tight lug nuts

Despite some instructions I've seen I always use a little anti-sieze. I haven't had a wheel fall off in the last 50 years and I've had no problems removing the lugs or nuts.

I rotate the tires or change out to the winter studs myself so there's no problem. On the rare occasions where I buy tires, the first thing I do when I get home is retorque the fasteners. I've hit a few that required the impact wrench.

I'd bought a Harbor Freight electric impact wrench specifically to break loose the bolts on a notorcycle fork's damper tubes, but it has come in handy several times. For a tool that gets used once or twice a year at the outside I've gotten my money's worth.

Reply to
rbowman
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I learned this same lesson years ago after a tire shop over-torqued my lugnuts after I bought some new tires. As a result, I now specify the torque I want them set to, which is on the low side of the recommended torque. They have me sign a waiver, and when I get it home I double-check the torque and push it a little higher to the middle of the range.

Jon

Reply to
Jon Danniken

I bought a set of tires in Knoxville. I prefered bias ply tube types when I could still get them and they installed the set. On the F150, the spare was in a hanger under the bed. The first clue was when the spare fell down and was dragging on the road. As the trip went on, 3 out of 4 of the tubes blew out. I was not happy when I got back to Arizona with the help of Fix-A-Flat and a tire inflator.

One good thing about southern Arizona and the Mexican mechanics were they understood tube tires.

Another time, I watched a motorcycle 'mechanic' install a new tube type tire without the benefit of a tube.

I've alway done almost all of my own vehicle maintenance. I won't say I've never screwed something up, but at least I knew when I did it and didn't get a surprise 50 miles down the road.

Reply to
rbowman

Hi, You don't have impact wrench? Now you used oil and they're all no good.Must be a small old vehicle. If you don't have compressor, how about trying electric impact wrench? Can't rent/borrrow one?

Reply to
Tony Hwang

Hi, You buy tire from junk yard? You put your life on the line with junk tire?, LOL!

Reply to
Tony Hwang

Next time, try phosphoric acid. You can find it in the masonry section of a big box store since it's used to etch concrete. The advantages are that it will attack rust and not the underlying metal so you can leave the item in the acid without worrying and it leaves a phosphate coating that inhibits rust. With hydrochloric, you have a super clean, etched surface that will rust in front of your eyes if you don't get some sort of protective barrier on.

If you read the ingredients in Coke, you'll find phosphoric acid which is probably why it's alleged to be a rust remover. I wouldn't drink the stuff straight but it's far less aggressive than hydorchloric.

Reply to
rbowman

I never had a problem with the alloy wheels I run.

Reply to
rbowman

Be happy. I think even Chrysler Corporation gave up on the left handed threads. Those were a barrel of laughs for the uninitiated.

Reply to
rbowman

BTDT. I had a flat with an old F150, Miracle of miracles the toy jack tha t came with the truck worked. I had a cruciform lug wrench. No way could I break any of the lugs loose. Called for road service. Unfortunately it was harvest season and every service truck in the town was backed up on cal ls. Mechanic finally came out in private car. He at least had a cheater a nd managed to get all but one loose after an hours work. Finally had wait until a tow truck showed up. He couldn't get the last one either. Finally lifted truck and dropped breaking that lug. That lug had been cross threa ded but driven tight with the rattle gun.

The usual problem is the tire shops don't reset the torque wrenches after w orking on big equipment. Watch them sometime and at a good shop (mine is a very good one) you will see them apply the rattle gun then pick up a real torque wrench, apply 'click', yep it is tight. Unfortunately, yes it _is_ tight. But that 'click' only says that the nut has been tightened to AT LEA ST the torque setting when in fact it has been way overtightened. The last time the setting on the rattle gun was changed was to use it on some big s emi.

I wrote the shop and long letter explaining what had happened.

My tire shop removed and reinstalled all 4 wheels, replaced the broken stud and the next time I had a flat all lugs came off with normal pressure.

Harry K

Reply to
Harry K

I have a decent compressor in my garage runs off 220V. Used to change over tires between seasons and blow the sprinklers in the fall. Never had to use any thing on wheel nut/stud on 3 vehicles other than proper torquing.

Reply to
Tony Hwang

They worked for the last guy.

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

HCL did the job, I had some on hand, and the experiment was a success. Why would I try some thing different? Does phosphoric work better? I guess you do mention a couple advantages. I put some oil on the fence pliers, and they are still good.

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

I bought tires a couple of months ago. Yesterday I tried to remove a wheel to check the bearing. The nuts wouldn't budge.

They're supposed to be torqued to about 65 foot-pounds. After letting penetrating oil work overnight, I got 15 of the 16 nuts with a cruciform wrench with 10" arms. I used a pipe to extend one arm and stood on the other.

I believe I'm applying well over 200 foot-pounds. The wrench twists so far that I think more force would be dangerous. I'll see what tools neighbors have, or maybe go to a mechanic.

Can I have the dealer and his crew sent to prison?

Years ago I had Sears install snow tires on my truck. Was on a back rough road and had a flat. I was bending my 4 way lug wrench. No results. Drove into town to a station I bought gas from. They finely got the nuts off with an impact wrench. Never bought tires from Sears again.......WW

Reply to
WW

Heat sounds good. Steel expands 7 millionths per degree F, so boiling hot might be enough.

Now I've got to find a place that sells those little propane tanks. I left the torch head on my last tank, and the valve leaked.

Reply to
J Burns

If you mean the kind of wrench you hit with a hammer, I have two. I think one has a 1/2" drive. I never had much luck with it in the past, but I'll look for it.

Now that I've used oil, does that mean my lugs and nuts are no good?

When I reinstalled the first 15 with a torque wrench, I discovered that the L wrench that came with the car gives the right torque "by feel." How about that!

Reply to
J Burns

I've read most of this tread and I only have three comments:

  1. I also use anti-seize compound on wheel lugs and have never had any problems doing that.

  1. I also buy tires from auto wrecking yards. A good set of tires should last a good 10 years or more, and often that car with the new tires gets into an accident after only one or two years with those new tires. It's the auto wrecking yard that inherits those tires when they bring the smashed up car in, and generally the tires are an excellent buy.

  2. In regard to the OP's problem with the overtightened lug nut, I'm surprised that no one has mentioned Torque Sticks so far in this thread.

'Torque Sticks, Torque Sockets and Other Discount Tools'

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Torque Sticks are 1/2 inch drive extension bars that are machined to precise diameters so that they act very much like a torsion bar spring. You simply put the Torque Stick in between your impact wrench and the socket you use to drive the lug nut, and it tightens the lug nut to a predetermined torque depending on the Torque Stick you're using. That is, you simply put the Torque Stick on the impact wrench, and then the impact socket on the Torque Stick and tighten the lug nuts. The Torque Stick will tighten the lug nuts up to a predetermined torque, after which the twisting of the Torque Stick will absorb the impacts of the impact wrench, and the lug nut won't be tightened any further. The OP needs to go back to the place that overtightened his lug nuts and explain to them how their using Torque Sticks is good business practice because it will keep customers from throwing Molotov cocktails through their business' front window.

Here in Winnipeg, it's rare to see a garage that DOESN'T use Torque Sticks when replacing the wheels on a car.

Reply to
nestork

CY: More likely this:

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CY: Some oil won't hurt.

CY: That's good news. So, how do you know that?

. Christopher A. Young Learn about Jesus

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Reply to
Stormin Mormon

I read a while ago that many mechanics don't use a torque wrench: they use a well-calibrated elbow. The one time I used a torque wrench on a crucial part, the thread in the aluminum casting stripped before I got to the specified torque -- had to get the car towed to a repair shop and have a Helicoil inserted.

Perce

Reply to
Percival P. Cassidy

I repair roll laminating machines that apply plastic to paper. Every now and then I find a machine I CAN NOT loosen the allen screws on:( drilling them out, ruining sprockets and other parts are a heal pain.

Occasionally the DIY repair person reports I always know when the allen scres are tight, since they go click click click:(

Very expensive for the machines owner:(

Reply to
bob haller

Twerked!

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Reply to
J Burns

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