Getting tubed

Well I finally got tired of my tires rolling off the rims.. I took them in to get tubed yesterday.

I haven't heard any of the bolt on wheel crowd complain about this problem. Maybe the knockoffs are worse. I wince everytime I swing a hammer near the car, so taking the wheels off practically gives me the shakes. I already have a couple of chips in one rim from misses.

But on a different subject I installed an oil pressure switch to cut off my fuel pump when the motor's not running.. I always meant to do this but haven't used the car much so never got around to it. I feel much safer now..

You shouldn't have chips in the rim! What kind of a hammer do you use? A lead or a copper hammer would avoid this altogether. You can buy one from any local industrial distributor, and they are cheap enough.

Copper or leather hammer will help avoid wheel damage. (I don't recommend lead though. Do you want to treat your hammer as a dangerous, poisonous substance?)
-Wm.

I have a brass hammer, and the wheels were just restored so I guess the paint was still soft...

The chips are not too noticeable and I have since found the " best " angle to use for whacking them so it shouldn't happen again. I had a bit of a fright when I went to the All British Field Meet out here and noticed that every car I saw with knochoffs tightened in the opposite direction from mine! I was sure I had it right till then.

Of course I looked into it and found out that mine are different because of the knockoff fitting into the rim seat instead of over top of it. Somebody must have stayed up all night designing that!

A while back, someone on the Elan list was negotiating with an outfit to make up a batch of "wrenches" for the Elan three eared knock-offs. I think this eventually happened & suggest you check with Bean or one of the other Lotus suppliers. These slip over the knock-off and give you enough leverage to tighten them without much effort.

For some reason the Elan wheels take a beating from knock-off hammers. I assume it's because of the small wheels & the ears not leaning out like MG's or whatever. Also, the wheel disk sort of bulges out right about where the ears end.

Bean only has the wrenches for the US knockoff cap
( a big nut really ). I have the wrench from them for that.. Of course it won't work on the ear knockoffs..

Bill Tryree has the wrenches you are looking for. That is the 3 ear spinners.You can email him at[bjtyreeSAR@peoplepc.com]. I know he was selling them a while back.At what price, I can't remember. Still no snow to go skiing.

Great idea for the spinners.. Still... I'd probably miss the look of horror on peoples faces as I walk to the opposite side of my car and start whacking it with a hammer..LOL

In my ehperience, there is no hammer which can protect the alloy rims from damage from a misplaced hammer blow. Protect the spinner, yes, an alloy rim, no. (I damaged the Lotus alloys on my first Elan). The wrench is the only way to go.

Personally, I would prefer studs to the spinners, but that is just based on my personal uxperience.

Hmmm... Any time you want to trade a knockoff setup for a bolt on setup.. I'm sure I can come up with all the bolt on hubs and wheels etc ( probably new... I think the bolt on set up gives a better feeling of security, but the knockoffs look ace even in a steel wheel..

And there's something really British about a knockoff setup that makes my car even more quaint..