Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Morgan Plus Four, Supersport & Plus Six (CX & CXV Generation Vehicles) Wire wheel spinner difficult to undo.

Just getting my Plus Four ready to hit the road for March Ist. So I wanted to remove the offside rear wire wheel to take it away to have a new Avon fitted (the OE original now starting to crack). First problem - I had to remove the front wheels from my small hydraulic jack to get it under the rear jacking point. Easy enough. So jacked up the car to take some weight but with the tyre still in contact so as not to spin while removing the spinner. Making sure to remove the spinner in the correct "undo" direction I set about the spinner with the OE removal tool and hammer. An hour or so of fruitless hammering accompanied by ever more expletives ensued. Not to be outdone, I gave up temporarily, and retreated inside to explore google advice. The result of which, the arrival, the very next day, of a much longer £60 octagonal spinner removal tool. It's about a meter long - so well enough leverage - you would have thought! Now, I'm no shrinking violet. 1.9m and 95 kg but applying all my might the spinner remained obstinately resistant. So back to the drawing board. Yet more leverage was my thought. So armed with a drill, some bolts and a stout piece of wood, I extended the tool by a further 600mm or so. And finally, and still having to exert considerable force the spinner began to yield. The moral of the tale. Don't just assume the spinner tools available will do the trick. You may still have to improvise!

You need to grease them at least once a year. If they are really tight I cover the tyre with some wood at the bottom & pour boiling water over the nut to free it.

Wonder if the hub and spinner are dissimilar metals and you may have galvanic corrosion? I always used to smear copper ease on the hub splines and threads. Not much, a thin coat. I also used a block of hardwood on a spinner ear and hit it with a heavy mallet to 'shock' tighten and release.

I use graphite grease. This was recomended by MMC and dealers, also a "fix" for a clunk in the rear. I use the supplied hex spanner and a lump hammer ( think of small sledge hammer) but don't over tighten. I've never used the supplied lead hammer. The only awkward part is keeping the spanner located on the nut whilst hitting it. It can be offset to give more clearance from the wheel arch/wing edge. There used to be an after market socket available but not sure if still available. When I had winged nuts on a previous car I bought a custom long spanner from the MG club. Still gave the spinners a light tap after refitting though.

More useful discussion here:

https://www.talkmorgan.com/ubbthreads.php/topics/420007/all/Wire_wheels_and_how_tight_shou

I used copper slip. I've got alloys now.


GoMog is your friend for info on this

This may be bad practise, but when I had a spinner attached wheel I always made the spinner move whilst the car was on the ground, just a smidge, enough to free it before jacking and continuing the removal.

The hub thread is steel, whilst the spinner is brass so a little heat is your friend to help 'crack' the bond

Also, a little grease around the outer lip of the spinner is important as it's this gripping the outer wheel hub centre and not the threads that sticks, especially if the wheels are painted

Amazing how the spinners can tighten up.

A 4 foot length of scaffold tube is a useful garage addition. When slid over a breaker bar, it provides leverage in spades. Usually…

On one occasion last year, using all the beef I could muster, this alone was insufficient to release a friend’s spinner on a recently acquired CX. We were using a robust aluminium spinner removal device with, I think 28mm hex, for 1/2” square drive. Firm shock persuasion from a 14 pound sledge hammer at the end of the scaffold tube was required to achieve submission,

As noted above. Heat the spinner. I use a heat gun, carefully of course, but this never fails. Along with a breaker bar but certainly don't need a scaffold pole if you heat the spinner.

As for tightening the deep dish spinner saver from MWS is invaluable for reattaching and tightening the spinners.

Having watched the expersts at MWS tighten the spinners many times, it's simply a big lump hammer, the spinner saver and some almighty hits. Obviously seat the spinner first with the wheel off the ground and then apply brute force when it's on the ground. Drive the car for a mile or so and then hit again to ensure no slack has appeared.

That's my method and experience anyway