Originally Posted by
Road Fan
My 1952 Rudge drop-bar bike (Rudge Aero Spcial, clone to the 1952 Raleigh Super Lenton, has nutted front wheels. The nuts have a cast-in "spigot" that fits into a circular groove in the dropout. The result is similar to that of out modern hated "lawyer lips," that the wheel does not just fall off or start flopping out of control is one of the nuts is a little loose. The result is much like our hated modern lawyer lips, but a much more aesthetic solution. My problem is to get some replacement parts, and hoping for a set of early wingnuts to fit the wheel. The thread size of the axle is odd. The OD of the axle is 0.3 inches across the threads. The thread count is 15 threads per 0.58 inches, or 25.86 threads per inch - actually 26 threads per inch?
So the ID of the nut is 0.278", the thread count seems to be 25.86 per inch.
In the exploded drawings that are in the articles in Peter Kohler's On the Drops blogspot, it was said that the nutted attachment was sold for the US market, and the QR wingnuts sold in nearly all other markets. I have the original nuts, but just for racy looks I'd like to get the front wingnuts.
Is this familiar to anyone here? Anybody have a spare set?
First off, sounds very much like 26 TPI; by 1952 Rudge were Raleigh (or the other way around, if you like). Second, it sounds like to have a number error - an axle of OD .3 and a nut of ID .278 only leaves .022 for threads - which is bugger all. Check again, bet you have a 5/16" 26tpi axle, .3125 nominal OD.