speedwagon

check on supply of studs with thread size you want, I have seen studs with much larger diameter hub size than the actual stud thread. ( think what your existing studs would look like if they had the threaded area turned down and re threaded to the size you need.) john

"@solder_guy... I'm building a website to document the complete history of Rotus cars. I've had a few comments from those I've contacted (p.o.'s of Rotus') giving me enough info to realize it IS worth the effort." Paul, I do not have a rotus, but I have a rotus (chassis) It is modified to accommodate a body of foam covered in thin fiberglass (like scaled composits aircraft) that was patterned after a 1960 Lola mark1. Only the chassis is rotus, but as it has a rotary engine. but there is an abundance of documentation for it. It is now in the slow process of being converted back to turbocharged fuel injection from NA/ webber 48. Let me know when you are ready for info and I will try to find time to sort through the box. john

At 82 I know know that the cheapest price-- is not the cheapest price but may be the cheapest.

I screwed up this post showing that I am not qualified to be a modern stealership maniac. but Crock I wish you had shared this tidbit to us before I bought 26lbs of "see jane run" worthless chota manuals in order to work on my hybrid highlander. But on the bright side all this "factory" info will soon become hacked knowledge and the unhappy auto workers will soon learn how to set up their own mini production lines to produce "specialty" cars. Think this may already happening in the electric category. Why buy from the bandits when you can order the components direct from alley ba ba?

What he said.

I currently own 2ea 7ish cars with rotaries. One is a superformance s-1 with a fresh street ported 87 13b t2, it has the na 5speed because the turbo trans will not fit. Engine conversion is still in process. "it is a keep for ever car". The other was built as a prototype for a kit that never flew. The body was patterned after a 1960 Lola mk-1 (not quite as pretty as the original Lola). The chassis is a Rotus slightly modified, but still obviously a 7. engine is also a turbo-2 13b and the chassis has the stronger turbo transmission. going to part with it soon and it just begs to have a Chevy ls in the engine compartment. the car we are looking at likely was mated to the ford transmission for size reasons. and also has a modified starter location on top of the engine. The rotary engines are becoming scarce to acquire now, and parts are also hard to come by. With good care good for 200k, but very easy to over rev that will hammer the seals and housings as there is very little to limit the rpm except the driver. The car would be great fun to drive as it is and very likely to outlive the new owner. john (and last I checked the price is right.

brazing would be stronger because of the lower heat and furnace brazed more consistent. john ( but far more expensive and even more difficult to repair or modify).

they are like homo sapiens, more alike than different, but there are very few twins. I have found that my knowledge increases with the added exposure.

age does not cure the instability, but growing incompetence sure tempers it.

I ran pikes peak in 72. It was all dirt then, so grossly different. the car was an old form-car formula v with the seat moved forward and a 350hp turbo corvair engine (pegged a 30lb manifold gauge on the top). Had $1500 max invested. It was truly a life changing experience. I used to live in Grand Junction and we used to race each other up and down "lands end" the down trip was usually after dark! Also came down the Colorado NM on snow pack in a power drift with a fiberglass dune-buggy with studs all around. Passenger was emitting turds all the way down. It just amazes me that someone can still compete for so little today. and the paved road requires far more (although different) skill.

at first I just thought you were waxing elegant--But then I saw the pictures. You sir are leading The Life. Now I envy you for 2 of your cars. It is good to see one spending his money wisely.

I have 2 widebands. one will stay on the s1 when the rotary turbo conversion is complete. And I totally agree about using a wideband to tune a carburetor., it is the best of investments. The 2 barrel webers are just too expensive to tune ( I have one that was bought specifically for a na rotary that came jetted so far off that everything needed to be changed. and the cost to do that and then fine tune it is about the cost of 2 new carburetors) the easiest to tune is also a webber--- the edelbrock 4 barrel made by webber. "duck soup". But there are two good guides-- 1 no substitute for cubic inches and same for FI. But the SU was for a specific use and was very easy to tune once you understood the design and was as altitude insensitive as any (and you could far exceed the normal air flow with a large enough pump). john

MV8. Thanks and this is for the many times you have enlightened me on this site. Your willingness, vast knowledge and the time you obviously spend to answer some specific questions is admirable. but I have solved almost all my carburetor problems with injection. the only carburetor that worked for me was an SU ( used one on a draw thru turbo application) burned clean at 4500' and was still clean at 14,000 but a pain in the -- to learn how to use for an old Michigan farm boy.

OK, It was my job but I have slept many years since then, So hear in a nut shell- yes heat cycles, vibration or shock, exposure to magnetic fields, and third and most important the makeup of the steel. As most know a wrench or screw driver make good magnets whereas a low grade soft (made somewhere in Asia) does not. So like any other automotive application cost is of primary concern, so you will get a lesser Quality. And everything (almost) has a half life. And for the automotive world 10 years is a long one. Leave your car parked out in the high desert sun for 2 years and it will be clear. Sorry but I have been able to get old and have become sarcastic.

My superformance s1 that was intended for a zetek and built with a rotary and a 48 webber had a tee between the pump out and the return and fed the carb from the T with no regulator. I thought it was stupid but evidently I was the stupid one as I was never able to get a regulator to work on it. Guess that just the pressure drop in the lines was enough for the webber. john

sorry to be so slow, but the combination of being busy and old slowed me up. But finally looked at the original wheels and tires yesterday they are 16x7 and i measured from the tire outer to flange and got 5 5/8" with 2 1/2 from outer edge. tires were 8 1/4 wide. my calculation is 3" to 3 18" inset. seems that I remember the pattern to be the common 4 on 4. john

Where I live side by sides are multiplying like rabbits and out weighing 7s by at least 100 to 1. Most are street legal and even seen on the streets but still scarce on the interstates. My "buttugly" fiberglass buggy ( with doors, heat, and a turbo) is still the best all around combo. Keeps up with traffic easily, goes places the others cannot and still handles quite well. and cost a lot less than either of my 7ish cars. john (one far less formidable won pikes peak in the sports- car class before they paved the road). It is not as civilized as the superformance and doesn't handle near as well on pavement (mostly due to weight bias). But my 70s off road car would, and still win off-road races ( mid engine vw suspension/ 250hp turbo corvair). But people today want something that the dealer will maintain and are willing to pay. john

ford " it was what was on sale the day the car was built, so that is what was used".

the body work behind the driver's head is a leftover from USAC did not allow visible roll bars or cages on sprint cars hence the roll protection was inside the hump streamlined. We have come a long way.

at 81 i have been split 50/50 between Berkshire and vanguard VTI, this has served me well. john but still an element of the orient involved.

Usually wash my hands of all things with connections to that country, but like ALL Americans some items originating there have found their way to my property. And it is not just the usually poor quality being my reason, but survival. john

china ownership just like the last balloon.

That you would even think about him on the track in your Lola speaks volumes about your relationship. john

yes it is. I put 800 miles on my s-1 ( 600 interstate and 200 off) and still could walk and not real tired. john