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Roger K

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Everything posted by Roger K

  1. Two did. The mushroom heads splintered and broke off so they started to pull through the hubs. I didn’t risk pulling any further, and swapped them out for 7/16” bolts and nuts. I’ve contacted Rimmers, who have sent some replacement studs, and Bastuck, who are looking into it. I did ask Rimmers who makes their separate studs, which are different, but no response yet.
  2. Having lost faith in hubs and studs, I decided to refurbish my originals and fit new studs. I had to remove the ‘new’ hubs, which I did with my heavy old genuine Churchill puller. Surprise, surprise- half a turn on the puller and the wheel studs sheared at the back and pulled through the hub. Hence the nuts and bolts in the photo
  3. Thanks Pete, of course it’s also a different hub now so it may not be tight against the bearing. Not sure if that will matter or not, but I’ve taken the axles out so many times in the last couple of weeks I can’t face it yet again.
  4. Non-roto late GT6 Mk3, sorry.
  5. Just changing my Bastuck rear hubs back to a pair of reconditioned originals. My question is, can I simply remove (ha ha, 'simply') the hubs, and slide the replacements on and tighten as before? Or will removing the 'old' ones disturb seals, bearing position etc. on the axle shaft? In other words, do I have to strip the whole thing and setup again, or can I just* swap the hubs over on the tapers? * there I go again, 'just'.... I got them off, genuine 70's Churchill tool and a bit of heat and bashing later.
  6. Probably completely irrelevant, but in the past I've had issues with stainless steel being used where the design spec was mild steel. A conversation I had with a design engineer years ago about differencs in work-hardening patterns put me off, so I've tended to stick with the original material out of choice. I also have a dislike of engine bays full of stainless fasteners. I did use some on an early 289 I rebuilt years ago, but they were forever working loose, which stopped when I switched back to mild steel.
  7. I've discussed this with an old friend who is a retired truck engineer, and has experience of analysing wheel stud failures in commercial vehicles. He says it can be a bit of a black art, as there are so many variables. He's also advised me not to use these hubs, as if there is any error in positioning of the studs a lateral load can be placed on the stud as the cone in the wheel is engaged and tightened. He's also advised me not to try to re-engineer wheel studs, as it's not as simple as it appears! This makes sense to me, even though I can see no problem. I think I'll dig out the old ones, hopefully can change with everything on the car (I have an ancient Churchill hub puller for this car), and fit the old ones with new studs fitted. The old studs are all as bent as the one in my photo, courtesy of Pete's gorillas again, no doubt.
  8. Rainer Bastuck has replied asking for numbers within the hour, showing an impressive commitment and level of concern.
  9. Thanks all - I did actually test one of a No.3 on an old hub, brake drum and steel wheel. It tightened to 60ftlbs with no difficulty, at which point it was getting tricky to hold the wheel. I have since thrown that stud away... RogerH, I have sent a full description and photographs to Rimmers and am waiting for them to get back to me. If the prospect of trading standards doesn't bother them, then I will know who not to buy from in future and will move on to Bastuck. I may well just duplicate my contacts to Bastuck anyway. The problem would be if they demand return of the purchased item, i.e. the assembled hub, as I really am not going back down the full-strip-down-with-a-puller route again just now. And anyway I've removed the studs. Edit - I've sent it to Bastuck as well. Will report back.
  10. Thanks John - I have a set of TR6 studs I had thought of using, but I definitely want to retain the original steel wheels and the chrome centre trim. That's not possible with the bigger studs, unless I drill and retap the original wheel nuts to 7/16". And guess what? The original chrome nuts which take the plastic trim washer have gone No Longer Available, with nobody having any stock and nobody able to give a date for them. They are only available in stainless (which I'm not really comfortable with in a wheel nut), which I would struggle to drill and tap. If I drill and tap any of my originals there's no going back. Maybe stick with the Rimmers (3rd from the left) and see how we go.
  11. I know it's possible to get obsessional about these things, but in view of my recent experiences and the safety-critical nature of these parts I'm trying to work out the best parts to fit. Below is a photo of four wheel studs. In order from the left, these are: 1) an original rear wheel stud from my car. Yes, it's bent - I have only just bought this car and it wasn't me! 2) a stud from the new rear hubs as sold by Rimmer's and made by Bastuck (I presume, as they came assembled). I have had two of these fracture now at the base of the thread before reaching 38ftlbs with a reliable, calibrated torque wrench. 3) a new, replacement stud as supplied by Rimmer's. It does not appear to be the same as the one supplied fitted to their new rear hub assemblies. 4) a new, replacement stud as supplied today by Canley Classics. I'd be grateful for folks opinions on which might be best to fit, i.e. either of the two on the right. The Rimmer's design to me looks good, with a chamfered shoulder at the stressed point - but the finish on Canley's variety looks more original and, frankly, I trust Canley a lot more than I do most suppliers. Thoughts?
  12. Both studs that failed are on the same hub, so I think it's most likely a batch fault. I can change them all just by removing the drum, but both have broken in exactly the same way at the same place, the stressed point at the base of the thread. No warning, no going 'soft' during tightening, just a sudden bang and the nut with the thread inside flies across the workshop. The first failed during tightening at 36ftlbs, the second about 10 minutes after tightening to 38. Neither had had a nut on them before. The thought of what might happen if I had been driving it does not bear thinking about.
  13. Not sure what the black finish is, but it's not BZP obviously. The separate studs I bought are also finished in black. Looks like anodizing but not sure if you can anodize steel, as I've only seen it on ally...
  14. The ones that have failed have both been part of a rear hub assembly sold complete. The hub itself has Bastuck stamped on it, which I presume is the maker. No markings on the studs. After the first one broke, I bought a couple of spares (again from Rimmers - I'm obviously very trusting), which are slightly different and obviously not of the same manufacture. The hub assembly and the studs are finished in black, possibly anodized? Haven't been back to Rimmers yet but will phone in the morning. I'm guessing they'll want the whole hub back, which would be a right pain as it's all assembled on the car and I don't really want to do the whole job again. I'll see what they say.
  15. Well, this time I can't say it's never happened to me before.... Just finished the rear suspension having replaced the stud that fractured. Torqued everything up very carefully to dead on 38ftlbs, let the jack right down and started on the front suspension bushes. 10 minutes later there's a loud bang - and there's another wheel stud lying on the floor with a nut on the end of it. Same new Bastuck hub as before, different stud. I will now be changing all the studs in both rear hubs (except the one I've already done) for new. The ones Rimmers sell loose are not the same as the ones pre-mounted in the Bastuck rear hubs, so I'm going to trust them - for now, as I have a bag of them. I did test one on an old hub and rim up to 65ftlbs with no trouble. I had thought the original failure was a one-off but clearly it isn't. This latest break has the same odd crystalline appearance at the fracture surface.
  16. It's like bearings - if I can find the bearing type number I'll buy from a bearing specialist, not the marque specialists. It's usually cheaper and there's more choice. I guess when they design a car like this they go for a readily-available industrial bushing, nothing bespoke. All you need is the dimensions.
  17. Just fyi, the new bushes from AVMR arrived today and are spot-on. ID of the central bush is 0.376" and - to my surprise - they are marked 'Clayflex' with the part number given above. So they are the same as the old ones I am removing. I have a suspicion these may be the originals, as they have clearly not been changed for many years. I also have three large folders full of every invoice relating to my car since the previous owner bought it in 1976 (it's a '73/4), and there's no mention of suspension bushes being changed. So I'd say the Rimmers bushes are ones to avoid!
  18. I'm talking about how much of our electricity is 'green'. Looking at today's figures, 37% of our electricity has come from gas, 12% from nuclear and just 24% from wind - no solar. When a supply company tells you they supply 'green energy', given that it all comes via the National Grid, I don't see how they can state that with any certainty. https://gridwatch.co.uk Yes, the consumption of those devices is tiny. But there are an awful lot of them.... https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200305-why-your-internet-habits-are-not-as-clean-as-you-think ...and this is interesting:
  19. I have a 2.0 petrol Skodiak as a daily driver, don't like SUVs in general but it has to be able to tow a loaded car trailer. Electric is a complete red herring in my view - just look at the online power generation sites to see how much electricity is 'green', and that's before we get on to manufacturing, battery life, mining exotic metals etc. I also resent being told I'm destroying the planet by the generation who consume more energy than any other, past or present. How many devices per person, charging every night?? I am Heritage Manager for the FBHVC, and spend time in committees discussing a lot of this. I had an online meeting yesterday as part of the Mobile Heritage Advisory group of the Heritage Alliance - I am doing all I can to try to keep this hobby alive. I have to - I have more money invested in the contents of the garage than in the house!
  20. If we don't ask for and buy parts, they will cease to be available. I think many classics considered 'budget' are closer to the cliff edge than you might think.
  21. It's not the tolerances that have changed per se, it's the lubrication. Modern oils are streets ahead of the old mineral oils with regard to film thickness and protection etc., so much closer tolerances can be used. The last small-block Ford V8 I rebuilt dates from 1964 but was machined to modern clearances on the crank, so it was given a full ester synthetic 15W 50 right from the off. No running-in necessary. The old Mustang I posted a photo of on another thread didn't need a break-in as the 393 has a roller cam. The cam break-in is entirely that, to protect the cam - nothing to do with the rings or running-in.
  22. There's no markings at all on them, unlike the Clayflex or Metalastik ones. Doesn't fill you with confidence.
  23. I've bought three sets of 5.5J wheels now, two of them from Mallory Park Racing School and one set from a historic FF racer. Remember that the offset dimension is the distance of the back of the centre plate from the midline of the wheel rim. There are 16mm, which I think are best for a 'long driveshaft' car, and 3/8 - which is 10mm-ish. Rumour has it that there may be a 18mm, but I've never seen one.
  24. I'm sure you're right, and all will be fine - you are absolutely correct in saying the same design is used in those places. But the parts I have been sold for this part of the car are not to that design specification, they're too big!!
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