Timothy Keith-Lucas

I've got something to learn, MV8, and thank you for raising the question. I've thought of tire pressure as a tire question, save for low pressure for snow and mud and higher pressure sharpens the handling. So, what is the recommended pressure for a 1962 Series 2? I hope that it is not totally squishy.

Ouch. What you see in the photograph is a cheap street tire with 5.5 mm of tread left, inflated (carefully) to the manufacturers 44 psi maximum that blow out last night while sitting in the garage. Notice that the steel belt is now on the outside. I'm glad I was not there. In that confined space it would have been cause for fresh underwear. OK. I need a decent set of street tires. I don't race (I'm not any good at it) and the local constabulary, while generally friendly, take a dim view of my sliding around traffic circles. I do try not to exceed twice the speed limit. I've read several threads on tires, but they seem aimed at either racing or sliding around traffic circles. So, what do you recommend for an economical set that a. is not likely to hydroplane on standing road water, and b. Does not go bang! in the night? Suggestions will be appreciated.

Are you children having fun? Actually the trashed tach I have was converted to new electronics by Clocks for Classics. Unfortunately, I need a quicker solution. Let me see what I can do switching wires and insulating, with the hope that my 7 will not become a poster for Lucas Electric (not relatives).

I'll just have to insulate it very carefully and switch the wires.

So, no nice clean simple solution. The conversion to negative ground is getting more attractive. Nisonger was not helpful, just a "unfortunately" message. I found this negative ground tach that will fit and looks about right for $200. https://www.appletreeauto.com/80mm-0-8000-rpm-tachometer-with-chrome-bezel

My original tach is toast in several ways. I'm trying to find a replacement. So far I'm the not-so-proud owner of two (2!) positive earth Smith originals that apparently came off bug eye sprites and are 95mm in case diameter. That's too big to fit between the upper frame member of the dashboard and the steering column. I need an 80mm. Moss has one, but it's negative earth. Can anyone tell me where to find an 80mm, positive earth, electric, 8,000 RPM tach for a Series 2 Seven? Anyone want the ones I've got? Thanks. --Tim.

Consider this $16 windshield mount mirror from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08KFW5V42/?coliid=I286I2QCRJRW0K&colid=36Y9FLFR58BU3&ref_=list_c_wl_lv_ov_lig_dp_it&th=1

Lots of water first, then Prestone: https://www.amazon.com/Prestone-AS105-Radiator-Flush-Cleaner/dp/B00B99U088/ref=sr_1_11?crid=27RXPGZILPKQL&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.3a2zweqVYuNyzHzjtoiK8Z4FG4LWnUJbh6PDjMYR0OBbJhUMDsKFKRur0Oo4Km99U6gdz6mFV-n-Z-QyF4iXHcV7khrdK0qT4oyJ5UgLNwIy4ZjOGJY7MwK4cNwQi1Bgzl706iUEVuZ7DHqhTQHy6WhTbAxSNZISFWvelsgwI-PUdwEijYRfpkamTvzYVLoX8yV5FKNGw-WEQOa51OGdj5WwSFm1_fOmQolk9b_Pc-bbeaReUlO3VHbXdwAVDmT8oJ-XApbR-4ceiLBp_6Vshmf8DEEbu6DQfwertn5WEaM.FNq5SqhFtgih63yaPNLO3MrE7uRxAjWYYF7sIWJATZA&dib_tag=se&keywords=radiator%2Bflush&qid=1753443896&sprefix=radiator%2Bflush%2Caps%2C354&sr=8-11&th=1 Plus my smaller (1500 PSI) pressure washer to get the dead bugs out of the radiator fins. Messy. Filling my system is not easy. There seem to be air pockets everywhere, so it's fill while the engine is running, lots of burps and bubbles and geysers, then stop the engine and drain, then repeat until the rust and gunk is gone. Now it's rust inhibiting coolant from Walmart.

When I first got my 1962 S2, I had serious cooling problems given north Florida summer heat. I solved it by repeated cooling system flushes, adding a baffle between the top of the radiator and the snout, adding an oil cooler, and adding a fan on the front end of the engine. That fan was an original option and I found an original part. It does the same job as an electric fan behind the radiator. So far she settles in at 160 F and stays there.

I also found this fan blade for in front of the radiator. I drilled out the center to match the existing motor shaft, and reversed the pitch of the blades to match the rotation of the motor. $19 solution, with no trimming needed. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B092479J4C?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

Ordering one from Redline was over $700. However, there is a small shop in Cairo GA (pronounced kay-ro) that repaired mine for $75, and did it in one week. My radiator was the only one in the shop that wasn't from a big piece of farm equipment or a truck. Repairing radiators is becoming as rare an industry as rewinding motors.

Thank you, WDB. I had rejected that because my lenses are flat rather than conical, but a closer look after your prompt showed that they have the flat ones, too. --Tim.

This should be an easy one, but I can't find them on Moss, Redline, eBay etc. They're two inch diameter clear front marker light lenses. Can someone name a source, or have spares to sell? Thanks a bunch.

Short of ordering a new one from Redline, has anyone got a spare radiator for an S2? Also, the blades but not the little electric motor from the fan in front of the radiator disappeared in the painting process. I can cut down a larger fan, but again, if anyone has one to sell...

Sounds like you've done about all you can given starting with a beer can with braces. Cages for racing 7s come close to being a frame within a frame, especially when there's a brace taking up the passenger seat.

Tying the torso to the frame/cage by more and more points while not restraining the helmet leaves a person vulnerable to a Dale Earnhardt accident - on impact the body is restrained while the head/helmet keeps on going. That gives me shivers to think about. Broader issue: a Lotus Seven really doesn't have much to attach to. When we put a roll cage on one, the cage is a lot stronger than the frame. Do we attach the driver to the cage? The Seven is really a beer can with wheels. Hmmmmm. I don't race; I've proven that I am without talent in that area. I do use a 5 point harness and full face helmet, and have added a telescoping steering column and a full side-to-side roll bar with two braces. That's all for routine driving. I'm still left with the feeling that rolling over or hitting a tree is going to be lethal. The roll bar is going to rip right off the frame or bend the frame flat, and the telescoping shaft only adds about a foot of collapse before I get speared. Thoughts?

Ditto with aviation bolts. Many are single use, single torque, and expensive.

It means to just exceed the elastic limit of the bolt and just enter the plastic range, so the bolt lengthens. Of course, you go a little more and the bolt starts losing strength. To my old engineering school mind, it's damned dangerous, but apparently it is used in bolting down engine heads. I would never risk it with a lug nut.

Two concerns here, engine mounts and lug nuts. Thank you for the warning and specs on engine mounts. Lazy Saturday morning thoughts: I wonder how many of the 10x20 18-wheeler tires running down the freeway are the product of over-torquing with an air wrench. One killed the wife of a colleague of mine. Related thought- my bet is that bunches of people with wrenches in hand don't understand that the proper torque is a function of the bolt, not what is being bolted. You want the elastic range of the bolt, so it forms a spring to hold your parts together, and god forbid that you stray into the plastic range. I bought an old Jeep with oversized tires a few years ago, and found that some previous owner had torqued the lug nuts at about 200 ft lbs, or about 270 nm. He (I'll bet on he) must have thought big tire, better tighten it more. I'm very glad I got it home without sending one of those suckers down the road.

Here's the same advice I've given many times to people wanting to buy a first sailboat. Whatever you buy, buy a ready to romp machine, not a project car. A car that just needs some gas before play time will let you learn the mechanics slowly and without capital outlays as you either break things or decide on improvements. Meantime you're getting bugs caught in your teeth because you've got a silly grin on your face at 70 mph. A project car will end up costing more, because the owner reduced the price when he saw how much the repairs would cost, and will keep you and your 1993 BugSmasher 300 in the shop when you should be out challenging the insect population.

"Every Lotus is a kit car. They are only bolted together for ease of shipping." I love it!

Here's that earlier answer from John: "A one-off is fine for the time being, provided it's clear that the copyright stays with the club, and there's no form of monetization; however, since the club may opt to monetize merchandise in the future, we'll likely add a restriction that the use can't duplicate an official club item. e.g. if there is no sweatshirt available, and you want a sweatshirt, make a sweatshirt. But if there is a sweatshirt, support the club and buy the official version. Bottom line, we don't want to unintentionally spawn a sanctioned knock-off market " That seems to me to be most reasonable. Private use only, and with limits that protect the organization. --Tim.

Wizard! Thanks so much for the updated logo. I just downloaded a copy so I can print it on a shirt. No commercial intent. Is that OK?

Thanks, SENC. I've found a few general guides, such as https://blog.simonbbc.com/classic-car-projects-and-tips/converting-a-vehicle-from-positive-earth-to-negative-earth-electronic-ignition/. I will try to learn to do searches on USA7s, because I should know how to answer some of my questions that way rather than asking knowledgeable members to repeat stuff they wrote years ago. If I fail, I hope you won't mind guiding me into it.

Is there discussion in any known location of the pros and cons of converting an early Seven from positive to negative earth? I keep struggling with finding positive earth parts for my 1962 S2, and keep being tempted to try it. Could work, and could be a very expensive failure. Thoughts?