeepster as having oval wheels.

So he figures that Kaiser musta had two wheels and ran out of one or the other while assembling vehicles....

Soooo ... no rime or reason of what vehicle got what... just another screw up.