Mystery solving?

[Bluefield]

Greetings,

I found these among all the Elan parts in the basement. Anybody know where they might come from? My first guess would be as wheel centers, but at least they don't fit my old minilites. Any guess? I only have two of them...

Thanks,

/Bluefield
26-3811

[summerinmaine]

From the aftermarket would be my guess as well.

[mac5777]

What does the back side look like?

Sarto

[Bluefield]

It looks like they've been glued to something...
The mystery thickens

While we're at it - could the screwdriver be something Lotus'ish? Found it in the same place as the badges.

/Bluefield
26-3811

[billwill]

I've got/had one of those screwdrivers so it might well be from the original toolkit.


Were those round things caps that someone had glued into the open ended light-weight wheel spinner used for racing?

[mac5777]

i think Bill may have nail it. If they are about 1 3/4 inch in dia. they may have been an insert into the 26R hubs as a dust cover. The spinners on the 26R are hollow so the hub can protrude through the spinners. From the picture and the size of the wood grain would make it look like they are about the right size. The Cobra spinners have a o-ring to hold the caps in. It is hard to tell but there may be a grove for an O-ring and it may have been lost and had to be glued.

Sarto

[summerinmaine]

That screwdriver looks more like the kind supplied in the old military Jeep toolkits. According to the part manual, the early Lotus Elan toolkit incorporated a wire screwdriver, a common fixture in British car toolkits for the 50s and 60s.

Sorry for the small image but it was the best I could find.

[mac5777]

found these on E-bay
http://cgi.ebay.com/No-Name-Perfect-Han ... ltDomain_0
http://www.etsy.com/listing/52253929/vi ... rewdrivers

This one show that they are 1800's
http://cgi.ebay.com/Antique-Screwdriver ... _500wt_919

This one is from the 1920's
http://cgi.ebay.com/Antique-Model-A-T-E ... _760wt_671

So I don't think it would have been in a Lotus tool kit but it might be worth something.
Bluefield have you measured the dia. of the cap?

Sarto

[adigra]

Those kind of screwdrivers are quite expensive. There is a new three piece set advertised in the new Octane magazine for ?99.

Adi

[Bluefield]

Thanks for the input guys - the plausible story of the badges does not surprise me as I know my car was used for racing by the first owner.

Anyway, anybody interested in buying an antique screwdriver with known Lotus-history (owned by me and the PO) ? Only 100 $ / 70 ? Nice price for you my friend...

/Bluefield
26-3811

[mac5777]

Hi bluefield, I just enlarged your photos and can now see the clear ruler. I can't use the screw driver but are you interested in selling one or both caps?

Sarto

[Elan45]

Hi Bluefield,One of my S3 Elans has had 26R wheels and hubs fitted by the original owner. They came to me with tub drain stoppers in them. Since only the front is open to the wheel bearings, that is the only end that needs protection. If these would fit, I'd love the chance to buy them. Are the emblems plastic or enamel?

Roger in Ohio

[skelteanema]

Looking at the two badges on these items, the fonts on the LOTUS lettering seem to be different. One seems to have the early LOTUS lettering (sans serif font??), while the other seems to have the more modern font.

[Bluefield]

You're right skelteanema - only one of them seems to have the original badge (enamel), the other looks to be a later glued-on plastic badge. I have no use for the caps so give me an offer. If somebody want to trade with a LHD Glove box (S1-S2), Elan 1600 badges x2 to go on front wings or an original dashboard choke button I would be a happy camper


/Bluefield
26-3811

[velo5338]

Four or five years back I made up a set of wheel center caps on my little lathe very similar to those pictured (great minds think alike eh!). They are on my 7. I used the self-adhesive badges from Wirewheels .com I think I got 6 for about $20. They are secure in place by 3 socket headed grub screw through the wall of the cap tightened from behind with the wheel off the car (a la Porsche). I also made up a center for my Moto-Lita steering wheel hub - looks great.