SOUP - My new series about my Series 2

[GTK]

Yet again I find a response I wrote but never submitted   Losing it!

I just watched a video on that car this week as it happens. It's incredible, and I love it. Just not sure I could relax in it 

You're right though, it's full of little inspirational ideas.

 

[GTK]

Sunday morning brake line replacement! I went off piste on exact routing but having checked for clearance between chassis and body... I think it'll be grand.

 

 

[GTK]

Anyone know about the steel cover plates on the Burman steering rack? It seems to me they could just as easily be aluminium and still do their job...

 

 

[GTK]

Dangerously close to bolting the suspension and wheels back onto the chassis, for now I'm struggling with coolant pipe fabrication and a few other bits and pieces...

 

[JonSE]

Lovely stuff, it’s all coming together!

[GTK]

Looking forward to a rolling chassis really soon.

I'm also looking forward planning-wise and wonder about the clutch. The parts cross reference spreadsheet has no info about the clutch itself but it must be a common part to other makes/models? 

[JonSE]

Not too sure, it’s the Citroen Maserati unit from memory and they seem easily available…..

Is there an option for lighter flywheel you’ve found?

[Fridge]

@JonSE a lighter flywheel is available, though the original isn't exactly heavy. Marginal gains if you want to spend a few more pennies.

[drdoom]

Daring here to offer advice I've found that heat alone would not render the AL amenable to being wrought. On the other hand heating and quenching did indeed take the temper well down from the T6 as purchased, permitting beading the 32mm without stress cracks found after treating the as bought tubing solely with heat. Have yet to source my solution for beading the heater transfer pipe tubing, passed on bending the main coolant pipes leaving the direction changes to silicone elbows.

Enjoying SOUP greatly!

[Trunnion 74]

Almost there with the bearing-hub marriage @GTK George.

This is the way I did mine. Put bearing in freezer wrapped in grease proof paper (no box) I left mine in there for a couple of days.  Put the hub in an oven (domestic) best to do this when Mrs is not around. Car parts and ovens are not natural bedfellows ;-). Heat up oven to 170c when it reaches temp cook for 20 mins. When time is up and working quickly remove hub get bearing STRAIGHT from freezer unwrap and put in hub.  It will slip in like a slippery thing on a slippery night in slipperyville

Worked a treat when I did mine.

[GTK]

@drdoom I (hopefully) have a tool landing that will bead the smaller pipe as well as the larger, I'll update asap. Just a little worried it's lost in transit.

@Trunnion 74 I have two stumbling blocks; the unit I'm working in doesn't have a conventional oven, and even if it did I've painted the uprights and the paint won't like that kind of heat. I may just resort to pressing the bearings in. 

[drdoom]

The beading tool I purchased on Amazon claimed to cover diameters down to 5/8" however something clearly was lost in translating pipe versus tubing, as it would not fit into the tubing on account of wall thickness. So damned close but " no cigar!"

My hub carriers were warmed in the BBQ, FWIW, and the freezer chilled bearing/shaft assemblies just plopped into place. Be careful not to go too high in heating as the alloy will go off temper if the temperature exceeds something like 300F, IIRC.

[snowrx]

I wonder if you might revisit your original tube-beading plier attempt, but create your beading profile right up against the pivot point of the pliers to get proper leverage. You could also tack a rib to the handles to address the flex, those pliers aren't getting any prettier.

Although for this sort of tool I'd start with a Vise-grip plier for the compound leverage and adjustability.

[GTK]

It's interesting that you mention 300ºF Steve, that's less than 150ºC, and I was already wary of the potential for destabilising the alloy. Hence the dashboard attempt. The two or three "expert" advisors who commented for heating in the oven have all been around the 180ºC mark. I always bring a large pinch of skepticism into the comments section because there's so much social proof based thinking out there that it's a dangerous thing to take anything as a given. A person sees a YT video showing how something's done, and that forever more is the right a proper way of doing it.

It wasn't very obvious but there are actually two attempts at the tool in the video Thomas, and the second one is cut down a good way to be both on the straight of the tool, and much closer to the pivot. I could go closer again though. What I also need to do is weld some webbing along the handles to make them rigid and transfer all squeezing force through to the head. I knew locking pliers were the ideal but I didn't have a suitable one I was willing to sacrifice.

[drdoom]

Quite sure I stayed well short of 180 C.

[yeller77]

Pretty sure the annealing temp of Al is well over 400F or over 200C. (The subject often comes up when discussing the baking of powder-coated wheels). You don't really need to get close to those temps, you just need to get a little expansion, probably not buying much more usable expansion over 150C. You could also set the bearing on a little chunk of dry ice to maximize the temp differential. 

(from a Shanghai alloy site..)

[GTK]

Where are all you people getting dry ice?? You'd swear it was beside the fish fingers in the local corner shop. 

[yeller77]

Can't say over there but a lot of grocers and some convenience stores Stateside have a dry ice freezer. A quick google should do, it can be quite in demand for parties.   

[GTK]

Gotcha, had a look and there's actually a place that sells it between home and the Esprit. I have a new plan though so dry ice is going to the top of the Plan C. list. More on that coming later in the week 

[Chillidoggy]

12 hours ago, GTK said:

Where are all you people getting dry ice?? You'd swear it was beside the fish fingers in the local corner shop. 

 

Given your location, I'm pretty sure you just need to leave those bearings outside for a while.

[GTK]

har!

[GTK]

Hi all, if anyone can... I need some help with the anti roll bar to lower link bushes. I can't get them to seat.

I tried using a nut bolt and washer to pull them in, then a hydraulic press. Lots of dish soap both times (although not evident in the video). I've destroyed one already, don't want to wreck the other. I'm worried the paint is too thick on the arm maybe? I've searched here for methods too, but couldn't find anything direct and the Lotus manual is useless.

 

 

[williamtherebel]

I feel your pain! As I suppose the majority of us do. However, its coming on and looking good. Keep up the good work.

[Sparky]

I use the standard threaded bar/drift setup, but go at it with my monster Milwaukee impact driver.  It needs a lot - more than you'll think is reasonable - but the torque and rapid shocks do a good job of getting those bushes in eventually.  Every time, I think I've wrecked the bush, then suddenly it pops in intact!

[eeyoreish]

Are the ARB bushes in any way the same as they are on a later Stevens car? If so, there was a special aluminium tool available to 'hire' on here from @PilotSteve a few years back. I used it to fit mine.

I don't know if Steve is still active here but here's a thread that talks about the tool...

 

Edited August 1 by eeyoreish