 | Home > Wheels & Tyres > Locking wheel nut - Stuck! |
 
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| blackwolf Member Since: 03 Nov 2009 Location: South West England Posts: 17469   
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I have always found LR locking wheelnut sockets to be deficient (and if you take your vehicle to a tyre fitter, never ever let them use a windy gun with the socket - they shouldn't, but some do). I nowadays reinforce the socket by fitting a steel ring round the outside of the business end to stop the socket expanding in use.
You can machine a ring if you have access to a lathe, or find an offcut of CDS tube which is a light drive fit over the outside of the socket. You want the ring to be about 3/8" (10mm) wide, and you can use up to about 3/16" thick tube before it interferes with the wheel. If I remember I'll take a photo of one of my wheelnut keys to show what I mean. |
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22nd Jul 2013 8:52am |
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| ARC99 Member Since: 19 Feb 2013 Location: North Yorkshire Posts: 1831 
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My key split in two when I took the Disco into local tyre dealers, young kid said he was sorry but it had split when he was taking the 3rd wheel off and that I needed to get a new one so he could put the wheels back on. He had used a windy gun against my explicit instructions which were written on the job sheet. Called a hire car and visited a independant dealer, new set of 5 locking wheel nuts and his multi key. I got paid more in expenses than it cost for the tyres and they paid for the new bits. Don't make old people mad.
We don't like being old in the first place, so it doesn't take much to  us off.
Richard |
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22nd Jul 2013 8:43pm |
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| excossack Member Since: 22 Feb 2012 Location: North West Posts: 5861 
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I think thats whats happened to my nuts
What is the correct torque figure for the wheel nuts and locking wheel nuts? 1999 Defender TD5 110 Regards John M0VAZ Econet Station 48 no clock |
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22nd Jul 2013 8:51pm |
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| ARC99 Member Since: 19 Feb 2013 Location: North Yorkshire Posts: 1831
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I never talk to my nuts.
I always do mine up by hand with a breaker bar until it feels tight enough. Don't make old people mad. We don't like being old in the first place, so it doesn't take much to us off.
Richard |
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22nd Jul 2013 9:04pm |
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| excossack Member Since: 22 Feb 2012 Location: North West Posts: 5861
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Thats my normal method but this time they are tight! 1999 Defender TD5 110
Regards John M0VAZ Econet Station 48 no clock |
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22nd Jul 2013 9:20pm |
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| JWL Member Since: 26 Oct 2011 Location: Hereford Posts: 3443  
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I've just been looking in the Haynes Book of Lies and it implies that steels should be 81 lbf ft (108Nm) and alloys 95 lbf ft (129 Nm) Looking on t'internet also states that HD steels are 125 lbf ft.
I usually tighten my steel spokes to 108 lbf ft, I vaguely remember being given that figure by a wheel and tyre specialist a number of years ago when I bought some new ones off him and it stuck in my mind ever since. As long as they are all tightened up in a sequence and to the same level then they shouldn't cause any problems. |
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22nd Jul 2013 9:40pm |
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| blackwolf Member Since: 03 Nov 2009 Location: South West England Posts: 17469
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I tighten my alloys to 98lbf.ft and it is nothing like as tight as most people expect.
Wheel nuts and sparking plugs - the two most over-tightened objects! |
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22nd Jul 2013 9:47pm |
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| blackwolf Member Since: 03 Nov 2009 Location: South West England Posts: 17469
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This is the modification I make to my LR locking wheelnut keys.
If you look closely the key in the photos has actually split along the recess, this was the result of being used with a breaker bar to undo nuts previously tightened by a tyre fitter presumably with a windy gun. The key still works fine after modding, but is now kept as a spare. The best tool in my opinion for undoing wheelnuts even now is one of the traditional "spider" wrenches, since it allows a true torque with no side force to be applied. Much less likely to split the key or damage the nuts.  Click image to enlarge Click image to enlarge |
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23rd Jul 2013 11:22am |
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| excossack Member Since: 22 Feb 2012 Location: North West Posts: 5861
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Thanks Blackwolf. 1999 Defender TD5 110
Regards John M0VAZ Econet Station 48 no clock |
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23rd Jul 2013 11:51am |
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| I.AM_a driver Member Since: 11 Jun 2009 Location: Edinburgh, Scotland Posts: 404  
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when I bought my alloys I purchased second hand alloy wheel locking nuts from eBay- bad idea!
I now have a set of Bearmach Locking Nuts, much better design than the LR ones and many more possible combinations. Click image to enlarge The torque is shared by all of the tongue/grooves around the circumference, much lower chance of breaking it than when it's shared among the three points on a LR one. Of course if someone really wants them all they need to do is hammer on a smaller socket.. Mark S CONVOY for HEROES www.facebook.com/convoy4heroes www.lothian4x4response.org ------ Td5 90 Thread in 'My Defender' Forum |
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23rd Jul 2013 9:02pm |
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| excossack Member Since: 22 Feb 2012 Location: North West Posts: 5861
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Cheers IAAD they look much better design than the LR ones. 1999 Defender TD5 110
Regards John M0VAZ Econet Station 48 no clock |
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23rd Jul 2013 9:44pm |
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| Supacat Member Since: 16 Oct 2012 Location: West Yorkshire Posts: 11018 
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+1 - the simple ideas nearly always are the best. That one looks nearly foolproof  |
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24th Jul 2013 8:35am |
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| Merlin Member Since: 30 Oct 2010 Location: Newmarket Posts: 981
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In my 2008 handbook says 133Nm. Seems a bit high.
I was told that's it's a waste of time putting locking wheel nuts on road wheels. So I've taken mine off, but left the spare with one. Suppose the logic is that if your jam jar is stolen, then you've lost the wheels anyway. Merlin |
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25th Jul 2013 7:59am |
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| Sockpuppet Member Since: 17 Sep 2011 Location: Leicester Posts: 479
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The best locking wheel nuts I reckon are the ones fitted to my focus.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GENUINE-FORD-FOC...19cb28510f These, they are tight fitting if you ever lost the key it would be a trip to the dealers or welding to get the nut off. |
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1st Aug 2013 10:14pm |
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