Price of parts - discrepancies

[jono]

I bought some parts from QED recently for a cylinder head job and note they charge £70 + VAT for a set of cam bearings.

SJ Sportscars charge £44.90 + VAT so I bought them there expecting some unknown make but they are ACL (same as QED).

Nothing against QED but their shipping costs are twice that of SJ as well. In fairness some parts were slightly more at SJ such as valve seats and guides.

Just a heads up really that it's always worth shopping around!

[rgh0]

At 45 pounds its worth me buying from SJ and shipping back to Australia,,,, thats a very good price . The QED 70 pound price is more like what they cost me here where they are made

cheers
Rohan

[alanr]

Shhh!...I don't think you should advertise that SJS cam bearing shells are only that price....A mistake somewhere on their part methinks.
They are £84.45+vat at Kelvedon!

Alan.

[avro]

The full retail price for a set of ACL cam bearings from the main wholesalers the last time l purchased them in quantity was £94.11 plus Vat. Even with their full trade discount l can’t match that price so a definite mistake on the the part of SJ Sportscars and a fair price from QED.

Nick

[steveh]

To be honest i think most Lotus parts are overpriced anyway. By comparison 16 x cam bearings for a Jaguar xk are £58inc [Mahle].
Here's another ,the Jaguar cam followers ,exactly the same outside diameter and pad thickness as a TC ,but the skirt length is 1mm longer on standard length ones - £9 inc vat- Lotus £21.
Some simple parts are highly overpriced ie the long clevis pin in the handbrake at £11 , i suppose the answer comes back as volume v's cost ?.

[reb53]

Here's another ,the Jaguar cam followers ,exactly the same outside diameter and pad thickness as a TC ,but the skirt length is 1mm longer on standard length ones - £9 inc vat- Lotus £21.
.

So, is there any reason why they couldn't be popped in the lathe and have 1mm taken off ?
Or do you mean the Lotus ones are 1mm longer ?

Ralph.

[rgh0]

you would need to grind the skirt to take off 1 mm as they are to hard to turn in a lathe. You can do that by setting up a die grinder in the lathe tool holder

cheers
Rohan

[reb53]

Thanks Rohan.
Should the need arise I’ll get out the carbide tips, or the die grinder.
Though I do wonder, ( without measuring), whether an extra mil would matter.

Ralph.

[rgh0]

When your using high lift small base circle cams you need to use longer followers. This is normally in a race engine so you use thin steel followers.

For a standard engine you could use a slightly longer or shorter follower without issue in most cases but you would need to check clearance to the step in the bore at the bottom of the follower sleeve if using a longer one. There is normally around 3mm clearance there

cheers
Rohan

[reb53]

Thanks Rohan, I'll measure carefully should I need to.
I wonder if we need to start a thread on reasonably priced alternative parts, rather than the, " is he 'aving a laugh" variety.
Thinking of this today when reading of a bloke replacing the mangled valves in his V12 Ferrari with some "mildly" modified ones from a Vauxhall.
Actually I think I'd trust a product more from a manufacturer who makes millions of them more than those from one who makes merely thousands.
I bet the main bearings in a Miura are the same as those in some tractor, ( OK, probably a Lambo also.... ).

Ralph.

[steveh]

Sorry for the thread drift Jon !
Rather than alternative replacement parts my comparison was about equivalent costs .
That said yes there are certain OE Jaguar ones that are 1mm shorter and will fit unaltered ie the one in the centre of the photo , made i think from chilled cast iron they weigh 36g compared to 49g standard Lotus.
Before everyone rushes out buying any "after market" Jaguar ones [ the ones on the left], these would need reducing on the inside pad diameter as it's about 17mm dia and slightly larger than a lotus shim and the skirt shortening ,

One Lotus one Jaguar , one costs 50% more than the other , again very similar parts.

Steve