Steering gear gaiters?

[YellowHound]

I'd like to add some gaiters to the steering gear of the 1/12 Italeri Lancia Stratos I am building.

I have no idea how though - can anyone share some tips or ideas please?

Thanks.

[stitchdup]

you could take some thin styrene tube and wire it fits over, then heat about an inch of it with a lighter and force the ends towards each other. you should be able to make up some short lengths with each lot of heat, and if you remove the wire quick enough you should have time to bend them if needed.

[PHPaul]

 

Not sure of scale, but the pleated section of bendable straws maybe?

[johnyrotten]

My wife used this for a phone charger repair,  found it on reddit. Pen spring and heat shrink. Looks convincing 

[Ace-Garageguy]

Similar to the above ideas but different...decide what diameter wire would look right for the steering links coming out of the rack, drill the rack to accept about 3/16" of it, then wrap 1/4" inch or so that sticks out with appropriate wire, and put some heat-shrink tube over the whole thing.

Look at photos of real steering racks to see the effect you need to achieve.

AND...even though rack boot ridges aren't spirals like a wire-wrap will be, nobody but the most hardened nitpicker will ever notice.  

NOTE: Probably not wise to try heat-shrink on or close to kit plastic, ya know?   

 

[johnyrotten]

1 hour ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

Similar to the above ideas but different...decide what diameter wire would look right for the steering links coming out of the rack, drill the rack to accept about 3/16" of it, then wrap 1/4" inch or so that sticks out with appropriate wire, and put some heat-shrink tube over the whole thing.

Look at photos of real steering racks to see the effect you need to achieve.

AND...even though rack boot ridges aren't spirals like a wire-wrap will be, nobody but the most hardened nitpicker will ever notice.  

NOTE: Probably not wise to try heat-shrink on or close to kit plastic, ya know?   

 

I wonder if something such as tissue paper coated with thinned white glue would work as a substitute for the heat shrink,  might be more work than it's worth. Or a few wraps of bmf or something similar?

[Beans]

Wonder if electrical tape over the wire wrap would work.  (Thinking out loud)

[Ace-Garageguy]

13 minutes ago, Beans said:

Wonder if electrical tape over the wire wrap would work.  (Thinking out loud)

For a while. Sorta.

Most electrical tape isn't even a permanent solution for what it's supposedly made for, unless it's the self-vulcanizing kind that fuses to itself.

[Pierre Rivard]

I've used plumber's tape with success

[YellowHound]

Thanks All - some great ideas for me to try.

[Straightliner59]

You could also stack plastic discs (or rubber). Then drill through for the rack. That would be a drawback for the rubber. Maybe tiny O-rings, stacked?

[NOBLNG]

You could chuck a piece of evergreen in a drill or lathe and use a razor saw and triangle file to shape some? What is the approximate diameter you need?