Steering wheel help

[PH5121]

Today my furry assistant (Daisy the destroyer) decided to jump up and 'help' me with the construction of my Tamiya Schwimmwagen.

Unfortunately she decided to investigate what I was up to, and that she needed to give her chin a rub on some of my work.
In the process she dislodged the steering wheel which was drying on the end of a cocktail stick.
It went with a 'ping' and flew off.

I've searched but can't find it, hence my need for help.
Any idea where I can source a suitable 1/35 scale replacement?
I've done an Internet search but have drawn a blank.

[generationx]

You can quite often find parts trees on eBay, try searching by model number. Or if you phone the Hobby Company (Tamiya importers) they should be able to help.

However both these options involve spending money - hopefully someone on here has a spare lying around!

[MBBlat]

I find if I drop or knock something off the bench, which me being clumsy happens a lot, I have to look for it straight away or it somehow disappears for the next couple of months/years. I find it amazing how far Tamiya plastic in particular can bounce when you’re not looking.

Parts normally reappear once I’ve either finished the kit or given up on it, usually when I’m searching for the next part I’ve dropped.

[tangerine_sedge]

PH5121 said:

Today my furry assistant (Daisy the destroyer) decided to jump up and 'help' me with the construction of my Tamiya Schwimmwagen.

Unfortunately she decided to investigate what I was up to, and that she needed to give her chin a rub on some of my work.
In the process she dislodged the steering wheel which was drying on the end of a cocktail stick.
It went with a 'ping' and flew off.

I've searched but can't find it, hence my need for help.
Any idea where I can source a suitable 1/35 scale replacement?
I've done an Internet search but have drawn a blank.

Try making one from stretched sprue over a candle? If I remember correctly, they're pretty thin with little detail, so (famous last words) shouldn't be that difficult?

[Skii]

The same steering wheel was used on the Kubelwagen as they shared many common parts, which should widen your search options.

Other than scratchbuilding one, I'd consider 3d printing (or asking some one with a 3d printer) to print the one, like this one for example:

https://www.printables.com/model/584496-kubelwagen...

the only other challenge is getting the size right

[MarkwG]

Any chance furry assistant found it & decided it was good snack material..?

[PH5121]

Thanks for the advice. Quite by chance I found the steering wheel, whilst looking for another part.

[Stealthracer]

I have a theory:

You will always find a lost part just after you have either bought, or worse still laboriously made, a replacement.