LSB2468 - even numbers for an odd car

[Darcy]

25 minutes ago, pethier said:

Brand Lotus wheels?

No, they are JBW wheels and balance was easy for the tire shop. 

[pethier]

4 minutes ago, Darcy said:

No, they are JBW wheels and balance was easy for the tire shop. 

Excellent.  I assume the wheels have steel inserts with conical seats.  Much-better design than original Brand Lotus wheels.

[EdWills]

1 hour ago, pethier said:

I think I recently referred to this as a "stub axle" because I just could not remember the word "spindle".  Thanks for reminding me.

Hi @pethier.  According to the Standard Triumph Manual, and the Lotus Seven Owners Manual, both use the term 'stub axle' or 'stub axle shaft' to describe the one piece part that the wheel bearings are located on.  Spindle is also correct to describe the part, but ordering a 'spindle' from a U.K. Triumph/Lotus parts source may lead to some head scratching possibly (but AI will help)? Cheers W.

[pethier]

10 hours ago, EdWills said:

Hi @pethier.  According to the Standard Triumph Manual, and the Lotus Seven Owners Manual, both use the term 'stub axle' or 'stub axle shaft' to describe the one piece part that the wheel bearings are located on.  Spindle is also correct to describe the part, but ordering a 'spindle' from a U.K. Triumph/Lotus parts source may lead to some head scratching possibly (but AI will help)? Cheers W.

Thanks!

[IamScotticus]

USA / UK

shocks / dampers

trunk / boot

muffler / silencer 

speedometer  / speedo 

wrench / spanner

hood / bonnet

drive shaft / prop shaft

windshield / windscreen 

parts  / fiddley bits

 

 

 

[SENC]

jury-rig/bodge

[Darcy]

Ok kids, time to get serious.  Unfortunately, as I bring the car back to life, more "issues" are appearing.  I might have just found the real reason the car was parked in 1974. 

As I fix and improve, my driving speed is increasing.  Two days ago I noticed a tiny leak in the differential.  Maybe a drop a day coming out. I thought that was weird.  I cleaned up the surface, roughed it up a bit.  Put a few drops of JB weld on it. Seemed to fix the problem. Investigate later I said. 

So, I went for another drive yesterday. A little faster.  Goes around traffic circles at speeds that don't seem natural, but I was expecting that. 

Now I see a bigger leak and with some cleaning and close examination I see there is a larger crack on the back plate of the differential above the centre.  I posted this question on a Facebook group, so some may have seen it.  I got some good advice there, but I'm hoping for more suggestions here.  I am a decent welder, so I am thinking of adding the flat horizontal plate that crosses the back side of the axle and differential.  

What I am wondering about is distortion.  For those who have done this or had it done, how much will the axle distort with the welding?  I'm assuming that it needs to be done in sections after tacking the plate on at a few spots. This the picture I took of the leak below the centre before adding the JB weld to the leak.  It was practically invisible to the eye. 

[EdWills]

Hi Darcy.

 

My Escort rear axle from Caterham many years ago, has the 1/4 inch heavy flat plate going right across to where the radius arms attach, so a number of welds.  The plate is not continuously welded, just 2 inch welds spread across the brace say 6/7 inches apart or so.  DSK under Messrs. Kaplan, Seitz, and their team came up with some good modifications for Lotus parts that were sometimes on the limit of breaking.  I have attached a method designed by a Mr. J. Woolnough of DSK cars that looks strong, would be lighter than the plate, and helps to control the axle distortion (twisting).  Some seamless 1/8 inch wall mild steel tubing may fit the bill?  I believe that John D. of Simple Sevens has an alternative page from DSK that is similar to the one attached.  Either would work.  W

[11Budlite]

Some more info here for rear axle bracing options in addition to the DSK option supplied by Ed above: https://simplesevens.org/history/t10axle/t10axle.htm

[SENC]

To fix the crack and strengthen properly, I'd suggest you're going to need to pull the entire axle assembly off the car.  I don't see any way you could clean that well enough to take good weld that would last without removing it and all the innards.  The good news is that this gives you a chance to do other things that probably need doing, like replacing seals and bearings for the stub axles.

[Darcy]

1 hour ago, SENC said:

To fix the crack and strengthen properly, I'd suggest you're going to need to pull the entire axle assembly off the car. 

Yes, it's coming out tomorrow. 

[SENC]

Of you're going to pull the stub axles, you may find that easiest to do while the whole assembly is in the car.  I don't have experience with the Escort axle, but if it is anything like the older Standard 10 axle, you'll likely need a specialized puller to remove them (and want the entire assembly locked down and solid).  They can be a real bear. 

Edited September 13 by SENC

[Darcy]

15 minutes ago, SENC said:

I don't have experience with the Escort axle

That's good information.  I never thought about pulling the axles out before removing the full assembly, but that would make it lighter, and easier to work on while removing the brakes etc.  

I'm having trouble finding good information on the Escort axle - how to disassemble, check, and reassemble correctly.  

[SENC]

I've got an old manual for some of the Fords (Corsair, Anglia, Cortina) - can't remember if it covers Escorts or not but will check if it does and if it has anything helpful.  The Dave Bean catalogue may also have some information and drawings.  Will let you know.

[Darcy]

42 minutes ago, SENC said:

The Dave Bean catalogue

I have looked online for this catalogue and I can't find it.  Was it digital or paper?  

[EdWills]

8 hours ago, 11Budlite said:

Some more info here for rear axle bracing options in addition to the DSK option supplied by Ed above: https://simplesevens.org/history/t10axle/t10axle.htm

Hi @11Budlite.  That's the one.  Cheers. W.

[SENC]

1 hour ago, Darcy said:

I have looked online for this catalogue and I can't find it.  Was it digital or paper?  

Paper, hasn't been updated for years, and I don't know that they copy and send them out anymore, but you do see them pop up on ebay and in other places from time-to-time.  I may have a second copy, will check when I'm in my shop tomorrow and if I do will send it to you.  We should really get it scanned and put in resources, it is quite useful.

 

As you identify where parts came from, you can look for and find (generally cheaply) old 3rd party shop manuals for those vehicles that come in handy.  The Ford manual pictured below is an example, though for cars previous to the Escort line.  I went ahead and took pictures of the rear axle pages, as I don't think the axles changes substantially on the Escorts.

 

[Darcy]

2 hours ago, SENC said:

I went ahead and took pictures of the rear axle pages

Thanks a bunch!  This will definitely help. 

[Darcy]

On 9/11/2026 at 9:51 AM, EdWills said:

1/4 inch heavy flat plate

@EdWills I noticed you said 1/4" plate.  I have read from other sources that 1/8" is recommended.  It seems like 1/4" would be really heavy?  

[EdWills]

6 hours ago, Darcy said:

@EdWills I noticed you said 1/4" plate.  I have read from other sources that 1/8" is recommended.  It seems like 1/4" would be really heavy?  

Hi Darcy.  I just measured the plate that Caterham had attached to the axle case of my Ford Mk. II Escort rear axle, and to be exact (electronic calliper), it is 6.25 m.m. or 0.246 inches - so just under 1/4 inch thick.  I'm not a metallurgist and I haven't checked the strength of mild steel in 1/8 inch thickness, but I would hazard a guess that being this thin, it could still twist with the stresses the axle is subjected to?  Others please advise.  I note that on Facebook in the Lotus Seven 1,2,3,4, thread, you have inquired regarding the axle plate.  I think that Chris Beebe would be a good source to ask, as he has produced a number of strengthened Standard Triumph rear axles for Lotus Sevens, and will have much more advice and expertise than I can provide.  I can't confirm, but perhaps some of the braces in the form of a 'U' shaped channel on some of the reinforced axles (mainly Standard Triumph) could use 1/8 inch thick mild steel for strength?  Just a note that some Seven owners in the U.K. refer to the heavy plate as a 'Stegosaurus' plate, as it is a bit of a dinosaur, and if Mr. Chapman had really thought about it, he may have preferred a Watts link attachment as used by Mallock on their racing cars with solid rear axles.  Although the Lotus Cortina used an 'A' bracket to locate the solid rear axle, it had a greased swivel at the apex which avoided rubber bush contamination, and made the joint much more flexible (but  the case could still wind-up or twist).  When Ford produced their version of the Lotus Cortina, they adopted leaf springs (with a newly designed body), and no 'A' bracket to secure the back axle.  Caterham did use a flexible connection at the apex of the 'A' bracket with a sliding feature plus 4 radius arms on the David Bettinson Clubman racing car of 1975, but it was never brought into production for their road cars, preferring the De-Dion set-up after the Ital/Marina supply dried up.  Jez Coates of Caterham provided a full size blueprint of the set-up, but it is hard to reproduce.  I can try to take a photo if anyone is interested?

Cheers, W.