yellow510

you can try the hot/cold press method. heat the lip with a torch and use ice on the center portion. heat expands the metal on the lip and the cold compresses the center section just enough for it to slip out. do the same to get it back in. also make sure to mark where the center lines up with the barrel. not putting back in the same spot could result in additional difficulty in getting the rim balanced with the tire. the 1st time i had some centers powder coated it was near impossible to get them back in cause the powder coat was so thick. the 2nd time i asked the powder coater to not do the mating surfaces. he was cool enough to mask off the side so they slipped back in pretty easy.

means wheels are pulled in 10mm on each side. in all my research, 7.5" wide rims with +15 offset would be pretty close to the max width you can get on the rear of a coupe without rolling or any clearance work to the suspension on a 15" rim. i haven't tried it myself and have had no luck in finding a pair like that in over 10 years of looking... but that is about what i guesstimate based on my calculations. i did see a pair on ebay once and got outbid at the last second... boo hoo. if i could find a pair or the parts for my 3-pc wheels, it would almost feel like finding the holy grail for me.

*just my opinion* i'd replace rubber where you can find replacements and go poly where you can't. or use poly on the areas that are pretty easy to service. this way you can enjoy driving and owning the car rather than spending time working on it. (not that it has to be replaced often) as i get older, i'm becoming more a fan of how the car came original.

engine and trans arrived yesterday. all is well now. thanks to everyone who's chimed in. special thanks to Al (aka Denmarkboy) for squaring this up. Get well soon!

Yes, Al and I spoke today. He is going to get the shipping straightened out tomorrow morning and hopefully the engine+trans will be here by the end of the week. I stand corrected. I typo'd and put 6/22 when it should have been 7/22. My apologies for that. However, I still believe that a month is quite a wait to receive something... Al has repeatedly apologized for the delay to which I understand his circumstances and have accepted his apology. In fact our conversations have all been very civil without any bad attitudes coming forth. So, I would like to make abundantly clear that I dont condemn Al as a bad seller or person by any means. My reason for posting was to determine if the person I had bought from was a good decision or a waste of money. He seemingly had a good reputation here so I wanted to find out if and how my experiences compared with others... and perhaps someone here knows what his situation is personally. On another note: delays to my project are minor when compared to someone's health. Above all, I value the welfare of others (and this community) before any project I'm working on.

as for the amount... i dont think that's really the point here. my concern was whether the guy i bought it from was trust worthy enough to continue bugging him or to show up at his doorstep demanding my money back.

nothing yet. he said he'll contact me when he's out of the hospital. i'll check up with him tomorrow to see what his status is.

the big question now is: WHEN?

fingers crossed. i hope he gets better soon too and not just for my own selfish reasons. but it would be great if we could put this to rest.

as i said, i figured this guy to be a respected member of this community. most of you guys probably know him. i'm just hoping to get this worked out either way. soon! i dont bend over for anyone.

He was supposed to call me back today, but I guess Denmarkboy is just too busy to remember. He texted me late last night/early this morning that he had another issue come up, but i'm pretty tired of his excuses. I've never accused him of not sending it, but since I cant get a simple photo of the shipping info, I guess I have to call BS. Hopefully, someone that's read this knows him and can get some action. Sorry I had air this out, but I tried to give him benefit of the doubt. Thanks guys, I hope this comes to a resolution soon.

i'd be happy if i got at least a pic. waiting for a month (and repeated requests) for a pic of the shipping manifest is pretty ridiculous.

i got a response from him this morning saying that he's sick but he'll give me a call as soon as he feels better. wtf? how open ended is that?!?! the lines of communication are still open, but it takes a while to get a response from him. i've refrained from calling him out right now because, i'm sure he's got friends here who'll swear up and down that he's a pillar in this community and i'm just being a little b!#$&. But i dont think i'm being unreasonable nor have i asked for anything out of the ordinary. i've asked for tracking info and he can't even remember to send me a phone pic of the paperwork. that's what pisses me off the most. i could show up at his doorstep i suppose... i have his address from his bank acct...

nah, this seller is based in Oregon.