Philippe,
The two cap threads on the LEFT side are normal. That means that turning
the cap clockwise tightens it up (right hand thread) and counter clockwise
loosens it. The two cap threads on the RIGHT side are opposite (left hand
threads). Turn them clockwise to loosen.
As far as I know, there are two types of wire wheel caps used on Alpines.
One type simply has a hexagonal outline, and a very large wrench with a
matching hexagonal hole is used to remove it. The wrench is like a long
rectangular section of steel with the hexagonal hole near one end, which is
placed over the cap. The other end of the wrench is struck with a hammer to
loosen, and/or tighten, the cap.
The second type of cap used has wings or lugs coming out from the centre.
There are usually three lugs, but if the cap has been transferred from a
Healey or MG, it might have only two lugs. Threads are the same as
described, but to remove these caps, one strikes the lugs in the desired
direction with a SPECIAL HAMMER (fairly heavy) which is either all made of
copper, or at least the striking area is copper. Copper hammers are
slightly softer than the brass from which the cap is made, so do not
significantly damage the caps. Steel hammers would rapidly damage the cap,
and finding a replacement is not easy.
Replacing the wheel is the reverse of removing it. Do the cap up by hand as
far as it will go, then tighten the cap either with the wrench or with the
copper hammer. When using the copper hammer, the sound tells you when it is
starting to really tighten the wheel. As it tightens, the sound becomes
solid and rises a little. Don't overtighten the cap, remember you still
have to get it off in the future, but a few miles after replacing a wheel,
you should check it for tightness. You will soon find out how tight they
need to be.
Hope this is what you were looking for.
John S.
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