Hi Guys!!!I am back and disappointed that my new electric RIGID ratchet wrench is going back to the store.I CANNOT BREAK THE LUGS LOOSE!!!How did the guys in the 50s do this?I used a inch and a half impact socket and my new electric ratchet wrench and it just did nothing.Not enough torque or ??I even tried a breaker bar with a 3 foot pipe and still the lug nuts won't budge.I have a 56 F600 and till now most has been uneventful.Do I need an air ratchet?Let me know before I hurt myself!!!!Bill

 

When I have to take the wheels off my F600 I run up to the neighbors. He runs dump trucks and has all the tools. We use a 1" air impact to loosen them up and then I come down the hill (carefully) and finish taking them off. When I was younger and prouder I would take them off with a 6 foot cheater bar and bounce on the end of it. 220 lbs. on the end of a 6 foot cheater bar. I put them on the same way until one day I took her in for a flat repair and the guy there said ALL of my lugs were loose! I doubt if any 1/2" impact packs enough wallup to take these lugs off.

 

56F600-THANKS for the insite--should have talked to you first,before the 175.00 bill on this 1/2 inch ratchet.I know they will take it back.How big of a compressor do you need to run a 1 inch air ratchet?I have a 220 -5 h.p. and that's all.How much is a 1 inch ratchet?wow--big bucks!!!BIGWIN says he removes his lugnuts himself--HAVE TO ASK HIM TOO!Anyway--I am dissapointed--I wanted to work on my brakes tonight ,but now will have to help the wife decorate--crap---bye

 

look on the bright side, you don't necessarily need a 1" long-handle torque wrench with a torque-multiplier. Talk about big bucks!

 

I guess I will try to find a big-truck garage to break these puppies loose.I had no idea these would be this hard.Anyone no of a good and cheap 1'' air/electric ratchet wrench?

 

Maybe Harbor Freight?

 

The Budd specs say to torque them to 400 psi! And that's dry. Never use oil on the studs.

 

The lugs on my F6 were left handed threads. I was trying for an hour to get them off before I looked at the end of the lugs and seen an "L"

 

Your compressor is big enough if the tank has the volume. like 30 gal. or so. 3/4 inch drive will work. But go for the 1 inch if ya can. Keep in mind that you can strip nuts, buds and bust studs with this setup. Been Trucking and fixing big rig tires for 30 years. One side is left hand thread and the other is right. atleast all the rigs I have ran fromthe 50's up are

 

Ahh ya bet me to it 203

 

203/arctic y block and 56f600--which side is left hand thread?I cannot see any L on the studs.Maybe I am just dumb!!!and here I thought I was gettin' weak!!ha ha!!

 

If there isn`t an ''L'' on the stud then they are not left hand thread. Be sure to check closely as it isn`t always very clear after all these years.

 

I thought the ones on drivers side were the left handed ones.

 

Look closely at the stud. Just because the driver's side is suppose to be left hand thread doesn't mean it is. The front drums on my F-4 have been switched, the left hand threads are on the passenger side and the right hand threads on the drivers side.

Also, if the nuts have been on for a long time, like the ones on my F-4s, I used the gas wrench to loosen them up. I don't have an impact wrench or big enough compressor, I use a 1" drive socket with a breaker bar and long pipe. If you do this be careful on the back, double nutted setup. On one of my parts trucks I wanted to cut the studs off and when I did they turned into blow torches. I didn't realize at the time that someone had put grease on the inner studs. When I popped a hole into the threaded studs that screw onto the inner studs and hold the outer wheels on a two foot flame shot out. It was very interesting to say the least. I had liquified the grease and put it under a lot of pressure while heating the stud up.

Stu,

You said never use oil on studs, is it also a bad idea to use a dab of grease? I do this on all enclosed type of nuts, like ones used on most alloy rims and even the double studs on the back axle of my F-4, so they don't sieze up. I never had trouble with the nuts coming loose. I am I doing something wrong? What about anti-sieze compound? It seems like if I don't put something on them they tend to rust tight and it takes more effort to get them off and in the process they tend to get mangled.

 

I also used a dab of greese on mine since I had such a miserable time getting them off the first time. I don't want to have to go through that again. I also bought all new inner lugs and lug nuts for mine from Cross truck equipment. I spent $2.00 each, I did not believe they were so cheap. No sense not putting new on for that price.