breaking free stuck lug nuts

[Brad900]

BFR:
I don't know who makes it other than it says USA on it. It is not a braker bar that you can put a socket on, only can be used on military lug wrench. One end is flat so it won't come out of the wrench. If you want one here you go

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/STRA...emQQcategoryZ43994QQihZ011QQitemZ320078223721

They also have a non gear wrench

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/NEW-...emQQcategoryZ43994QQihZ011QQitemZ320029634858

 

[SierraHotel]

name brand... CHINA
model number... uh... china
guess it was made on a good day
[/quote][/quote]
OK, got any idea of where you got such a unit...?

 

[BFR]

I seriously think the guy I bouught it from buys HF rejects by the pound and reassembles sets (the grip was messed up on this one).
this guy sells to the folks that sell at flea markets I would be shocked if he has any web presence.

 

[Katch1]

Get yourself a sliding t-bar in 3/4 dr. You know the bar head with the square drive that has the hole in it for the sliding bar to go through?
I had a set of lugs that WERE stuck till we got this out. Mines from a tractor supply place, not too expensive, sorry was a long time ago I purchased it can't tell you what it cost, but it was reasonable.
Then all you have to do is get your buddy who weighs 375 lbs. and a 6 ft. pipe, and all is well.
We have never failed to get Any nut off with this set-up, and never broke any tools, I don't know what stores you have in Virginia, but around here, if you want the larger tools and are on a budget you have to go to the farmer supply stores.
Good luck.

 

[houdel]

Any one ever try the Harbor Freight "1/2" SUPER-TORQUE LUG WRENCH"? it is only 1/2" drive but 1/2" to 3/4' adapters are cheap. It seems to have some sort of geared head which HF claims "multiples torque three to five times to break loose even the most stubborn lug nuts". Only $19.99, $16.97 to ITC members. Might be worth a try for those on a limited budget.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/taf/itc.taf?f=display&itemnumber=3105

 

[M543A2]

I have had success with shocking the socket with an aluminum driver and heavy hammer while an assistant puts a rotational load on the wrench. I put the end of the aluminum driver on the side of the socket as close to the wheel as possible and hit it with a hammer to shock the nut while it has the torque load on it. This is especially effective on the square headed inner retainer on the dual wheel sets and front wheel nuts where access is easy. For the large nuts on the duals where it is not readily accessible for the hammer and driver method because of the wheel dish we use the military gear wrench with great success. .
Regards Marti

 

[Katch1]

also one old farmer trick is after heating up the stuck nut is to cool it with water, the shock seems to loosen rust up. I would not re-use the nut .

 

[bear_11]

Check this out:

http://lugmaster.com/IMAGES/915LugMasterDemoweb.wmv

 

[gimpyrobb]

Yeah, that is similar to the roboimpact. Ingersoll makes one that is a 110v unit. I would like one of those.

 

[m16ty]

.
So, since this was such a fun adventure, I broke out my lil’ Coleman propane torch that I use for sweating pipes and began to heat a nut. After heating the nut, I put the breaker bar with a seven foot piece of conduit and applied pressure.

I see this thread is pretty old but if you haven't got your nuts off yet you need a bigger torch. A propane torch is for just what you said " sweating pipes" and not much else. I know you don't want to spend any more money but everyone needs a oxy/ acetylene torch set up. You'd be suprised what heat will do. A oxy/acetylene torch will do more for rusted nuts and bolts than the biggest and strongest wrench you could ever buy.

 

[LanceRobson]

Try a technique learned from working on old tractors and steam engines.

Get an air chisel. Grind one chisel to a smooth rounded end.

Soak the fitting with PB Blaster or a similar product. Use the chisel, with low to medium air pressure, to vibrate the fitting and speed up the penetration.

This technique usually works in just a few minutes.

Lance

 

[Armada]

I started reading this thread from page 1 and didn't look at the date. MAN, I thought Wallew was back!! Then I saw the date.... WHEW. LOL

 

[DaveP]

or try one of these.

 

[maxim]

Torque Multiplier aways worked for me.

 

[gimpyrobb]

I have the Torque Multiplier and the pnematic gun. I reach for the gun whenever air is available.

 

[SierraHotel]

Well, in gutting my brake system and rebuilding the wheel cylinders I cam across two wheels that would not come off. Liberal amounts (multiple times) of PB Blaster and the new WD40 Rust Specialist did not do anything. Leaning on a 6 foot cheater bar only resulted in a busted 3/4" breaker bar. Pounding them with a 24V Robo Impact eventually ran the batteries down. Heating with a propane torch was next to useless, but didn't do anything as well. So I bought a fabled torque multiplier and gave it a shot. As tightly wound as I had the handle, I was worried about A) it exploding catastrophically, B) Breaking something loose that was not supposed to break loose, C) causing the thimble to rotate in lieu if the outer lug nut, or D) loosing parts of my arm when I lost my grip and it rebounded. My last resort was to make a concoction that I heard about that was "guaranteed" to loosen any rusted nut...if that didn't work, I'd be calling out fleet service to break or cut them off and pay a ridiculous fee for the house call. So I stole some of the wife's nail polish remover (100% acetone), mixed it 50/50 with automatic transmission fluid and added a half a shot of French brandy as an offering to the gods. I put it on the lug nuts and waited a few minutes. Then I hit it with the torque multiplier again. After I was nearing the scary part of having it tightly wound I heard a loud crack. I thought I had broken the torque multiplier from too much force. Checked it out, and nope, all seemed fine. So I put it back on and my continued cranking resulted in several more loud cracks that did not sound all that great...but the lug nut was now loose. Hit the rest of them and all came off after a series of several loud, unsettling cracks.
Never heard of acetone/ATF before, but did read a significant explanation of the chemical process that the acetone does to the rust and the ATF is the vehicle for getting in the threads. The alcohol apparently does have a use in getting rid of water that results from the chemical process.
Is it BS? Beats me...but I can tell you that nothing else worked and that they ALL came off relatively (several minutes versus several days) quickly after adding it Its certainly cheaper than PB Blaster or Kroil. I put the acetone/ATF concoction on the other wheel, but I'll wait until tomorrow to break them free...see if is easier after more than 12 hours. Personally, I'm sold.

 

[rustystud]

I assume your using that "made in China wheel torque multiplier" that sells for about $50.00 right ? If you had used a real multiplier (3:1 or 4:1, 1000 Ibs to 2000 Ibs output) they would have come off. That or the whole stud would have broken off. My 1" impact would also have taken it off. I think my new 800ft Ibs 1/2" drive impact would have taken it off. The "nail polish" might have done it, or the PB blaster finally got to the spot. We just don't know. In situations like this you need to use a "scientific" approach. Just use one product on one lug nut, then another product on another lug nut and see which comes off first. Using a Propane torch will not work either. You need an actual "Oxy-Acetylene" torch to get the high heat needed. That would have also gotten the lug nut off. The 24 Volt Robo impact does not have enough strength to remove lug nuts. It even says on the product user guide to "do not use to remove lug nuts" .
I know as I have a brand new one with the whole kit.
Bottom line, you need the correct tools to work on beasties like our deuce.

 

[CommoChief]

Use a product called "FreeAll"...once you use this you will never use PBBLASTER again. Spray it, let it sit for 30 seconds, remove the nut/bolt.

 

[doghead]

Was the half a shot of French brandy drank, or mixed in the concoction?

 

[cattlerepairman]

SH, I am glad it worked out for you. I notice you only put one shot of French Brandy into the mixture. You drank the rest, right? I was worried, reading your story, that the resume would be that you forgot about tight hand/left hand threads! Phew!
I use the military lug nut remover (the two-tube contraption) and it always surprises me with how much torque that thing can muster.