Steering wheel spokes-How do you remove them?

[Billsbug]

Does anyone know how to remove the OEM spokes? I don't see any bolts or torx screws that hold them on, only a folded over part on the back that seems to be glued (?) together. They need to come off reasonably undamaged so they can be reused. Thx!

[missruby]

Bill

You might want to check this thread out - it's VERY good - you should be able to get all the info you need there.
Steering Wheel Spoke - How-To

[FineExampl]

Bill, you have to break them. They are permanently embedded on there and than you have to glue them back in place.

[Billsbug]

Ok, I get it now, thx guys! I was able to get the aluminum billet Turbo S spokes, I traded mine and a few bucks for a member's and he's gonna put my OEM's on and sell his whole leather wheel, sweet!

[SMG]

Wow, lucky bastid.

Basically the easiest way to get the stock spokes is stick a wide-blade screwdriver into the cracks on the back and wiggle and force the screwdriver in deeper gently until it snaps.

SMG

[iScott]

For what it's worth, I did NOT have to reglue mine. The kinda snapped in there and they haven't fallen off since I put 'em back on many, many moons ago.
Good luck, Bill.

[SMG]

Yeah, mine re-snap on too, but I have this hell bad habit of popping them off in traffic, etc, so they're getting the glue after I re-paint them.

Oh, use that oldschool rubber cement in the brown glass bottle with the applicator brush. It dries like a rubber band, so you can pull them apart kinda and they keep pulling back together like elastic. You'll thank yourself later for using a glue that you can pull off easily when they start to wear through again.

[Fowvay]

I have removed a few in my time and have not had to glue any of them. The trick is to pry the forward section off the back. Not the other way around. This seems to encourage the stem to break in the proper place. Then it has enough stem to not wiggle around when you put it back on.

This worked great for everyone else's that I did but sure when I did mine the left side spoke (where I rest my hand the most) popped the wrong way. It hasn't fallen off yet but does feel a little loose compared to the others.

[Billsbug]

Originally Posted by Fowvay

...the trick is to pry the forward section off the back. Not the other way around. This seems to encourage the stem to break in the proper place. Then it has enough stem to not wiggle around when you put it back on.

DOH, now u tell me!

I'm not sure it would have mattered though, I could not get the back sides off, even with 1/2 hour of slowly working each one w/ a flat screwdriver, without cracking the backs right where the stem holds the front to the back. I'm gonna say that the OEM glue cured in the hot Florida heat and the parts just melded together.

The fronts are still useable and I'm throwing in the ultra-desirable bugsgogo wrappers for the seller to sell separately or include w/ the wheel. Not only that, anyone wanting a leather wheel can just use the spokes from their existing wheel, hopefully w/ better results than I had.

While we're on the subject, I wanna give u my feedback on the S spokes. I had a black Turbo S before the vert and this is the trim item I missed the most. Firstly, they are solid, heavy blocks of aluminum, at least 1/2 inch thick, both the fronts and the backs! They attach through the hole in the steering wheel by an allen bolt, the bottom piece has a larger bolt than the sides, so u need two different size wrenches, and u just crank 'em down 'til tight. The biggest surprise though, and something I didn't notice when I moved to driving the vert, is that these are heavy for a reason.

The wheel is now weighted, so when u turn the wheel, it moves back to the center position if you let go, without having to even move it, awesome!

[Billsbug]

Done! Great thing about using these spokes is you can tuck the open tabs of the Isotta wheel cover under them and really crank it down nice and tight. Wheel is nice and fat now! So whaddya think?

[sahm]

Originally Posted by Billsbug

Done! Great thing about using these spokes is you can tuck the open tabs of the Isotta wheel cover under them and really crank it down nice and tight. Wheel is nice and fat now! So whaddya think?

i love turbo s spokes Bill ,but i think the bugsgogo spokes look a liiiittle better ,cos they are chrome like your rings,but even that,turbo s spokes look awesome in your nbc i love,we all love your nbc and each modif that you are

[missruby]

looks real good Bill!

[Billsbug]

Originally Posted by sahm

i love turbo s spokes Bill ,but i think the bugsgogo spokes look a liiiittle better ,cos they are chrome like your rings,but even that,turbo s spokes look awesome in your nbc i love,we all love your nbc and each modif that you are

Dood, once again, I DO NOT have any chrome rings! They are all brushed billet aluminum! No hard feelings though mi amigo.

BTW, I would never have been able to incorporate the Isotta cover in such an OEM manner using the stock plastic spokes or the bugsgogo covers.

[Billsbug]

BTW Sahm, the 'chrome ring' around the shifter is being replaced with a brushed aluminum RSi surround this week, when I get the .:R shifter installed.

[Billsbug]

Originally Posted by missruby

looks real good Bill!

Thx!

[turbos03]

looks good dude.....

[Billsbug]

Originally Posted by turbos03

looks good dude.....

U da man!

[sahm]

Originally Posted by Billsbug

BTW Sahm, the 'chrome ring' around the shifter is being replaced with a brushed aluminum RSi surround this week, when I get the .:R shifter installed.

is it available yet?i love that surround

[Billsbug]

Originally Posted by sahm

is it available yet?i love that surround

No...longer...produced...

[Billsbug]

Pic from the passenger side: