Help, Quick Question: torque spec wheel lug nuts

[subquark]

Torque wrench? Bah, wimps ... I have two techniques that never fail. =p

I do use foot pounds, kind of, sort of (see second method).

Method 1: cheater pipe until my hands hurt

Method 2: 210 pounds on my foot (or whatever I'm weighing that day)

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[Big Blue]

Torque wrench? Bah, wimps ... I have two techniques that never fail. =p

I do use foot pounds, kind of, sort of (see second method).

Method 1: cheater pipe until my hands hurt

Method 2: 210 pounds on my foot (or whatever I'm weighing that day)

Been known to have to do either one of those to remove, when some wrench monkey hammered them on with the impact driver set on max.

 

[Dr_Strangelove]

Torque wrench? Bah, wimps ... I have two techniques that never fail. =p

You think we have short memories, David, I remember you bought a breaker bar that would make Wilt Chamberlain blush. ?

 

[subquark]

You think we have short memories, David, I remember you bought a breaker bar that would make Wilt Chamberlain blush. ?

But I did fall short. Mine's only 30 inches. I later saw a 38 inch one from Harbor Freight (LOL, would have to open both Supercab doors to pull that one out!).

 

[JACKSMYDOG]

just nabbed a 1200ft-lb electric impact gun, amazing what these things can do.
Doesnt make as cool of a sound as my air impact one, but nice i can bring it along for offroading.
Just finished swapping out the whole interior at a junkyard and having one of those guys on hand takin out these 3" bolts holding the seats was a breeze.

What compressor you got? I have one of those el cheapo ones for in a pinch stuff, but annoying for me to stop by a station to air back up the tires.

I run a Viair 400p, with a 4-1 air-line to fill/deflate all 4 tires simultaneously. Awesome set-up.

 

[Burnt Money]

To add to the mix. When I worked in NASCAR our target torque during pit stops was 35-50ft lbs. Including road courses. This was even in the era when we were only hitting 4 lug nuts. Less nuts you have to hit the faster the stop. It was playing with fire but that’s the name of the game. Granted your changing tires often but the car is still running close to 200mph and several tracks have over 5000lbs of wheel load on the RF tire. Tire Changers would lube the lug nuts like crazy. Every team and changer had a different philosophy on the lube they used. I figured I would add a pic as well.

 

[KJRR]

One thing that has always been in the back of my mind is: How would a home grease monkey like me ensure his wrenches are in correct calibration? *activates boomer mode* "Well, back in my day, any and all torque wrenches we used on the assembly lines were all validated on a regular schedule....".

Even though I am careful with my tools they can get dropped or just need calibration. Since I cant just go my local GM plant and get the guy to look at it there, where would I start to look?

I don't think most of us need to worry about accuracy of our torque wrenches as they should be close enough for our occasional tasks. But..
To check your torque wrench calibration... get a fish scale, breaker bar, tape measure, and socket. Measure and mark 1 ft and 2 ft on the breaker bar from the center of the socket. Put socket on bolt, attach fish scale at 1 ft mark and apply 5lbs of force according to the fish scale. Compare to torque wrench.
Apply 25lbs of force at 2 ft mark (25x2=50ft lbs) and compare to torque wrench.
Then throw away torque wrench since you have a new method to measure torque.
And we all know fish scales never lie.
https://thesprucetools.com/how-to-calculate-torque-without-a-torque-wrench/

 

[puckdodger]

I don't think most of us need to worry about accuracy of our torque wrenches as they should be close enough for our occasional tasks. But..
To check your torque wrench calibration... get a fish scale, breaker bar, tape measure, and socket. Measure and mark 1 ft and 2 ft on the breaker bar from the center of the socket. Put socket on bolt, attach fish scale at 1 ft mark and apply 5lbs of force according to the fish scale. Compare to torque wrench.
Apply 25lbs of force at 2 ft mark (25x2=50ft lbs) and compare to torque wrench.
Then throw away torque wrench since you have a new method to measure torque.
And we all know fish scales never lie.
https://thesprucetools.com/how-to-calculate-torque-without-a-torque-wrench/

That's awesome Intel right there. Thanks KJ ?

 

[JACKSMYDOG]

I don't think most of us need to worry about accuracy of our torque wrenches as they should be close enough for our occasional tasks. But..
To check your torque wrench calibration... get a fish scale, breaker bar, tape measure, and socket. Measure and mark 1 ft and 2 ft on the breaker bar from the center of the socket. Put socket on bolt, attach fish scale at 1 ft mark and apply 5lbs of force according to the fish scale. Compare to torque wrench.
Apply 25lbs of force at 2 ft mark (25x2=50ft lbs) and compare to torque wrench.
Then throw away torque wrench since you have a new method to measure torque.
And we all know fish scales never lie.
https://thesprucetools.com/how-to-calculate-torque-without-a-torque-wrench/

No need for the breaker bar, just use the fish scale on the T-wrench directly. Set the T-wrench to XX pounds, then use the fish scale to lift the bar and see what weight it breaks at, adjust for length.

Alternately you can do the same with a bathroom scale and a floor jack. Set the wrench on the nut, put the bathroom scale on a floor jack using a block of wood under the desired length (12", 24", etc) and lift until it breaks.

 

[lariat]

I've learned so much from the engineer/founder at Luxon about bolt torque. I now use specific anti-sieze on my bolts as highlighted in this post. The anti-seize makes tightening and losing bolts a breeze and requires 15-20% less torque -All explained in depth here (or do a Google search on this topic). I wasn't onboard with this theory initially, but I am now.

This is particularly useful for those stubborn bolts when you go to remove your wheel. It won't happen again when using anti-seize. If you try this technique on just one bolt, you'll quickly appreciate its applicability.

https://www.luxonmx.com/blog-luxon-bolt-torque-tension.html

 

[lariat]

To add to the mix. When I worked in NASCAR our target torque during pit stops was 35-50ft lbs. Including road courses. This was even in the era when we were only hitting 4 lug nuts. Less nuts you have to hit the faster the stop. It was playing with fire but that’s the name of the game. Granted your changing tires often but the car is still running close to 200mph and several tracks have over 5000lbs of wheel load on the RF tire. Tire Changers would lube the lug nuts like crazy. Every team and changer had a different philosophy on the lube they used. I figured I would add a pic as well.

Very cool. The engineer I highlighted in my post is also VERY specific about the type of anti-seize used and how to apply it.

It is critical that the torque is adjusted when lubricant is used on bolts that have a torque specified as dry. The resulting tension can increase by 40% or more going from a dry bolt and a lubricated one for the same torque.

 

[diesel924]

No. Just no.

 

[5thranger]

But I did fall short. Mine's only 30 inches. I later saw a 38 inch one from Harbor Freight (LOL, would have to open both Supercab doors to pull that one out!).

That is the method the Chinese use because they know it will snap, and the shrapnel will take out many Americans.

 

[5thranger]

I've learned so much from the engineer/founder at Luxon about bolt torque. I now use specific anti-sieze on my bolts as highlighted in this post. The anti-seize makes tightening and losing bolts a breeze and requires 15-20% less torque -All explained in depth here (or do a Google search on this topic). I wasn't onboard with this theory initially, but I am now.

This is particularly useful for those stubborn bolts when you go to remove your wheel. It won't happen again when using anti-seize. If you try this technique on just one bolt, you'll quickly appreciate its applicability.

https://www.luxonmx.com/blog-luxon-bolt-torque-tension.html

I have used anti seize for years on wheel studs also put some on mounting surface of wheel. Dissimilar materials such as aluminum and cast iron and that wheel will get stuck and will be a real pain to get off.

 

[Msfitoy]

That is the method the Chinese use because they know it will snap, and the shrapnel will take out many Americans.

Stand clear! I'm about to rotate my wheels, neighbors...

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