The new steering wheel.

The new steering wheel for my Batboat arrived on January 21st.

Delivered to my door by a uniformed UPS agent.

I ordered it from Mooneyes along with some other custom auto odds and ends. http://www.mooneyesusa.com/shop/product.php?products_id=2440

There are some differences from the original but it still exceeds my expectations.

The original was of an unknown diameter, this is 15 inches. It had three holes per spoke, this four. Original spokes were spaced evenly, this isn't, perhaps to allow uninterrupted view of gauges.

There are more differences but as of this typing this is currently as close as I could find in a new steering wheel.

Its so well made I have no complaints.

Batboat-Style Steering Wheel Is Now Available.

The steering wheel I mentioned a while back [http://batboat.blogspot.com/2010/08/good-news-batboat-style-steering-wheels.html] that is similar to the one used in the 1966 Batboat is available now from Mooneyes. http://www.mooneyesusa.com/california-metal-flake-4hole-spoke-steering-wheels-p-2357.html

What makes it different in appearance from the Covico wheel used in the original Batboat is the spokes are not symmetrically spaced and there are four holes in each spoke instead of three. However, as far as I have found, this is as close you'll currently get to it in a new wheel.

The New Wheel

An original Covico steering wheel offered by Glastron. They listed it as an option only in their 1966 catalog.

Here are details I turned up a while back on the steering wheel used in the original Batboat.
http://batboat.blogspot.com/2010/04/steering-wheel-identified.html


As of this writing, this new wheel is available as 15 inch width. To my eyes it looks about the same size used in the original Batboat. Covico steering wheels were available in 5 sizes ranging between 12 to 17 inches so who knows for sure.

I found a couple more photos clearly showing the Batboat steering wheel and will scan them later.

Good news. Batboat-style steering wheels are being made available again.

[A while ago I detailed the type of wheel used in the original 1966 Batboat ---> http://batboat.blogspot.com/2010/04/steering-wheel-identified.html.]

I just got a reply to my email to Mooneyes.com regarding blue metal flake steering wheels.

They will be available again around October 2010 but only in blue, green, red and silver, have 4 holes in the spokes instead of three and use same adapter as Grant steering wheels.

Close but no cigar but currently this is about as near as I'll get to having the type used for the original Batboat in 1966. eBay prices for a scant original is in the hundreds of dollars.

As far as I can determine, Mooneyes is the only one in the world currently offering 13 1/2 and 15 inch metal flake steering wheels.

They should be around $70 -$75 plus shipping and be a new and improved design over the ones they used to offer last year. I'll have a blog entry when or if I get one of them.

Above are the steering wheels that were discontinued last year.

Steering Wheel Identified

Hot Boat magazine ad from 1965

I was going to keep this to myself to make it easier to find one, however, since a company making similar ones (Grant) stopped production on them until they relocate to Mexico, the vintage wheels are now getting top dollar. I can't afford $300+ eBay prices so I'm letting the cat out of the bag.

The round steering wheel used in the Batboat in the movie and TV show was made by Covico. Diameter is unknown but looks, to me at least, around 15 inches and I believe it to have been "CA Royal Blue." Possibly with a Deep Dish profile.

The Covico wheels were aftermarket parts for custom cars and boats.

Thanks to the guys at the http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum, not only do we know who made it but they gave me some background info on the company. One member actually worked for Covico and made them.

The evenly spaced spokes were the dead giveaway. Other companies made them with two spokes farther apart to not get in the way of viewing dashboard gauges.

Ad in a 1963 Almquist custom car catalog

Covico started around 1961 in Covina, California. Their wheel line was eventually sold off to Grant but they still were in the business of dipping them in rubber coating. They were made of thicker steel with a thin molded grip cover instead of the hard plastic you'll find on later wheels.

There were no identifying markings on Covicos. The company is still around making marine steering wheels.

Grant makes metal flake wheels specially for Mooneyes but with non-symetrical spokes, pictured below. As I said before, these are out of production due to relocating to Mexico.

California Metal Flake Steering Wheels made by Grant for Mooneyes.

It seems that Glastron offered the Covico wheels as an option only in 1966. They are not shown or mentioned in any other '60s catalogs.

Here are the ones shown in that '66 Glastron catalog.

Metallic blue and white Jetflite V-143 Super Sport.

Close up of the Jetflite V-143 dash.

Deep tan and white Futura V-150 Super Sport.

Dark jade and white Gulfstream V-204 Super Sport.


Dark jade and white Bayflite V-163 Super Sport.

Dark blue and white Crestflite v-172 Super Sport.


Dark blue and white Carribian V-234.

One of the earliest known mentions of Covico steering wheels, Hot Rod magazine Nov 1962.

Batboat Rebuild: Seat Mystery Solved Part 2

The 1966 Glastron fiberglass boat catalog that I mentioned here three weeks ago came in the mail a while back. (I paid $13.89 for mine and another recently sold for $26, he he he.)

The pointed seat design shown in a '66 Jetflite V-143 Super Sport appears, from the back, to be a closer match for the ones used in the original Batboat than the '67 Jetflite V-143 mentioned in another blog post.

'66 Jetflite V-143 Super Sport

1966 Batboat

'67 Jetflite V-143 Super Sport

It looks like when it comes to having my own seats made I'll need to get hold of one of those and interpolate the dimensions of the Batboat's to base a new pattern on.

The Jetflites are the only boats built by Glastron with those pointed, turned up seating and are unique to that model.

Catalogs show Jetflite hulls had the seat bases molded into the deck from 1965 to 1970. From '66 to 69 pointed seats were used but not in 1970. The model was discontinued 1971.


The Batboat's seats were specially made and upholstered in glitter blue vinyl, as shown above. This is one of the scant close up glimpses of the original seat. It doesn't get much better than this, sadly.

The 1966 Jetflite V-143 Super Sport

The '66 catalog also shows the same type of metallic blue steering wheel used in the original Batboat.

As a side note, the model Glastron based the Batboat on is on the '66 catalog cover; Dark Jade Crestflite Stern Drive V-174 Super Sport. According to the back page specifications, it was only available as Dark Jade and White in 1966 but the photos show blue, also shown below.