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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - nuts and bolts uk

Chaps,

Where do you guys your nuts and bolts, I need various unf fastners, in both high tensile grade and normal. Is there a decent and cheap online store?
Christian Carter

I use a decent tool and fastener shop, AHC Ltd on the A30 in Camberley.
David Smith

There's a very handy shop in bexley kent called modern screws I always find them helpful.
Dave Pratt

Grove components - sell in kit form for midget, which is handy! They're on fleabay but easier to contact them direct. They do stainless, bright nickel plate or bright zinc plate, plus regular.
Nick P

Www.namrick.co.uk

Not sure if they are cheap but compared to the amount spent on panels it's a snip lol

Best of.....
MGmike
M McAndrew

As Dave. In Netherfield Nottm. Jeys engineering & workshop supplies.
Dave Squire 1500

thanks guys. Excellent suggestions.

C

Christian Carter

As per Dave Pratt I use Modern Screws at Bexley. They'll sell you just one or two.
Alan
www.masckent.org
Alan Anstead

Sussex car parts sell them too, and don't seem that expensive. I think it would be cheaper to have them posted from Sussex, than drive to Bexley to collect them Christian.

Do modern screws post too?

Ah it seems they do. http://www.modern-screws.co.uk/
Lawrence Slater

Nothing against Sussex btw I use them all the time for mechanical parts and gaskets. Good service, quality, prices, and care if things need sorting.
Dave Squire 1500

No particular recommendations but I repeat an experience of a friend:

Whilst queueing in the suppliers, the friend saw a sign that stated minimum order was £10. As he only wanted a few items he was about to leave when the person in front of him in the queue offered to add his small order to his £50+ order.

When the assistant said he was unable to add the two orders together and they were separate orders, both of them walked out and promised to never return.
D Plumb

I've found some fastening bargains at Beals - they have a useful printed catalogue too. But I tend to go to:

http://www.beal.org.uk/

Here, for example, is their UNF set-screw range. The prices are for 50 screws in most cases.

http://www.beal.org.uk/hardware-fasteners/set-screws/imperial-setscrews/cat_100136.html

they have great deals on all sorts of things!

Nick
N.C. Nakorn

Thanks everyone.

Does anyone know what the s gradings are at AHC. I'm familiar with the ungraded, grade 5, grade 8 (and variations inbetween) system. - And I'm familiar with the equivalent metric system 8.8, 10.9, 12.9 - which I believe is the respective equivalents of u 5 8. But I've never heard of grade 's' or what system it fits into?

Incidentally, does anyone know if the bolts holding the spring carrier to the wishbone should be a particular grade - my guess would be 5? They seem like a critical component to me.

I have bought various fastners from sussex and am happy with them, but occasionally you need something to finish a job and its nice to be able to pop out in the car and grab them (eg my QH suspension rebuilt kit didn't come with nuts for the inner and upper fulcrum pins - had to clean up and reuse the 30 year old rusted ones).

I got my spring pan bolts and arb plate kits from Sussex - Also managed to strip the threads off a bolt on the arb link - clearly not grade 5! Going to replace these - tightended them too tight - silly really, should have thought more about what i was doing and less about the torque I'd read.

As my friend always says, Torque wrenches are for the guidance of wise men and the reliance of fools. Guess that puts me somewhere between a wise man and a fool!


Christian Carter

someone like Norm has put info on nuts and bolts specs before

he's certainly put up again recently a torque table for where the torque isn't specified, with the use of copper grease the figures on his table are lower than some might imagine
Nigel Atkins

Another vote for namrick! Bought mixed bags and also specified selection too. THey give detailed specs too.

Problem with all bolts by post is that they are very heavy = expensive postage!
GraemeW (Kent!)

The letter markings are an earlier system which was current at the time our cars were produced, so that's what you'll find marked on the heads of original bolts. We still see lots of them here as the bolts stay in good condition when there's no salt on the roads.

I've seen R through to W, but the most common is S and T.
S is listed as 120 000 PSI, the same stress range as grade 5 (three hashes on head) and metric grade 8.8.
T is listed as 150 000 PSI, equivalent to grade 8 (five hashes) and metric 10.9.
T was used for applications such as propshaft, caliper bolts, and the more higly loaded suspension bolts. I have seen some suspension applications on original cars which were marked S.

Examples of W marked bolts I've seen are crown wheel bolts.
Paul Walbran

thanks for that Paul, I've saved it
Nigel Atkins

Hi

Another vote for Namrick.

You may have a good old school engineering suppliers near you (check Yellow Pages) if so use them. Long established engineering suppliers I used have either recently closed after over 100 years - e.g. Peddie's in Perth or one in Falkirk town centre - or have stopped selling imperial fasteners. New suppliers sometimes never started selling imperial!

I bought a mixed UNF nut and bolt pack from Namrick, plus matching mixed washer and mixed spring washer packs at the start of restoration and found this very useful to replace rusty or worn screws/bolts (while cleaning and reusing good condition old ones) and then occasionally buying extra bolts and set screws for particular applications. The car seems mostly bolted together with assorted lengths of 1/4 inch set screws and bolts (7/16 inch spanner) which have been most used up in my mixed pack (or not present for certain lengths).

Useful info: http://www.namrick.co.uk/acatalog/tech-info.html

Worth buying a 1/4 inch UNF tap to clean threads (5/16 inch too if you can stretch to it).

Cheers
Mike
M Wood

Anyone used the following supplier?

http://www.thomassmithfasteners.com/online_shop.html

Cheers
Mike
M Wood

Steve's Stainless in Bromsgrove is excellent for stainless metric and imperial nuts, bolts, washers etc.
HALL JOHN

At the other end of the country, Lloyd & Jones Engineers supplies in Bootle (Liverpool) is a wannabee engineer's Mecca. They seem to sell just about anything you need and a whole lot more besides. I hope there's a queue when visting so I can look at what's on offer and gaze at tools whose purpose I have no idea!
Nearby is Express Tools & Fasteners where you are served by a man in a brown coat (a la Arkwright) who wanders off into the back of the shop, performs magic and reappears with what you need!

Jeremy
J Tickle

This thread was discussed between 17/12/2013 and 27/12/2013

MG Midget and Sprite Technical index

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