Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

I am trying to extract the old rear shock units from the struts. The big
nut that holds the insert in place will not move. Any hints and tips? I
do not mind destroying the nut as the replacement shocks have new nuts.

--

Regards,

Steve Waterworth
***@***.***

Einstein: "The faster you drive, the slower you age..."

I found the best way was to put the nut in the vice and turn the bottom
of the strut to turn..
It gives quite a lot of mechanical advantage.
Cheers
Tim

Steve Waterworth wrote:

I struggled with the exact same thing. It ends up that they used a punch or
something to "dimple" the metal right at one of the notches in the nut.
This was probably done to prevent the nut from vibrating loose. This dimple
is not very obvious, so you may need to clean it well to see it. Once I
tapped this back out it turned freely. I put the strut in a vise and then
used a chisel and hammer to tap the nut causing it to turn.

Make sure that you remove the dimple fully because the threads are soft and
are easily damaged (on both the nut and the sleeve).

-----Original Message-----
From: ***@***.***lto:***@***.*** Behalf
Of Steve Waterworth
Sent: Saturday, January 07, 2006 7:13 AM
To: Lotus Elan
Subject: [LotusElan.net] Rear shock insert removal

I am trying to extract the old rear shock units from the struts. The big
nut that holds the insert in place will not move. Any hints and tips? I
do not mind destroying the nut as the replacement shocks have new nuts.

--

Regards,

Steve Waterworth
***@***.***

Einstein: "The faster you drive, the slower you age..."

I had trouble getting the dimple "undimpled", so I just used it as a center punch mark to drill away just the dimple. By removing the dimple, you protect the threads when you unscrew the cap. You can always re-dimple it in a new position.

Stan



I struggled with the exact same thing. It ends up that they used a punch or
something to "dimple" the metal right at one of the notches in the nut.
This was probably done to prevent the nut from vibrating loose. This dimple
is not very obvious, so you may need to clean it well to see it. Once I
tapped this back out it turned freely. I put the strut in a vise and then
used a chisel and hammer to tap the nut causing it to turn.

Make sure that you remove the dimple fully because the threads are soft and
are easily damaged (on both the nut and the sleeve).

Thanks for the advice. I am off in search of dimples

Steve Waterworth wrote:

--

Regards,

Steve Waterworth
***@***.***

Einstein: "The faster you drive, the slower you age..."

Found some dimples that I had to drill out then I still had to use a big
hammer and chisel to get it started.

Steve Waterworth wrote:

--

Regards,

Steve Waterworth
***@***.***

Einstein: "The faster you drive, the slower you age..."

A big hammer sometimes comes in handy. The important thing is to protect
the housing. Most new struts come with a replacement nut.

-----Original Message-----
From: ***@***.***lto:***@***.*** Behalf
Of Steve Waterworth
Sent: Sunday, January 08, 2006 3:04 PM
To: ***@***.***
Subject: Re: [LotusElan.net] Rear shock insert removal

Found some dimples that I had to drill out then I still had to use a big
hammer and chisel to get it started.

Steve Waterworth wrote:

--

Regards,

Steve Waterworth
***@***.***

Einstein: "The faster you drive, the slower you age..."

A Big Plumbers wrench worked for me. Just be sure you only catch the nut and
not the tube also.

Rob LaMoreaux

A & D Technology Inc.
4622 Runway Blvd.
Ann Arbor, MI 48108
734-822-9696
Fax 734-973-1103
Main Desk 734-973-1111
www.mtspt.com
Work email: ***@***.***
Home email: ***@***.***

Rob,
Did your rear shock tube actually have a nut at the top that the wrench
could grab onto? Mine was actually a flat piece with 4 square notches in it
to fit a special wrench. It was flush with the top of the tube.

The replacements have a hex nut top that you can tighten with a wrench.

Nick

-----Original Message-----
From: ***@***.***lto:***@***.*** Behalf
Of Robert D. LaMoreaux
Sent: Monday, January 09, 2006 10:49 AM
To: ***@***.***
Subject: [LotusElan.net] RE: Rear shock insert removal

A Big Plumbers wrench worked for me. Just be sure you only catch the nut and
not the tube also.

Rob LaMoreaux

A & D Technology Inc.
4622 Runway Blvd.
Ann Arbor, MI 48108
734-822-9696
Fax 734-973-1103
Main Desk 734-973-1111
www.mtspt.com
Work email: ***@***.***
Home email: ***@***.***

mine was the same,
Used a hammer and chisel to gently move it round..
(I think this is a sign that the original shocks are still in place as
the one I removed was integral to the tube..)
Cheers
Tim

Nick Giovas wrote:

There was just enough hanging out on the edge that I could just get the pipe
wrench on it. I mangled the heck out of the nut but I got it off. The
dimples mangled the threads of the old nut and I then ran a file through the
threads of the tube to clean them up so the threads of the new nut weren't
mangled. When I had the insert out last summer to change to adjustable
perches (while I replaced the ring gear bolts that backed out) the threads
on the new nut still looked good.

Rob LaMoreaux

A & D Technology Inc.
4622 Runway Blvd.
Ann Arbor, MI 48108
734-822-9696
Fax 734-973-1103
Main Desk 734-973-1111
www.mtspt.com
Work email: ***@***.***
Home email: ***@***.***