A C2 nut or they nutty??

[Roy B.]

OK some one please tell me what's going on with this air cleaner nut??????????
I see buyers paying from $100.00 and $200.00 up for this crazy nut on e-bay. I just came back from my shop and have the same thing on my 55 and found others I have!
Man! Give me that kind of money and I'll use wire to hold my air claener.

[Kevin M.]

Re: A C2 nut or they nutty??

They don't make them like "that" anymore.

Kevin

[Joe R.]

Re: A C2 nut or they nutty??

Hi Roy:

I agree that at first, most wing nuts look pretty much the same, but I've been studying midyear wing nuts for a while now and it's become much easier for me to recognize a real one (the one in the ebay ad looks real to me).

Compared to the typical reproduction wing nut, there are visible differences in the shape of the ears, both in the profile view and the top view. Also, the metal used for the originals was thinner than most reproductions. If you check the archives you will find some previous discussions about these differences.

In NCRS judging, the $3 reproduction wing nut typically receives a 1 point deduction (out of 4500 total), so its certainly not a critical element for achieving a Top Flight. However, some owners just like to have original parts, and if they want to pay this kind of money to get them, I suppose they should be free to do so.

[Richard M.]

Re: A C2 nut or they nutty??

I know, seems crazy but I've been guilty of stuff like this too. One of those "I must have it" scenarios. Haven't paid that much for a wingnut, but my wife has been saying this alot lately....."You paid WHAT for THAT little thing! What are you CRAZY" and walks away shaking her head. I just lovingly say "yes dear", and explain that it's like fine jewelry and will appreciate with age.
So on birthdays and holidays I always tell her I passed up buying some awsome Corvette part so I could buy her those nice ear rings or whatever.:-)

Rich

[John D.]

Re: A C2 nut or they nutty??

Anyone that's been playing with Corvettes for many years probably has a lot of these wingnuts in their junk drawers. Since the things are in big demand I have rounded up a few without looking hard.
Wingnuts for the old fuel cars & carb cars also have always been a mystery. I wish one of you writers would drum up a documented article on the correct wingnuts as you seldom see two alike on the show cars. Maybe the article has already been written?
So what exactly does this pretty wingnut belong to?? What year,etc. JD

[Kent K.]

Re: A C2 nut or they nutty??

John ---- Restorer article was published sometime within the last year, I can't remember exactly when (NCRS disease accompanying lung cancer leaves me with very little memory). Maybe someone else will put their finger on it.
Regards, Kent Keech
Future Lung Cancer Survivor

[John D.]

Re: A C2 nut or they nutty??

Kent, Wish you well. I am a cancer survivor myself. My memory is decent but I have a crutch I use. I pray to St.Anthony quite often as I am always losing stuff. Here is how the jingle goes. "Tony Tony look around. Something lost and must be found."
He has never failed me although sometimes Tony gets backed up with requests and it may take several days. I am serious. Try it people. Dave Cardina taught me this trick and it's a life saver. I just used it to find a set of car keys and my drivers license. I have a memo hanging on the TV in the shop all the time titled "things missing". It's not easy you know. Keep the faith Kent and your will be just fine. John

[Joe R.]

Re: A C2 nut or they nutty??

Hi John:

The wing nut in the referenced ebay ad looks correct for a C2. It may also be correct for some C3s.

[John D.]

Re: A C2 nut or they nutty??

Hi Joe, Need more specific info on the wingnuts. Too many variations. As far as C2 goes the I have seen others than are cast that some say are correct. I really don't know and if you say the one in the pic is C2 then OK for now.
I haven't looked for the article in our Restorer yet. Anyone know which issue it is. Thanks, John

[Joe R.]

Re: A C2 nut or they nutty??

Hi John:

I believe that all of the C2 wing nuts were stamped steel, not cast, although some or all C1s had cast wing nuts.

The attached photo shows a profile view of an original C2 wing nut compared to a reproduction from LIC. The differences in the profile of the ears are easy to see.

Some people claim that a few C2s had a "large ear" wing nut with a profile similar to the LIC reproduction. I don't have a firm opinion on whether that assertion is true or not, but I have seen examples of the other style. Those do have a profile similar to the LIC reproduction, but they are made from metal that is decidedly thinner than the LIC reproduction (the metal thickness difference also applies to the other style of original wing nut).

So, one way or another, experienced judges ususually find something about the reproduction wing nut that they feel differs from an original.

[Larry L.]

Re: A C2 nut or they nutty??

Have you gone nuts -
If you buy a sheet of steel to make nuts from. The steel sheet will vary in thickness by 0.005 or 0.010. This is true today and was more ture yeasterday.
The rolling mills that made the steel sheet were not that good a long time ago.
I took my new digital calipers and checked a few from my spare bolt coffe can and sure enough they all were slightly different in thickness.
Does anyone have the address of the 2 buck nut buyer - I have 10 I would like to sell him.
Nuts.

[Joe R.]

Re: A C2 nut or they nutty??

Hi Larry:

Don't beat me up just for trying to answer someone's question. I'm simply describing the differences that many judges look for.

In my view, the differences in the SHAPE of the wing nut, both from the side view and the top view, are the dominant factors. The thickness of the metal is just one more factor that seems to be different on original wing nuts.

The GM drawing for the 219281 wing nut calls out a thickness of 67 to 77 mils. Some reproduction wing nuts are 80 mils or more. The LIC wing nut is actually within the GM spec, at typically about 77 mils. On the other hand, every original C2 wing nut that I have ever seen was at or below the low end of the range, at about 65-68 mils.

In the photo below the original nut measures 67 mils, while the LIC nut measures 77 mils. However, the biggest differences are in the shape of the ears in profile view, the way the ears are slightly open in the top view, and the shape of the base circle, which is more round on the originals.

If you have 10 wing nuts that all look like the one on the left in both of the photos that I have posted, put them on ebay and make some quick cash!

[Phil P.]

Re: A C2 nut or they nutty??

i have a collection of wing nuts to compare---my 67 435 wing nut off of 8-1 manifold and all 3 carbs 8-31 (year 66)---the wing nut wing span is smaller---i'll attempt a breakdown---
67 435 heigth =.465, width / wing span = 1.075 ,1/4 20 nut base dia.=.575, metal gauge / thickness looks to be a dime or .050 to.060 , real hard to measure ,compared to a dime @ .050 the ears are broad with a nice concentric radius, view from above show the ears to be pinched more,(loose dime),more so than my other nuts

next 3 nuts origin ---68 z28,72 lt1,71 vet---all about .500 high, wing span about 1.350, nut base dia. about.730, metal thickness about.065, 2 wing nuts have a broader ear, the one that has less of an ear has less "age" and i assume it could be a re-pop---the ear pinch is different on all of them, seems the re-pop have less of a vertical wall frm the base to the ear tip, as that is the way it looks for what i have----phil

[Phil P.]

Re: A C2 nut or they nutty??

i posted and then looked at his pic again,the lic ears are too broad compared to what i have listed

[Joe R.]

Re: A C2 nut or they nutty??

Hi Phil:

The latter three that you describe sound like they could be originals.

Can you post photos of them (side and top)? I would like to see what they look like. As I mentioned in an earlier posting, there is a second style that has a side view profile similar to the LIC repro, but the metal is thinner. Some people say this second design appeared on some C2s, but the only confirmed example I have seen was on a C3.

If you have a photo but aren't set up for posting, you can email the photo(s) to me and I will post them if you like.