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He Used Sportsman Goop To Repair The Rubber Steering Wheel On An Old Tractor
Don Lasee, Don's Welding & Repair, 2486 Hwy. 32, Krakow, Wis. 54137 ph 920 899-3690: "To remove an outer bearing race from a blind hole, simply weld a bead inside the race where the balls ride, wait 30 seconds, and it will come free.
  "Several lengths of 3/8-in. rerod, driven into holes drilled in mortar joints in a block wall, make quick shelf supports. Drill under the web of the block above.
  "I use a product called Sportsman Goop to repair the rubber steering wheel on an old tractor. After years of exposure to the sun, the rubber had dried out and cracked. Big pieces of rubber fell off, making the wheel hard to hold.
  "I started with a piece of 1 1/2-in. dia. pre-formed radiator hose with a curve that matched the curvature of the steering wheel. I slit the hose in half and filled it with plaster of paris, then placed a piece of Saran Wrap around an undamaged portion of the wheel and taped the hose on tight around it. The shape of the rubber grips was molded into the plaster of paris. After the plaster of paris dried, I pulled the mold off, lined the plaster of paris with Saran Wrap, moved it to a bad spot on the wheel, and poured it full of goop. It takes a couple of days for the goop to dry when it's totally enclosed like this. Then I dropped the mold off, peeled off the Saran Wrap, and sanded and painted the goop black to match the rest of the wheel. I made the repair four years ago and it has held up great.
  "Sportsman Goop is normally used for patching waders and boots, but we use it on all kinds of things. For example, I used it to fill a hole in a casting on a tractor to keep dirt and water out. A neighbor used the product to patch a hole in a tire on a garden tractor. Two years ago I stepped on a hot piece of iron in my welding shop and burned a hole through the sole of a new pair of shoes. I filled the hole with goop and it's still there. The product comes in a tube about the size of a toothpaste tube and sells for about $3. It's available at many hardware stores."


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2001 - Volume #25, Issue #5