Steering Wheel Restoration

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Material: Bakelite (Phenolic Resin over Steel Core)

  • Main composition: molded Bakelite over a metal (usually steel) ring and spokes.

  • Why Bakelite?

    • Luxurious feel but highly durable.

    • Could be molded into elegant shapes with finger grooves, decorative ribs, or inlays.

    • Took paint, dyes, and fillers well — allowed Packard to match interior aesthetics.

Colors:

  • Early 1930s: typically black or dark brown.

  • Mid-to-late 1930s: some marbled colors (ivory swirl, chocolate, caramel tones), depending on model.

  • Senior Packards (Super Eights, Twelves) sometimes had more elaborate colorations or two-tone marbling.

Problems seen today:

  • Crazing, cracking, shrinkage.

  • Surface oxidation (“blooming” of the surface turning chalky).

  • Occasional steel core rusting if cracks allowed moisture penetration.

1934 Packard wheel, here’s a very clear assessment:


✅ This is Bakelite (phenolic resin), with marbled filler.

  • The distinct woodgrain-like swirl pattern you see in the brown tones is very typical of dyed Bakelite mixtures from the early-mid 1930s.

  • Packard loved using these marbled phenolics to give an upscale, “organic” look while keeping the manufacturing advantages of molded plastic.

  • The fracture near the hub area is also typical of aged Bakelite — clean chip lines rather than tearing or crumbling like rubber.

  • The smooth, high-gloss surface originally would have had a polished shine.

  • That finger groove pattern on the rim and the way the filler swirls are distributed further confirm it was a high-end molded Bakelite part.


👉 Short version:
Your ’34 Packard steering wheel was factory Bakelite with marbled filler, molded over a metal core.

This type of material was used on:

  • 1933–1936 Packards (Super Eight, Twelve, and many juniors too)

  • Some Cadillac and Buick models also used similar marbled Bakelite for their luxury lines.