Suicide Knobs aka Brodie Knobs, Necker Knobs, Steering Wheel Spinners... Suicide Knobs In MA Are Just Steering Knobs With A Cool Name! Suicide Knobs are the attachments you put on a steering wheel so you can drive a car or truck with one hand. They are also known as Brodie Knobs, Necker Knobs, wheel spinners and Steering Knobs. They were very popular in the days before power steering. Now that everyone has power steering they are not as popular, due in part to a large umber of states banning them. They can have wildly different designs and can be an interesting accessory. They help make it a lot easier when you have to parallel park! Short History of the Steering Knob Brodie knobs were used on trucks before the advent of power steering. Their main use today is still in trucks, particularly semi trucks where they allow simultaneous steering and operation of the radio. They also see extensive use on forklift trucks used in warehouses and even riding lawnmowers, where frequent sharp turning is required while moving about. Brodie Knobs were widely popular (especially on the west coast of the U.S.), during the 1950s. Their intention was to be used primarily as addition to a Hot Rod. The knob was used to spin the steering wheel, rapidly in one direction or the other, while accelerating, to cause the tire(s) to spin. Hence, come the terms "lay a brodie" and "Slob the knob". In the 1950s and 60's a person could go into any local mechanics shop and choose from a large variety of "Brodie Knobs", with every conceivable theme, from "Candy Apple colored", product logos, to nude women, and everything in between, some automobile dealerships even used them for advertisements. Steering Controls
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