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Parts rant! Part II

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Andrew Mace

Andrew Mace

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Well, here we go again! Driving home tonight from work, it seemed that the vibration in the rear was getting just a bit more pronounced and consistent, compared to when it started a week or three ago. Since it was daylight, and since I also needed to do an oil change and adjust the rear brakes and add some GL-4 to the weepy differential, I decided to check it all out.

I've been around swing-axle Heralds and Spitfires long enough to know that it's always worth checking on all the u-joints, but especially the ones on the axle shafts. So after adjusting the LR brakes, I moved "inboard" and started turning and wiggling the LR axle. Sure enough...the flange was just a wee bit loose. Geesh, it couldn't have been more than 5-6 years and 25-30k miles ago that I replaced that u-joint. However, at the time I did not replace the four nyloc nuts on the flange bolts. Sure enough, three of the four required a good half-turn each to snug them back up again. I think I'll hunt down some good new nylocs this weekend.

Again with the lousy 50-year-old original parts. I dunno about these cars.... :laugh:

(And yes, I'm pretty sure they're original nylocs, as they're just a wee bit taller -- maybe 1-2 threads' worth taller -- than anything I've been able to find in recent years.)
 
Bitch, bitch, bitch....

Of course this is offered in a most jocular manner...

(my apologies in advance for any offense by my sexist remarks)
 
Andrew, when the Sun eventually cools and the world ends, all that will remain is cockroaches, POR-15 under my fingernails, and British nyloc nuts.
 
Andy, it sounds like it is time to get rid of that car. You know there will be more things coming. When ujoints and nyloc nuts start failing other things are sure to go. I tell you what, I will give you $13.00 for the car. But I assume you will want to deliver the car to me in Minnesota for such a large some.
 
See, the quality control at Triumph really did stink 50 years ago....
 
I like to think I've become a cecent diagnostician after 40+ years, but truth is that it was fairly easy to spot (feel, actually) the loose bolts on the mating flange.

In looking through the McMaster-Carr site, I see that -- among many other styles -- they offer both "Nylon-Insert Hex Locknuts" and "Nylon-Insert Heavy Hex Locknuts"; the latter are thicker, in my case 29/64" v 11/32" (which is what the originals appear to be) for 5/16" SAE fine thread nuts. I need to measure to see if there's enough room for the "Heavy" ones, but I don't think there is.
 
Good ya got that much use from the OE ones, Andy! :thumbsup:

I've done it on my own cars but with clients' vehicles it's "one-time-use" for 'em. My exception on personal cars is the rear driveshafts... the donut bolts/nuts on these Lotus things are renewed at the same time Metalastic joints start to show age and get replaced.

To paraphrase: "Failure is not an option". :wink:
 
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