1965 Teakwood Steering Wheel

[Gary Rubalcava]

I see many different ads for folks selling the Teakwood steering wheels. They say that these wheels are like the original etc. How do I tell the quality of these wheels before I buy one? What is a fair price to pay for one of these? Where is a good place to buy one from? And finally should I buy a reproduction (I am not sure if the difference can be easily noticed or not) or attempt to try to buy an original?

Thanks for any help someone can give me.

[Jack H.]

Re: 1965 Teakwood Steering Wheel

Have a factory original teak wheel on my '65. The reproductions are essentially DEAD NUTS on.... Whether you use a repro or go find an original is a matter of personal pride in restoration. Do you want the factory original vs. a repro?

Before the repro's came on-line, factory original teak wheels traded in the $1200-2500 range depending on condition. The current series of reproduction teak wheels run $500-800 depending on source. I don't know what's happened to the price of real McCoy original teak wheels after the introduction of high quality reproductions....

[Gary Rubalcava]

Re: 1965 Teakwood Steering Wheel

Thanks for the reply. Is their one vendor or vendors who are looked upon as being the best? If I am going to spend that kind of money I want to use someone of quality who I can trust.

[Craig S.]

Re: 1965 Teakwood Steering Wheel

Gary - there are at least two "large" suppliers, I suspect the others get their wheels from them. One is Teak Freaks, and he has the original tooling from GM's supplier of the era, which was the Howard Miller Clock Company if I recall. His run about $800, and you may need to turn in your core or a plastic wheel. The other is the Freeman wheel, and you can usually find these in the $475-550 range, his use a reproduction center section. Teak Freaks only uses GM centers and retools the wood with the original process. He claimed the centers were sharp on the Freeman wheel, and not finished as well, plus, he said the Freeman wheel was stained and not always made of real teak. I honestly don't know, but there is a variation in color, so, depending on what you want to pay and color, it may be best to shop at a show to see all and pick the one you want. I need a wheel for my 66, but haven't got that far yet other than checing per above. I think both may advertise in the driveline. There was an article in Vette Views on the Teak Freak wheel in the March/April/May issue this year, I don't recall which but could check if you wish....Craig

[Patrick H.]

Re: 1965 Teakwood Steering Wheel

Gary,

There are two "main" vendors: The "Teak Freaks" out of Ohio, and Freemans Designs from Charlotte, NC. I have several of Eric Freeman's wheels and am quite happy with them. His are usually slightly less expensive, and I know he will swing a deal if you visit him at Carlisle or Bloomington.

Patrick

[Richard S.]

Re: 1965 Teakwood Steering Wheel

Gary,
I too bought a teak wheel from Eric Freeman at an NCRS meet in Orlando. He gave me a very good deal.(a Canadian discount, he called it)He also usually has a nice choice of light or dark teak wheels and it's nice to choose exactly which shade you like most. You'll love the wheel when you get it on your car.

[Craig S.]

Re: 1965 Teakwood Steering Wheel

Rick or Patrick...do you have Eric's contact information? I can't seem to find it....Craig

[Dan Pepper]

Re: 1965 Teakwood Steering Wheel

Gary-

I recently purchased a Freeman designs wheel - and it's beautiful. I compared the wheel side by side to an original I owned, and the dimensions and overall construction are identical. There are only two ways that I could see that the wheels differed: First, the edges on the stainless spokes are a bit rough, especially inside the cut-out area inside the spokes. A little work with a small file and emery paper will take care of that. Second, the wood fit and finish is great, but the clear finish didn't fill the grain all the way in some areas (just being nit-picky here). I hit these with some 0000 steel wool to smooth it out a bit. Otherwise - it's an incredible piece of craftsmanship.

I bought this wheel via ebay from Brian Williamson ($500 plus $15 shipping). I think he reps Freeman. He gave me fast service, and the wheel was shipped directly from Freeman. Here's brian's address and contact info:

Brian D. Williamson
2495 E. Stephens st
Gilbert, AZ 85296
602-799-4996

[Patrick H.]

Freemans Design

Freemans Design
9016 Oren Thompson Rd.
Charlotte, NC 28213
704-510-2250
drvettejr@aol.com

[Gary Rubalcava]

Re: Freemans Design

Thanks to everyone for the great response! It's because of the willingness of members to help each other out that I recently joined the NCRS.

I went with the Freeman wheel.

Gary

[Craig S.]

Re: Freemans Design - Thx guys! *NM*

[Chip Levick]

Re: Freemans Design - Thx guys!

I just bought a teak wheel for my '66 from Greenhoes for $500. I love the quality and price and they were great to deal with.