Soybean, Tenite and Early Plastic Steering Wheels 101...from Knobsoup

Well here goes, my term paper on the history of plastic in pre-war (WWII) cars.

The persistent myth I’ve come across is the notion that Henry Ford made steering wheels out of soybeans. Cars, yes. Steering wheels...no.

Like most myths, there’s some truth in it. Henry Ford did indeed experiment with soybean production in the mid to late thirties. He was fascinated by the possibilities of the soybean and built a plant to produce soybean products, plastics being one the products. Henry exhibited his “Soybean Car” in 1941 with a famous photo of him taking a padded axe to the rear trunk panel made from his soybean plastic. Actually the chemical make-up was “a soybean fiber in a phenolic resin with formaldehyde used in the impregnation”. The main problem with his soybean plastic was it couldn’t be waterproofed. Along came the war (the one in all the papers) and so ended the soybean project. In all my research I have never come across any steering wheels made from soybean plastic.

The big news in steering wheel production in the thirties was the introduction of Tenite, a thermoplastic product developed by Eastman Chemicals of Kingsport, Tennessee. It allowed car makers the ability to make beautiful automotive steering wheels, interior knobs and escutcheons. Wheels were now more colorful with luscious creams, tans with marble swirl patterns or translucent reds. The old hard rubber thermoset or Bakelite wheels used previously were now passé, regulated to lower price cars and the standard line. I can safely bet that the design team lead by E.T. Gregorie under the direction of Edsel Ford stipulated that the new Lincoln Continental have a fashion-forward red translucent steering wheel.

Unfortunately, the steering wheels and other dash items made from Tenite didn’t hold up to the heat and ultra-violet radiation caused by the sun. Within a few years they were cracking, shrinking and deteriorating.. and smelling really bad. The reason; the chemical make-up of Tenite is cellulose acetate butyrate, common for plastic moldings. When Tenite steering wheels start to go bad their decomposition by-product is butyric acid. And butyric acid smells like rancid butter, or worse, like vomit. In fact, butyric acid stink bombs were commonly used by Chicago mobsters. You’ll know it by the smell if you have a wheel going bad.

To alleviate the problem, Eastman came up with Tenite II which helped some. Many early pre-war Zephyrs steering wheels made from the first Tenite have been replaced with later post-war Lincoln wheels made from improved Tenite II. Even so, the cracking and decomposition continued, just not as bad. Very few Lincoln wheels escape the ravages of time, heat and UV. Nothing can stop the aging process. You can repaired the cracks by filing and filling with bondo and paint, but in time, if the wheel is further exposed to direct sunshine and heat, another part of the steering wheel will crack. And no amount of paint and polish can reproduce the beautiful translucent qualities of plastic.

In the past ten years, reproduction steering wheels made from new urethane liquid plastic with long lasting properties and UV protection additives, stop the cracking, shinking and best of all, don’t smell, and those beautiful steering wheels for the Lincoln Zephyrs and Continentals that designers like E.T. Gregorie envisioned, live again.

Thanks, Keith

I also restore old radios from the late 30's and we have a big problem with this stuff..The most common is on the Silvertone

rolling dial console series, the bezel and lens are tennite and it shrinks beyond use...you ought to get in the radio part game as well...lots of

old dudes like them too..http://www.antiqueradios.com/forums/index.php

very active forum..

Was Tenite or some form of it used in GM's?

The steering wheel in the 51 Cadillac I once owned was deteriorated badly and it smelled bad.

Yes I believe the big three used Tenite, plus most of the upscale independents. As for radio knobs, yes I could duplicate them, however doing that would send me into another orbit and I’d be lost in radioland, never to be heard from again. I speak the language of car fluently, not so much radio. Even thou I love the beauty of early 30’s radios made from Urea, Plaskon and Catalin, I can’t add any more plates to the one I have already spinning.

Gotta say Keith does beautiful work! Like the many others who help on the forum and in the club, we are also very fortunate to have Keith suporting our hobby. Never met him, but talked several times. I could not do much on my car for years, but lately working more and more to get it driving more reliably. I put up with a bad steering wheel for 28 years. For Christmas my wife treated me to a new 1940 steering wheel and button (I promised it could cover my Father's day and Birthday presents too!) and what a treat! Maybe she wanted to get rid of the old smell as much as anything! Don't wait 28 years to order yours, I lucked out with his timing, but he may not be doing this another 28 years! Use tax returns, bundle all your presents into one for the next year, sell some items on e-bay, breakout the piggy bank...., and figure out a way to get one ordered. Top notch with everything: order confirmation, packaging, delivered when promised, consistent color, no bubbles, polished, a real artist, craftsman and businessman (great order sheets, dwg,...). I could not be happier. Have not installed it yet, but with all the perfection on everyting else, I am sure the tolerances are right-on too. Thanks to Keith for taking the business gamble, and all those like John who gave him ideas, dimensions, and supported him with samples, sure appreciate it. Paul

sounds like it was a good steering wheel to cost an arm and a leghow much did it cost you may I ask

Several years ago when Knob Soup was in it's infancy, I had inquired about a push button surround for a door opener on my '48 LC. It was around Christmas time and he sent me two, free, and a note saying Merry Christmas. They are really nice people too. Glenn Lorei

Glenn,

I’ve checked with Santa and he said if you don’t pick up the pace you’ll be on track for a lump of coal this Christmas.

BTW, I will not be taking any new orders until I get caught up and fulfill the orders I am currently working on. My reputation is starting to slip.

Keith

I guess that I am one of those back orders but your reputation is still golden with me. BTW, my '40 Cabriolet is back in it's home and should be on the road within a week. The new steering wheel will make it complete but no rush and don't compromise your high standards, my friend.

Ron

Great Thread; I sniffed the steering wheel in my '51 Buick, and it does stink! I never noticed it before. It's the deluxe with the clearish plastic steering wheel and chrome horn ring.

It's cracked, also. I've owned it since about 1974. You can't get anything to last...

Keith L., Can you do anything with the maroon steering wheel on a '48 LC., It has a crack near the hub on one side. Fill the crack with like material??? Glenn

Because Tenite was an Eastman Kodak product, Kodak used it to make their small 8mm and 16mm movie reels.  If you're my age or so, you'll remember mailing your Kodachrome movies to Kodak for processing, and they came back on little gray plastic reels.  That's Tenite, and yes, the reels are deteriorating, though not as rapidly as maybe something like an auto steering wheel constantly exposed to the sun might.

So if your old home movie reels are developing white spots and maybe smell bad, it's not mold or mildew, and it's not the film that's deteriorating, it's the reel!  Winding the film onto a metal or more modern plastic reel will prevent further damage.

A friend of mine had a 1939 Packard with a Tenite dash. There were a number of cracks. I gave him info. on someone who has the molds for these parts; but they were not in production. He decided to sell the car. A photo of his Packard is below.