[HughMiller]

I am trying to get my 403 back on the road after many years in the garage. The rim of the steering wheel has decayed badly and I talked to Paul Banham of Myrtle Products about a repair. He said they could replace the rim, but that a better solution would be to obtain a sound wheel and make a mould from which the wheel could be rebuilt as a whole. Once a mould had been made, they would be able to restore other Bristol wheels in the same way in the future.
I don’t have access to a good wheel (Paul said it doesn’t need to be perfect, but ‘not too many cracks’) but I wondered if anyone else would be prepared to make a wheel available - for what would seem to be a long-term benefit for all the models with the distinctive Bristol steering wheel (they already have a mould for the traditional Bluemels wheels of the 400).
Myrtle Products will pay for the mould. The cost to me would be about £200, either for a repaired rim, or for a new moulding. Paul spoke about ‘light refurbishing’ on the borrowed wheel. I don’t know if that’s part of the deal, or if he would want paying for that, but I would be prepared to contribute something towards any extra charge (and cover carriage, etc, of course).
Is there anyone out there who could help with this? I’m posting this message on the BOC website and on Bristolcars.info.
Or are there other possibilities, or does anyone know of other steering wheel restorers who might already have a mould?
Thanks in advance for any help.

New poster introduction: I’m based in Nottingham, in the UK and I’ve had this 403 for many years, and been a (very passive) Bristol Owners’ Club member for almost as long. I ran the car in the late 70s and early 80s, but lack of time, money, and enjoying time with my family got in the way, and I put the car in the garage for 20 years. Now I have a little more time and money, and most of the family have grown up and moved out, I’m hoping to get it back together again.
Hugh Miller