Rear Hub Puller – Bolt On Wheel Hub S1-S2 elan.

Removal of the rear hub on the early S1-2 elan can be easy, or difficult, depending on how you approach the job.  If you don’t have the correct tools, the job will be difficult, and it’s not difficult to damage the hub flange during removal, if a two eared puller is used, and a lot of pressure is applied, the hub flange will bend. What is required is a puller that will pull equally on the entire hub flange circumference.

We are going to show you a tool that can be built in the home workshop which is just as effective as any expensive hydraulic puller, but to build this puller, access to a lathe is essential, and fabricating and electric welding (Arc or MIG) skills are required,  if your engineering skills fit within this scope, then you will be eager to know how to build the rear hub puller.

The tool we will show you here has been employed several times over the past thirty years by the writer,  and not once has a hub refused to come off the rear hub axle shaft,  no matter how tight.  but apart from the puller tool, there is one other small trick that will help to “pop” the hub off the axle shaft.
So lets explain the hub puller.

The lotus elan rear hub and hub shaft mount together on a machined matched taper, a round key rod is bedded into the round keyway milled into the taper section of the shaft and also the internal bore of the hub. NEVER EVER use a square shaped key way on these components. A square key way will promote &  propagate fatigue cracks in the metal which may result in a lost rear wheel one day.

This is how the flange hub puller is mounted. the plate is secured onto the drive studs  secured with the wheel nuts, the anvil sleeve is placed over the threaded spigot.
NOTE. The end  shoulder of the spigot applies pressure to the end shoulder of the axle shaft, not on the end as many other pullers do. Damage to the thread and belling of the threaded spigot will occur if pressure is applied to the very end of the shaft, avoid damaging the thread at all costs.

The puller has worked extremely well over the past three decades when ever hub removal was required. note that the only place where the anvil touches the axle is at the shoulder edge where the thread ends near where the taper begins.

This shot provides an internal view of the anvil sleeve, it is heavy enough so that it wont crumple under pressure, this part of the tool must be kept true and in good condition. the bolt is a Cat 8 high tensile 5/8″ UNF. The bore is made a little deeper than the length of the threaded spigot.

The frame of the yoke requires to be fabricated from heavy steel plates, and held together with a heavy bead of weld (ARC or MIG). The outer yoke sleeves that the bolts pass through are machined and clear drilled on the lathe from  round bright mild steel.

The puller flange plate is mounted flush against the wheel hub, note that the head of each bolt is counter sunk below the surface of the plate which allows the plate to flush mount. The high tensile hex bolt heads are machined round to fit into the countersunk holes, that is the only modification required.

Now, to begin the mounting of the puller in readiness to remove the wheel hub from the tapered axle shaft. Place the anvil sleeve over the threaded spigot.

Fasten the wheel nuts, mount the anvil, place the yoke over the long outer bolts, fit each nut, then screw in the heavy 5/8″ pressure bolt, take up any slack and make sure all bolts and nuts are firm, when that is done apply quite a bit of pressure to the centre bolt, remember it is the loading or pressure applied, plus a couple of things in the next step or two which will make the hub come off the taper

OK, don’t be alarmed folks, we are not about to damage the hub with the gas axe, the Oxy is used to apply high heat in a very short burst to expand the metal in the hub enough to break the bond that holds it on the taper, just heat it quickly on each side, but don’t let the metal become a blue colour.

After applying enough heat, shut the torch off,  or give it to another person to hold, then using a heavy engineers hammer, carefully hit the end of the centre bolt with a couple of good wacks, if the heating has been done right, and enough pressure has been applied to the centre bolt, the hub should pop off the taper, a loud pop or clap will be heard as it lets go. If the hub still wont let go, apply a bit more heat and try again, but the hub should normally let go on the first try.

So there it’s easy when you know how. No need to trot off to the lotus guru and be charged an arm and a leg to do something that you can do yourself in your own workshop, providing you have the skills and experience to do your own mechanical work.