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Noticed that when I wear khakis the steering wheel can leave black smudges when or if it rubs.

Beyond losing weight, is there a workable fix for this? Perhaps waxing, or armor all?????????

Don't want to put on the wrong stuff and make it worse....

Believe the wheels were painted hard rubber or maybe a dark plastic. Is the paint wearing or worn off on yours?

I personally don't like Armorall because it seems to leave a residue that I can feel even after washing. Others might not object to it but I also don't think it will solve the problem.

If the paint is not wearing off exposing the black hard rubber and that is what is getting on your clothes, perhaps it is just oils from your hands and washing the wheel with some ordinary mild detergent will remove them.

I thought they were bake lite,

I would say grime,,,is on the wheel,

Clean the wheel exceedingly well. Oils and grime tend to do what you describe. Also consider clear coating the wheel. Once thoroughly cleaned, I'll bet clear-coating will make whatever patina the wheel possesses awesome.

The wheel on my '54 is for sure of hard rubber composition as opposed to bakelite.

I just finished repairing the steering wheel on my 51 200. It is a rubber product of some sort. I used a five minute epoxy - the kind where you cut off a chunk of a tube and knead it until the two parts are well mixed. It is very stiff, but easy to mold, and doesn't run like JB Weld can do sometimes. In sanding the stuff down, I got black rubber dust all over everything. I painted the wheel with a satin black spray paint. When it's cured, I'll buff it and clear coat it. I've done that in the past and it works well.

Paint is indeed worn off. I have tried cleaning it, but it doesn't make much difference.

I had hoped some kind of simple coating like a wax, armour all or something would get the job done.

I like simple solutions.....

my 56 400 is hard,

and it shrunk i will be doing the epoxy thing too,

pat you are talking about your 56 right?

Spray some clear on it. It should help to seal the surface again

Yes, we are talking about my 56!

I'd be happy to spray some clear on it if I knew what "clear" you were thinking of....