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Seized/stuck wheel nuts - any ideas?


pockers

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Have just tried removing the wheels on the jeep for the first time and the wheel nuts are stuck fast!

 

I've tried with my air impact wrench and with a 19mm spanner n mallet but they won't budge and I'm in danger of rounding the nuts!

 

Have seen extendable wheel brace and will give that a try

 

Any one got any tips or tricks that might help?

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Use plus gas or similar and leave to work, get hold of a proper impact socket of EXACT size (19mm doesn't sound right try an imperial 3/4'') preferably 3/4'' or 1 '' drive, a very strong and long bar (2m scaffold pole is not unknown)

Check rotation as ^^, place bar 20-30 degrees above horizontal and stand on end of bar.

If your a lardarse like me you will end up with 200lbs x 6 ft = 1200ft/lbs:wow:

and use some copperslip to stop it happening again:)

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left hand thread?( i remember someone getting a jeep trailer for a £10, because the guy thought the nuts were stuck solid!)

Jeep left side, wheel nuts are left hand thread, same as most trucks, but sometimes the l/h hubs end up on the other side

Edited by Nick Johns
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Very often when we send motors (civvy) into the tyre shop they come back over impacted with heavy duty air guns. We know that we will not be able to undo them at the roadside with a wheel brace. So we used to put the wheel brace onto the nut and tap / hit the brace impacting onto the wheel whilst applying pressure on the bar, this never failed to work, but of course we now make sure that they dont over tighten our wheels any more, we do the final tightening ourselves with the wheel brace thats going to be used at the roadside. We have got several wheel braces that we have welded impact extentions onto for that specific job.

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well if they aren't LH thread I wouldn't heap abuse on them with all manner of extended bars etc...cos thats a good way to end up with a snapped wheel stud or a rounded off nut.....

.....personally I'd far rather warm them up with a cutting lamp....a bit of heat never fails to work..

mind you..............if they are left hand thread ........you'll be there a while trying to turn em the wrong way..heheheh!

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.....personally I'd far rather warm them up with a cutting lamp....a bit of heat never fails to work..

 

For everyone's sake DON"T ever do this.

 

I never thought twice about this before I saw a viseo about this. The heating of the air in the tyre causes the tyre to explode. It also weakens the bead so the tyre can explode up to an hour after applying the heat.

 

Removing the tyre valve also does no good as the air expands faster than it can vent.

 

Before I saw this video I would never have thought twice about it

 

 

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If there's enough thread exposed you should be able to see if they're LH or RH thread. I'd second the point about a proper impact (6-point) socket which will grip the flats as well as the points. A conventional 12-point socket is far more likely to round them off. Then yes, a big bar and stand on it - never fails for 432 wheel nuts!

 

Andy

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ooof! fair play ... I consider myself corrected!....after watching that video I'm not doubting it at all & I won't be doing it again.....but..

..can anyone answer ....how come a bit of heat on the wheel could have that effect ........but...

during heavy or prolonged braking when wheels will often get very hot....

.. you don't have the same disaterous results?...

hang fire....apparantly it can happen from braking too...............crikey...proper frightened by that video..many thanks for showing it....

I reckon I should do the lottery more cos I must have cut up a couple of hundred lorries in my time and we usually always lamped the wheel nuts off and never had a wheel explode ..but...I won't ever be doing that again I can assure you................

Thanks for the info!

Edited by RattlesnakeBob
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ISTR that the tyre has to have a certain element in it's rubber compound to have that effect and that the majority of tyres do not, hence the lack of first hand experience of exploding tyres amongst those of us that have used heat at some point in the past.... However, as it is presumably not possible to establish the tyres make up visually, it's best to play safe!

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I was taught to NEVER use copperslip or grease on wheel nuts as it can cause wheel nuts to come loose. Always use a light oil ie engine oil. Loose wheel nuts is an emotive subject in the HGV/PCV industry which I worked in for 9 years.

 

I can back Vince's statement up 100% regarding Copperslip, I know of a tyre shop who threatened to dismiss any member of staff caught applying Copperslip/Copper grease/regular grease to wheel nuts/studs.

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I can back Vince's statement up 100% regarding Copperslip, I know of a tyre shop who threatened to dismiss any member of staff caught applying Copperslip/Copper grease/regular grease to wheel nuts/studs.

 

Don't normally but anything on my whell nuts. Have always got them off easily with an extending wheel brace.

Normally ony put a thin layer of copper slip on the mounting face of slloy wheels. Stops them bonding to the hub.

 

Mike

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Assuming that you have done the left hand right hand thread thing, and the "normal" extension thing, then my strong recommendation is not to put a 6ft scaffold bar on and jump on it. Not unless you like replacing wheel studs that is (although to be fair it isnt that difficult).

 

Get a grinder with a plasma disc (the thin 1.5mm ones used for stainless steel) and slit the side of the nut taking care to miss the thread and dont go too deep or you will damage the wheel. You dont need to cut an entire slice off, just make as deep a slot as you dare.

 

Now while the thing is hot give it a go again. There is a good chance that it will move. If not, open the gap a bit and get some Plus Gas in there. If that does not work try another slot on the other side (the wheelnut material is effectively made much thinner and more pliable where the slot is).

 

If that fails then get the 6ft scaffold pole out ............

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I was taught to NEVER use copperslip or grease on wheel nuts as it can cause wheel nuts to come loose. Always use a light oil ie engine oil. Loose wheel nuts is an emotive subject in the HGV/PCV industry which I worked in for 9 years.

 

I think this a real "Marmite" thing - I was taught always to lightly grease every thread unless it's in contact with compressed air. I've always greased my vehicle wheel nuts and never had a single moment's trouble in over thirty years of driving. If a nut comes undone because it's greased then it simply wasn't done up properly in the first place. Relying on a dry thread is hardly sound engineering!

 

Andy

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I've not seen that Bridgestone video before, but I do remember seeing a similar version during my apprenticeship which had been done by Caterpillar and shows a giant scraper tyre going off. Scarey, although I have to say I have never seen or heard of a tyre going off like that, and there is a lot of people around do heat wheel nuts to free them off.

 

As for getting the Jeep nuts off, I would argue against Paulbrooks idea of using a grinder to cut a slot in the nut, too easy to slip into the wheel or the stud, and again you are introducing heat into the wheel.

 

I would use a small drill, down the side of the nut, midway between the edge of the nut and the thread. Drill down about 3/4 of the nut depth. Repeat this at 180 degrees round the other side of the nut, then use a cold chiesel down the drill hole to split the nut in half.

 

Ok, it wrecks the nut, but the stud will be ok. If it is that tightly seized on, forcing it off with a big bar will tear at the thread on the stud and damage both stud and nut.

 

P.S. Copperslip does exactly what it says on the tin. It makes things slip.

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Cracked it! (sorry bad pun)

 

Sprayed the threads with WD 40 last night

Got an extension bar today

Tried a 3/4 socket & 19mm one (19 worked better which made no sense as they are 3/4 nuts )

Tried again - nothing - a few whacks if hammer - nothing - cup of tea then tried again with a few whacks

Freed one then the others were easy!

Same all round !

Extension bar definetly made the difference

&

As was said here - left side was left hand thread right hand was right hand thread

I would never have thought of that

Once again many thanks for the tips and replies

Sure I'll be back with another FSQ soon

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Bit late to add this, but heating is fine along as the tyre is not to close or under extreme pressure as it will blow, also welding is a certain NO GO!!!!!!! I know of someone and was a very clever and still is a smashing bloke, well known in the area, when working for his engineering company, doing a job one day, welding a extra rim on a tractor for dual wheels when the rim already on the tractor got too hot and blew the tyre up (literally) and very sadly blew the poor chap off his feet and chuck him against the wall on the other side of the workshop, the consequences being he now has to be in a wheelchair and cared for 24/7 by family!

 

Sorry to hijack this post, but don't want anyone on here to suffer this, as you will then know how much your machines will mean to you!

 

Glad to see you got the nuts off, some wheel nuts can be a right pain at times, yet some that look really bad will come straight off!

 

Kind regards

Henry

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We used to run a fleet of Muir Hill tractors and fordson majors in the sea launching power boats. To stop the nuts siezing up we put wet normal oil based paint on the wheel stud threads before fitting the wheel nuts. Then tighten the nuts up, The paint exposed to air drys up and seals the thread to stop the corrosion and the paint on the thread remains tacky. No more stuck nut ever again...And they never came loose:-D

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