The People you meet

Usually, the one of the pleasures in the finding, buying, finding out about, finding bits for and generally fettling an old Lancia lies in the people you run into, get help from or give to, and so on.

But every so often, that’s not how it works.

One sub-plot in the saga of this car’s restoration is the question of the Nardi steering wheel that was on the car, and what to do with it.

Here’s a picture of the wheel in all its decrepit glory.

I have had some correspondence with Peter Harding, who has restored several of these wheels – which, to the best of my knowledge, were a factory option on SIV B20s.  Peter explained to me how the wheel is constructed (not obvious from looking at it):

The 4th series B20 Nardi wheel boss is made up of three pieces front plate, rear shroud usually painted body colour and the internal body of the boss in steel with a female spline.

These parts were assembled together with the aluminium wheel as the filling in this “sandwich”.

The pieces are held together with blind rivets about 8mm in diameter – 6  of them I think from memory. If you clean back the face plate to bare metal you can just perhaps see them, in a circle. Then after riveting the front face of the plate was machined with grooves to further disguise the rivet heads. Then the assembly was chromed. The aluminium wheel was treated to prevent the chrome sticking to it.

Finally it went off to have the wood rim fitted – there were many variants of this.

Last week I made a long-awaited trip to Ron Francis in Wales, to collect a large quantity of the missing parts for 2959 (as well as some bits for a parallel Aprilia project).  Ron showed me an identical wheel that he’s had re-wooded (i.e. the mahogany around the rim replaced) at a cost of 300 Euros.  A good quality job, we both agreed.  We also inspected a hub for this type of wheel that had been modified to allow the chroming and refitting of the wheel to be a less involved process, and discussed other possible modifications to the same end.

So, buoyed with enthusiasm for the steering wheel resto, I did some googling to see if I could find a source for the missing horn button.  I found a website called http://www.wood-steering-wheels.com which had a lot of period Nardi parts and wheels, and fired of an email of enquiry:

Hello,

I found your website, and am wondering if you might be able to help me find a replacement horn button for the Nardi wheel on my 1954 Lancia Aurelia B20.

The wheel (which is in restoration – attached picture shows it ‘before’) is the flat type fitted as a factory option at the time (steel, chromed hub and cover plate which is blind-riveted in 6 places before 3 grooves are machined into both plate and rivet heads), and has the rectangular Nardi stamp on the back of the middle spoke.

Hope you can help.

William

I was pleasantly surprised to get a response within an hour…

Hi
what do you want to restore that steering wheel ?
That is good for the trash.
Nardi stamped on backside are later made steering wheels not 1950’s but 62 to 65
they used the mushroom horn button as for Alfa or Porsche
Nardi had placed an emblem on the center for all different cars
such mushroom horn button cost around 300 -500The steering wheel you have is not worth anything as the entire frame , under hub and top ring is strongle pitted /corroded .
I only sell 100 % concours parts , I do not think that this is a Lancia model to invest in.
I can sell you an old Nardi with a Lancia horn button for $2500
Good luck with the old nail , it must have been staying open on all weather , WAIST OF TIME AND MONEY

… though naturally slightly taken aback at the tone, but I pressed on, and fired an immediate reply;

Hi,

Thanks for your swift and informative reply.  The date of 62-65 for back-stamped wheels is very specific.  Is there a definitive published guide to Nardi wheels that has this sort of information in it?

I want to restore the wheel for the same reason as I’m restoring the car it came with.  I like old things that are interesting in design and well made…

My wheel does need to be re-wooded, and I am going to use a specialist in Italy, who will do this job very well (I saw an identical model of Nardi that he has redone the wood on last week, and it is quality work) for 300 Euros.  The hub and cover plate are more challenging, but skilled metal spraying and polishing before chroming will produce as perfect a finish as you want to shoot for (it’s a choice!).

Could you supply the missing horn button?  Old, or reproduction part?

Regards,

William

7 minutes later, this arrives:

I think it will not bring anything for me to spend time on your project , most ask ask ask and just make a shit somewhere else because it is cheaper ( or think it is cheaper) be aware that many will tell you yes we can restore , then you have to pay and get nothing proper , for Euros 300 YOU WILL NEVER GET A RESTAURATION .

I think you are a dreamer
Please look elsewhere
Thanks

Perhaps I should have left it there, but (forgive me) I still pressed on:

300 euros to re-do the wood, not any other part of the restoration.  Good value, and not a joker’s price.  I looked at the rim this Italian supplier had done for Ron Francis (a well known Lancia collector here in the UK) last week in detail.  It was good quality work.

For someone running a business you have a very curious attitude.  I enquired because you were advertising Nardi horn buttons and I need – and can afford – to buy one.

Don’t bother replying to this, you’re probably busy turning away other customers.

By the way, it’s strange to write to people without giving a name as you have done.  Off-putting.  But perhaps that’s your intention.

William

17 minutes later

Not a curious attitude just realistic
You have a complete wrotten wheel
the inner frame is highly corroded and when you take the corrosion powder off brush it and refile it , , you have to take all the small rivets off thye frame which are as well corrode into the frame
the frame will never be ok
then you have to place the wooden rim on that wrotten frame ,
I can tell you , when the guy receive the steering wheel he will rapidly change his mind
It takes 120 hours work to restore an old Nardi steering wheel to concours condition and of course w3ithy having a good frame using wood from another same size steering wheel.
Don’t make me laughing for $300 Euros the wooden rim
The frame to re-do , is a piece of scrap.
Sorry I do’t want to spend more time explaining you what it is and what you will get from others.
all need work and justt take money .
WAIST OF MONEY
and it looks that you are not prepared to spend money so it is waist of toime for me as I sell worldwide the nicest concours condition steering wheels  and do not rerstore what is not restorable

And again 30 minutes after that, a second reply to my last email:

Just for your information
Nardi steering wheels are not correct for your car
The Nardi steering wheel you nhave is an aftermaket steering wheel , in the condition NOT $1 worth
You can buy those in good condition for Euros 300 very likely with another hub for another car , but any skilled workshop machine shop can transplant a new hub (
New hub for you cost cost $175 ( ihave
The correct steering wheel for your car is as attachment
And if want to have the correct steering wheel here it is $1800 with hub and a big horn button assembly
http://www.wood-steering-wheels.com/lancia-aurelia-2.html
So don’t waist time and money on a non original scrap SW
OK ?

Well I have had a good look at my wheel, and am pretty certain that it is NOT beyond saving.  The main aluminium wheel section to which the wood rim is rivetted isn’t corroded in any substantial way where the rivets pass through…  Anyway, I wrote back (once again, please forgive me):

For your information, the wheel you have sent me a picture of is correct for B24 and B20 coupe series 5 and 6.  My car is a Series 4, for which the type of flat Nardi wheel I have (putting the question of rear stamp to one side for now) was a factory option to replace the black Bakelite wheel*.

Try to be sure of your facts before being so definite about areas of specialist knowledge.  You could be talking to someone who knows more than you, hard though you might find that to believe.

Picture of 4^th Series B20 with original fitment Nardi is attached.

Thanks for the other suggestions.  If you can find the wheel I have in good condition for 300 Euros then I will take 10.

Regards,

W

* “…e volante (Nardi), ruote a raggi (Borrani), scarico speciale (Abarth), collettore speciale (Nardi) con due carburatori. Gli accessori forniti a pagamento dalla Casa...”

http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lancia_Aurelia_B20#La_quarta_serie_B20-B20S

Still with me (us)?  Nearly there.  Here’s the final exchange…

THe steering you show me IS NOT CORRECT FOR YOUR CAR
That is an aftermarket Nardi 41 or 42 steering wheel .MADE MANY YEARS AFTER YOUR CAR WAS MANUFACTURED
ALL NON SENS
I have many of those and dismantel the lower hubs as those are not worth
just keep the wooden rim and frame
here are 2 hubs for your car.
You think I do not know about Nardi ?
I have 200 of those., hubs for Lancia Mushroom horn buttons everything
In any case good luck in making restoring a piece of scrap.

I am sure you know more about Nardi than I do.  But equally, I’m not sure you know much about Lancias of the 1950s.  I have seen many mid-50s Aurelias with wheels like mine that have been with them since new.  The hub photos you have sent me are not the same in profile or in detail as my wheel.

Enough already.  Perhaps I’ll send you a photo of my wheel when it’s done…

I asked before if there is a Nardi book that describes the history of production in detail.  Perhaps if there isn’t, you might write it?

William

I would love to find out more about Nardi wheel identification and production.  Is there a standard work?  Some online research turned up a biography of E Nardi, but it didn’t seem to have much detail on the steering wheels.

Any thoughts?