Nuts II U...

[Will Owen <nashwill@domain.elided>]

And a-one, and a-two...

Well. Of course the suggestion that, if one merely
wants lefty-loosey-righty-tighty nuts all around on
one's pre-'72 Alfa, then one should merely replace the
left-side studs, is utterly rational, right on the
money, and if I'd thought there was going to be THIS
much confusion I'd'a stood in bed, but that's enough
fretting for one day...

J. Hertzman, as is his wont, has introduced a novel
but completely reasonable suggestion: that the Offside
Undo lug nuts were there to accommodate a generation
of mechanics who tended to operate on automatic pilot
as much as ours do today, except that their
assumptions were based on a different convention.
Those men were used to different rotations for every
fastening based on which side they were on, whereas
our guys assume that every thread they encounter turns
the same way no matter where it's located. Same degree
of mindlessness, different point of origin...

John has also declared his affection for bronze nuts
on differently-handed studs as a nice relic of Alfas
Past, which to be honest I find no more odd than my
own attachment to archaic culinary power tools. So let
me amend my advice: IF you don't mind having to
instruct callow youths bearing wrenches in the proper
way to address your car and its immediate needs, and
that fairly frequently, then by all means keep the
weird studs. But of course if you're like that you
didn't need me to tell you about it, did you?

Will Owen
Pasadena, CA
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