Elan-specific bolt package

[nitroman]

Touchy, touchy choir boy.  Oops, didn't mean it like that, sorry!

[grahamec]

So much smut on this board  ::)

[nitroman]

Everybody else noticed how darn busy we've gotten lately?  What the heck happened to all our free time?  Have some great picks to post when I get the chance.

[nitroman]

OK boys, it is late, I am tired, and some of these pictures are oversized for which I will face the death penalty.  What I want to come across here is that none of this "glossy shine" is the result of some temporary sprayed-on goo which will come off with weather & washing.  Yes dear boys, this stuff is called epoxy & acrylic co-polymer & something else which is proven in the state of California to cause cancer.  That's right, this is the real deal.  Gaze in amazement, but please, do not touch your computer screen.  Thank you.<br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br>

[Sy V]

Damn!<br><br>Hosted by Tony on Awsnet means I'll have to wait until I get home to see them  :(

[grahamec]

Matt<br>That is just fantastic and certainly something to aspire to  8), do you have a name for that product ?  Do you actualy drive your car or is it an ornament and testament to a fanatical polisher  ;D  Oh dear I can feel a car rebuild coming on :-/

[stevieshag]

     [center]excellent[/center]<br><br>Are you going to put your wheels back on ?? <br>think i could just sit & admire .<br><br><br><br>just waiting for my bushes & bearings to be pressed out b4 going to be sand blasted & powder coated.. in readiness for new brakes etc<br><br><br><br>

[nitroman]

A sand-blasting cabinet would be one of the all-time greatest gifts I could ever receive!  Ah, the things I could do to absolute perfection!!!   As long as you never really expect to have something, dreams are wonderful.<br><br>(Not that I don't want one OK?  So if anyone has the extra dosh; please, please, please get me one!)

[Sy V]

Matt<br><br>Are these suspension bolts suitable tensile-strength-wise?<br>Just a thought...there are bolts and bolts.  I know you've sourced the correct size, length and pitch but are they suitably strong enough for suspension work?

[nitroman]

Yes these are ARP 170,000 PSI (is it?) burst-strength, and cost about the same as their weight in gold!  They are stronger than the OEM bolts I removed.<br><br>If someone were looking for "cheap-bling" they could polish & clear-coat (use the right product I mentioned in an earlier post which will not flake-off) the OE bolt-heads and nuts.  It will not be like a mirror but still damn-fine looking.

[Sy V]

Thanks for the reassurance...hope you didn't mind me asking.

[nitroman]

Doug, Sy & Grahame...<br>1) Doug - your bolt order is boxed & ready to ship although I don't know if I'll make it to the post office tomorrow.  Everything is labeled in such a way that you should have no problem installing it.  I will figure up your bill tomorrow; don't know if that will be B4 or after I ship the order.<br>2) Sy - I have included two (2) more of the bolts for the electric water pump bracket which you said stripped out when you installed it.  Fair enough I hope.<br>3) Grahame - The coolest new part you have is the polished SS top bolt for the front hydraulic engine damper.  I need to go back through the original order to see what other possible bolts I can include to make up for the extra dosh you sent.  That will take time & will have to happen this weekend.<br><br>SY/Grahame - who's address do I ship to this time?  Unlike the "get it there by Donny time" these will be coming on a slow boat from China (anyone remember that song?... my, how old you must be!!!)<br><br>Cheers to all, Matt<br><br>p.s. - StevieShag - as to putting the wheels on, the doctor's exact words (a bird she) were "don't even rub your leg up against the car when walking past it."  This just as she was writting her personal cell phone # on the back of her business card just in case I needed her for the weekend.   [smiley=notsure.gif] I pinched a nerve in my left leg doing the 14-hour suspension marathon.  Sometimes the whole leg goes almost completely numb.  It is weird, a first for me.  The drugs are weird too.  I took a 2-hour nap when I got home & haven't slept since.

[grahamec]

Matt<br>Thanks for your effort once again,you can ship to me and I will forward to Sy. Did you manage to secure that side order for me?<br>Regards

[nitroman]

Matt, thanks for your effort once again, you can ship to me and I will forward to Sy.  I am hoping to prey upon your good nature and ask you to order a full set of their holding tools for me and a handfull of m4 20mm and up anodised alloy alan heads.

<br>Grahame I'm afraid I have some sobering news for you on these items.   I looked into the SCS holding tools used for polishing (they finally graced me with a catalog this time after spending some $500-bucks!)  They have 6-holding tools of which they offer the set for $95-USD.    Each one has a male & female-threaded end... for holding a bolt on one-end & a nut on the other.  More clever still, the threads are between course & fine, meaning either fastener will screw onto the same "holder".  You will not be able to torque them down, but that is not important in this case... they just have to stay on well enough not to fall off.  The bad news is each of the 6 tools holds a #10, a 1/4", 5/16", 3/8", 7/16", & 1/2".  Sadly, these are not metric sizes.<br><br>Might I suggest you buy a single nyloc nut each in size M4, M5, M6, M8, M10, & M12?  Screw the bolt to be polished into the nylock nut, and place the nylock nut into your vise.  Now you have a stable-base for polishing your bolt head.<br><br>Also, the only M4 Allen bolt longer or equal to 20mm offered by SCS is 25mm.  These are 40-cents apiece.  I would think you could buy these by the box far more cheaply at your local hardware store considering your intent on polishing them yourself.  The polished price is $1.15 a piece, making that an unwelcome alternative indeed. <br><br>Sorry old chap, to be the bearer of this news.

[nitroman]

p.s. and to all an apology for the latency of my replies in some instances.  As noted I have a pinced nerve in my left leg which not only causes considerable pain but the leg, knee & calf go almost completely numb on occassion.  I am learning to cope with it and hope to recuperate soon.  Like the back problem I had a year ago I'm sure it will bring about sensible changes in my behavior which will serve me well in the long run.  <br><br>As for now, sometimes I get home & am so tired I just lay down on the floor and awake hours later.  Pain has a way I guess, of draining the body of its energy.

[grahamec]

Hi Matt<br>Thanks for pointing that out I thought they were a full set of metric and imperial, never mind I will make some up myself. Hope your leg etc gets better and dosen't hold you up to much.<br>Cheers

[nitroman]

MASSIVE BLING!!!   I put the wheels back on the car last night (totally ignoring profressional medical advice!) and noticed, even through the small slits in the OE wheels, how nicely the upper ball-joint and SS bolts/nuts showed through.  The joints, bolts & nuts are all polished of course.  There is more bling there than in a set of new calipers for sure.  What's more, it leaves absolutely no doubt that this is in fact the brand-new Lotus.  How much more bling than that can there be baby?  I'd say it is the best "bling" deal on earth!  <br><br>What's more, I used to be partial to the the Antera 309s, but now any open wheel will suffice and in fact, even the most minimal wheel such as an Axis Mag lite http://axiswheels.com/maglite.html will show off all your work to best effect.<br><br>This will allow me to run the 15" tyres too, which only weigh 11-lbs.!  However with the large Wilwood brakes I most likely will have to get the larger 17" wheels which weigh-in at 14-lbs each.  Still, these wheels are much lighter than the stock Lotus wheels and should offer a performance and handling benefit.  These wheels are $144 & $240 respectivelly.  Anyone know what the Anteras run?

[nitroman]

Doug, I tallied up the total for your bolts on the back-side of the SCS bill, then promptly left that bill sitting at home on the coffee table. I am THE MAN! Will retrieve it tonight & let you know what it comes to. Your package will go out Priority Mail but that amount (whatever it turns out to be) that will not be factored in, as I believe that is what we agreed on (i.e., the shipping of our items would be a 'wash'). <br><br>Am going to an acupuncturist today to see if she can help me; as I'm ready to try anything at this point. Don't know why I said that, except it explains what's really going on in my life.

[Doug]

Matt, your goodies will go out tomorrow; if you let me know what I owe you I'll enclose a check in the package  ;)

[nitroman]

Your total, good sir, is $44.77.  BTW the total SCS bill was $128.35.  I've got to look into this "markup" thing.  Merchants do this for a reason, right?