I’ve decided to take a clean-slate approach and create a new sale thread as I return from hiatus and start recovering steering wheels again. For those unfamiliar with my work, my original sale thread can be found HERE, along with some pictures of past projects found below this post. For the time being, I will be recovering wheels for the months of December 2016 and January 2017 while I have a break from my grad school program. Following this time period, I can’t say with 100% certainty that I will continue recovering wheels, although I would like to if my school schedule permits.
Below you can find a full list of my 2022 materials and options list, taken directly from my order form. To request a copy of this form, message me with your preferred email address and I am happy to provide one for you along with instructions on placing an order.
Before and after:
[This message has been edited by Irrationable (edited 08-14-2022).]
Please take care when packaging your wheel or core exchanges prior to shipping. I have had several customers end up with broken trim rings on GT/Indy wheels due to improper packaging. These trim rings are often brittle, and are difficult to obtain without having to purchase another wheel to transfer them from or purchasing reproduction rings from me. I always recommend getting insurance when shipping a wheel.
When returning your wheel to you, I will reuse whatever packaging you used to send the wheel to me initially (thus, return shipping will be identical to what you paid to ship the wheel to me, plus the cost of insurance for the return trip, when applicable).
If you opt to do a core exchange rather than sending your own wheel in for recovery, a $75 core fee will be added to your order. This core fee will be returned in full once I receive an acceptable wheel core from you. “Acceptable” cores should be unbent and free of rust (unless you are opting for the spoke/hub refurbishing option). Prior to sending your core, please remove the plastic trim and splined hub, as you will be reusing these. Instructions for removing these are available upon request.
[This message has been edited by Irrationable (edited 07-02-2018).]
Below is a selection of some of my past work. To see the rest, check out my old sale thread link in my initial post. Every time I completed a wheel in a new color/style, I post pictures of the results. Should my return be successful, I will start posting all my new works on this thread.
Black GT with extra padding
Beechwood GT with extra padding
Black GT with white stitching and extra padding
Indy with red stitching
Red and Black GT with red stitching
Black and Grey GT with gunmetal stitching
Red and Tan custom GT
Beechwood 4-Spoke
Mr. Mikes dark gray 4-spoke with red stitching
Early vinyl 3-spoke rewrapped in black leather. Extra padding and metallic grey-blue stitching
Black 4-spoke with gunmetal stitching
Perforated Black leather now available. Shown here on the upper section of a black GT wheel w/ extra padding. This one's going on my car.
If someone wanted to supply their own leather how much leather would you need. I only ask because I could see those with MrMikes seats or other upholstery items wanting all their interior leather to match,
If someone wanted to supply their own leather how much leather would you need. I only ask because I could see those with MrMikes seats or other upholstery items wanting all their interior leather to match,
That's something I mentioned as well. I've had many of my customers opt to go that route, to the point where Mike sends me customers from time to time when they ask him about getting a wheel done. The quantity of leather needed really depends on the style of wheel they are getting recovered. The GT / Indy wheel requires a 17x4 in piece for the upper section and a 30x9 in piece for the lower section of the wheel. An auto wheel requires a 17x4 in piece, a 14x4 in piece, and two 10x8 in pieces.
Can you do Alcantara? I want my steering wheel and shift knob done.
That's actually not something I've attempted before. As my supplier only carries leather, the alcantara would have to be provided by the customer. So long as it has a slight stretch to hr and at least 1mm of thickness, I can't imagine it would be any different than leather. PM me and we'll see what we can work out.
I've been quite busy these past few weeks, and I've got pictures of multiple wheels to show off in the coming days. I will also be updating my original post to reflect the fact that I now have dark grey perforated leather available. Pictures to come.
Well, its been over a month and I still haven't found the time between teaching and classes to sit down and upload some pictures of my more current work. With my current workload with grad school I've had to dial things back with the steering wheels significantly. However, if you're in desperate need of recovery, feel free to shoot me a PM and I'll see if I can squeeze you into my schedule. Once April rolls around I will be back at it full force, and hoping to expand to non-Fiero wheels.
In reading through the threads I can't seem to tell, but did you ever source charcoal grey leather? Just wondering if you have anything that's a close match to the original leather in 87 GT. Not that I don't like black, but with black it would seem a bit of a mismatch to the leather shift handle (mines an auto). My handle is in great shape and really doesn't need recovering.
[This message has been edited by wgpierce (edited 02-22-2017).]
I'm happy to announce that I now offer charcoal grey and perforated black leather for use on wheel recovery! This perforated leather is a perfect match for the "dots" material used by Mr. Mikes, allowing you to have a wheel that matches your seat inserts. The Charcoal is the original color used on 86-88 GT wheels for any car with the grey/charcoal interior scheme
[This message has been edited by Irrationable (edited 07-02-2018).]
When you are ready to expand to non Fiero wheels let me know. I have one that is for a Nissan Juke. Same wheel as a 370z. Mine is vinyl. The leather one I got to replace it looks like pleather. I would love to get it recovered in dark grey or black with yellow stitching. Thanks!
Free bump. Got my steering wheel back today. 2-tone black and grey (Mike's leather), with red stitching. Nice job - matches my Mike's seats now. Thanks a bunch!
Its been a while since I've updated this thread, as I have been doing most of my business through the Fiero facebook page and word of mouth. However, I have been hard at work tinkering with a few new techniques and projects and I'm finally ready to show off what I've been up to. I'm happy to announce that I am now offering black alcantara as recovery material, as well as SUPER extra padding (3x normal padding). I am also experimenting with colored top markers and extra padding for the 4 spoke steering wheels. Below are some of my recent projects and customer wheels:
Alcantara wheel, extra padding, red top marker (for future top markers I plan on using a slightly narrower strip of red)
Black GT wheel with SUPER padding. Results in a very thick wheel with a modern performance feel.
4 spoke recovered in Indy leather with red stitching
Customer wheel recovered in Mr. Mikes silver and black leather with blue stitching.
Grand Prix shift knob recovered in charcoal leather
Customer wheel recovered with Mr. Mikes dark grey upper and black lower
[This message has been edited by Irrationable (edited 07-02-2018).]
Just received my steering wheel today and I will say that it is even nicer and better quality in person that it looks in the pictures. I am an extremely picking person where everything has to be perfect etc. lol but After receiving this steering wheel today spending the $200 was worth every penny. You will spend just as much if not more anywhere else to get the same quality that I have received today.
The plastic, the metal part, the rivots, the inner part of the steering wheel all look brand new. The stitching is even and straight. There is absolutely no flaws in this steering wheel.
I will be headed back to school in less than a month for my final year of grad school, which will likely limit my availability to keep doing these. If you were thinking about getting your wheel recovered, sending it out within the next two weeks will ensure the quickest turn around time.
Time for an end-of-the-month update! I am still recovering wheels, albeit at a slower pace now that classes have resumed. I am happy and relieved to announce that I was able to source another hide of color-matched Indy leather, and should have enough to take care of all orders for the foreseeable future. Pictured below are an Indy wheel with extra padding, as well as a Fierostore reproduction wheel recovered in Indy grey.
Last but not least, a custom wheel and shift knob combination done in black leather with neon green stitching.
Just wanted to say that I got mine today and it looks and feel amazing. The quality of the work is second to none. I want to thank Irrationable for doing a great job. Money well spent!
I realize this isn`t your business but I need (1) splined hub and (2)plastic trim pieces and (2) of the plastic collars that fit right beneath the wheel. I don`t know if you extras or have a source for them, I`m changing over from 4 spoke wheels to gt wheels.
