Sears SS16 Steering Wheel...

I have a 1976 Sears SS 16, with a badly broken dash. I have a replacement dash, but cannot get the steering wheel off. I have tried the penetrating oils (Pb Blaster, Liquid wrench, WD40, etc), broken a wheel puller on it, tried another gear puller, and have beaten the living daylights out of it. I am to the point of either torching or cutting...so I am pretty sure the existing steering wheel will not survive. So...now for the main question, but I will be happy to listen to any wheel comments as well: if I replace the steering wheel, are the shaft sizes essentially the same? I have seen a 1972 Sears Custom wheel on e bay, and I actually like that style better...but will it fit??? Or what other replacement options are there for a steering wheel?
I would appreciate any feedback...thanks in advance!

Ihave one going up on ebay;.. but I will sell it. What are you looking to pay?? Any idea?? PM, me and we can put it together. Thanks Buzz

I've been having the same problem. I can not get the wheel off dispite everything you mentioned you did too. I've even hung the tractor in the air by the steering wheel and tried pounding the shaft down.

Did you ever get the wheel off? If so how? Cut it off?

Thanks.

Here's how I did it. This steering wheel was cut off the shaft, but you can do this on the tractor.

The puller. This is also great for removing the PTO pulley.


Center punch steering shaft and drill an indentation into it.



Install puller.




This process took me a week. I sprayed the shaft with penetrating oil and pounded it with a heavy hammer daily. After spraying and pounding, I would increase the pressure on the puller.

It also helps to locate the key and hit that using a hammer and punch.


Just be patient. It will come off.


One other thing. NEVER pound directly on the steering shaft. You will mushroom the end of the shaft making it impossible to get the steering wheel off. As you can see in my third picture, someone had already done that to mine. I used a Dremel to grind off the mushroom on the shaft.

Good luck.

GREAT photo series Mike! Thanks for sharing.

I did get the wheel off - using heat and finally drilling the keyway. It was very stubborn, but I decided to scrap the old steering wheel anyway, so I did not worry about damaging it.

"One other thing. NEVER pound directly on the steering shaft. You will mushroom the end of the shaft making it impossible to get the steering wheel off. As you can see in my third picture, someone had already done that to mine. I used a Dremel to grind off the mushroom on the shaft."

Most important advice!

Applicable for axle shaft also.