late model steering wheel & horn issues

[Longhorn Man]

Many of us like the late model truck steering wheels and have installed them in our trucks. One of the questions normally asked is about the horn issue, more acurately..how to make it work.
I think mostly in the 88 - 98 trucks, they can also be found in S-10 trucks/blazers and in some vans too if not mistaken. There are a few variances in the models, some are ribbed, some not...and some horn buttons are down right ugly too...but others are actually pretty decent looking. J.C. Whitney also has some 'custom' horn buttons, but IMO, they are pretty cheesey looking.
Here is one of the wheels in question.

[Longhorn Man]

The wheel it's self is a pretty simple swap...just get a puller and remove your hold one, and hen bolt on the new one. Ensure to keep the wheel phased the same way as it was (turned in the same direction). This wheel bolts onto the truck column just as easily as a van column like many of us have installed.
If your wheel is stubborn from age and does not want to leave the column, some penitrating oil like PB Blaster spraied on the splines can help, as does some light to mild tapping on the center piece of the puller as you try to press it off. Save the torch for a last result. It has happened in the past to where the wheel will not come off in any way shape or form...and if that is the case, a new shaft or column is in order. IMO, this would be a good time to upgrade to a tilt column...be it a real (and expensive) truck unit...or a van unit.
Now for the horn.
There are a couple ways to do this, some ppl do it one way, others do it other ways. This is how I have done it on 3 trucks...and never had a single problem with any of them. (once I figured it all out)
In the picture below, you'll see 3 horn slip rings. The one on the left, is out of a van column, the center one is from a 92 S-10 Blazer, (the donor for my steering wheel in one of my trucks) and on the far right, one from a non-tilt column.
What ever column you have in your truck, you'll want to use the slip ring that was on it...esp if you have a non-tilt truck column. If you look at the bottom of the slip ring on the right, it is tapered. This end fits into the bearing and acts as a race. If you use the wrong one, the bearings will be unsuported, and the shaft will flop up and down to the point that the turn signals will not cancel properly, and you'll swear that your wheel is about to fall off.
Once you have the right slipring, you'll need to do a small mod to it. On the slip ring to the left, you'll see a small metal tab pressed into the plastic tube that is pointed up in the picture. You'll want to remove it. Just grab the metal with your pliers or vice-grips, and pull. It isn't in there too hard. A small spring and a plastic bushing should come out with it too. If you think you may re-install the stock wheel one day...get a zip-lock baggie and keep these items.
Now you'll need to pull the parts out of the slip ring that the donor truck had. This one is even easier to remove. If you look at it (I have no pics) you'll see that the inserted piece is a push and twist, and has two nipples on the sides much like a lightbulb in your tail lights. Remove this assembly with the push and twist motion and ensure you do not lose the spring that comes out with it.
now you'll need to take a sharp box cutter/utility knife, and carefully shave the nipples off. On one side, it will be benificial to leave a small nub on there, but minimal remains of the nipple is all you'll need.
Take the modified piece from the donor truck and insert it along with the spring in the same order that it was removed, only you'll be installing it into the slipring that came off your truck. There are no slots for the light bulb style retaining, which is why we cut them off. Instead, the remains of the nipple will hold it in there just from the friction. A dab of super glue will hold it if you shaved too much off of there in the nipple removal process.
Now install the modified slipring on youe steering shaft, then the wheel, bolt it down, and the little wire gets plugged into the horn button. Press the horn button onto the wheel untill it is on all the way and the horn should honk while doing this.
If the horn does not sound off...listen for the relay to click. troubleshoot from that point.