CHECK YOUR LUG NUTS!!!

[Ritothebull]

I think one of the biggest problem these days is the guys that are installing the wheels, I usually find the lugs to be either much too loose or their overtightened to the point where you need to bring out the heavy equipment to break them loose. The last time I had new tires put on my wifes VW they were so tight that it took my 3/4 impact gun to get them off. This is a small car and theres no way I could have ever gotten these wheels off on the side of the road with a tire iron.

 

[k0ua]

I need to get a torque wrench.

Every tractor owner needs a torque wrench.

 

[RoyJackson]

I think one of the biggest problem these days is the guys that are installing the wheels, I usually find the lugs to be either much too loose or their overtightened to the point where you need to bring out the heavy equipment to break them loose. The last time I had new tires put on my wifes VW they were so tight that it took my 3/4 impact gun to get them off. This is a small car and theres no way I could have ever gotten these wheels off on the side of the road with a tire iron.

That's why you NEVER let anyone use an impact wrench on lug nuts...they can use that impact wrench to get the nuts close, but final tightening must be done with a torque wrench. Recommended for steel wheels...mandatory for aluminum wheels.
It's a good idea to use anti-seize compound on the threads too...

 

[PILOON]

I suggest that once you torque the lug bolts or nut, use a paint marker and paint a narrow strip across the lug nut (or bolt) to the rim. This provides a quite easy visual examination to determine if any has loosened...if the paint stripes aren't aligned, you'll know immediately if the fastener has loosened.
This is a pretty common practice of some machines tools and other applications

I often see yellow pointed plastic things slipped over the lug nuts all pointing the same way.
I think the idea is brilliant and imaging not expensive either.
All gov't and utility providers use then here, so far not mandatory for the public.

 

[Complete Turf Care]

I'm sure this has been discussed here many times, but today, I learned the hard way.

My L6060 has just over 100 hours on it now.

I ran it for about 3 hours this morning, then put my daughter on it for about another 3 hours. When she finished the job, she loaded it on the trailer.

I took it to the next job and when I unloaded it off the trailer, the left front wheel was about to fall off!!!. There were only 3 studs still in the hub holding the wheel in place, but just barely. I was able to tighten those 3 up enough to get it back on the trailer. I drove to the Kubota dealer about 4 miles away, and after about $50 in parts and $150 in labor (15 minutes of labor) I was able to go finish my day.

The mechanic was able to get 4 of the lugs tight enough. The dealer only had 2 studs in stock, so we had to use some of the old ones.

The rim is ruined now too.

So, I just ordered a new rim and 4 more studs and lug nuts for just over $200. By the time I get this all repaired, it will cost me well over $500 for not checking the dang lug nuts......UGH........

Just for the record, although the tractor is new, the rims are not. I bought the tractor with R-4 tires and I had a set of turf tires on my other tractor. I swapped the turf tires to this tractor because it's what I will use more often on the jobs I do. I had them swapped at my local tire dealer.

So I think that means that I should still check my lug nuts on any tractor, not just on new tractors.

Also, just for the record, I had taken some drone video of the tractor while working about 2.5 hours before I saw the problem, and in the video, all studs and nuts were in place, and I could not tell if they had begun to back off.

 

[Deere Dude]

That's why you NEVER let anyone use an impact wrench on lug nuts...they can use that impact wrench to get the nuts close, but final tightening must be done with a torque wrench. Recommended for steel wheels...mandatory for aluminum wheels.
It's a good idea to use anti-seize compound on the threads too...

lol. I impact wrenched my dually wheels and all was good. We went on a camping trip pulling a 37' 5th wheel to Tupelo which was 150 miles away. Pulling into town across a bridge I could hear stones rattling like being stuck between two wheels, or from a noisy semi next to us. We pulled into the campground and while driving slow on gravel roads I could still hear the noise, so I checked. I pulled the center cover of the stainless wheel liner to inspect the nuts and notice all 8 wheel nuts were 3/4 spun off. The only thing holding the nuts on, I think, was the center wheel liner hub cover. SURPRISINGLY, there was no damage to anything.

What was making the noise was the thin SS wheel liners sliding back and forth over the threads of the lugs. I hate to imagine what another 50 miles of 70 mph would have done to my ego.

 

[CMV]

THANK YOU for this thread. I kind of dismissed it - my machine is brand new and I asked they guys to go back over it real good before delivery just to be sure. Figured no need to do this, but would keep in back of mind for when 50hr service time comes along and do it then. But then the replies along the lines of "this really applies to a new machine" had me worried enough I figured I may as well check even though barely @ 20 hrs now.



Rear tires, loader frame, all tight as can be. But most all the front wheels needed tightening, and in the pic you can see one backed off enough I could turn it with my fingers. So thanks for the heads up - I would have neglected this for a while longer had I not read it here!

 

[s219]

A couple comments -- I wouldn't put loctite on the threads because it won't do a darn thing about the studs stretching or the lug seats on the rim wearing in. It would just glue the threads in place but still allow a loose mount (may prevent some catastrophic failure or may just mask a problem until too late). It may also corrupt the torque readings if you ever do try to check and re-torque.

Also, paint marking the lugs will only show if the lugs have rotated from their original position, but won't tell you anything about the studs stretching or lug seats wearing in.

 

[PILOON]

Worst still is the ring gear in the front differential. On my cut they all came and that cost me a ring and pinion as all 8 bolts backed off and trashed them.
That was one costly repair!
Wont happen again as I used Locktight and also drilled the heads and safety wired the bolts in pairs.
Used graded bolts as well.

LOL, glad U specified 'lug' otherwise the monitors might have pulled the topic.

 

[k0ua]

THANK YOU for this thread. I kind of dismissed it - my machine is brand new and I asked they guys to go back over it real good before delivery just to be sure. Figured no need to do this, but would keep in back of mind for when 50hr service time comes along and do it then. But then the replies along the lines of "this really applies to a new machine" had me worried enough I figured I may as well check even though barely @ 20 hrs now.

View attachment 556146

Rear tires, loader frame, all tight as can be. But most all the front wheels needed tightening, and in the pic you can see one backed off enough I could turn it with my fingers. So thanks for the heads up - I would have neglected this for a while longer had I not read it here!

Glad this thread saved you some grief. :thumbsup:

 

[Industrial Toys]

I bought a set of those torque limiting bars for use with my Thunder Cat gun. I am not sure if I trust them. I usually do a spot check.

It would not surprise me if some new rims are made of lighter or thinner material and might deform easier.

 

[PILOON]

Wife had her tires replaced for summers.
The tire shop suggested a call back to verify lug nuts, Good call! That after 500 kms.
My shop actually wire brushes all aluminum surfaces to remove oxidation and use a torque wrench to verify proper torque.
MUCH LIABILITY HANGING OUT THERE!

I owned a Ranger that had the seasonal tire rotation done.
Bad torqueing cost me rim and disk fortunately he garage was a responsible shop and they paid for a replacement drum and the appropriate labor.

 

[DieselBound]

That's why you NEVER let anyone use an impact wrench on lug nuts...they can use that impact wrench to get the nuts close, but final tightening must be done with a torque wrench. Recommended for steel wheels...mandatory for aluminum wheels.
It's a good idea to use anti-seize compound on the threads too...

I once thought that anti-seize was a good idea, but I ran across a discussion that said "NO." Best place to look to is the trucking industry:

Debunking a myth | Fleet Owner

If service manuals say to re-torque at certain intervals then DO IT!

Can't recall how many hours were on my Kioti when I caught this slight creaking noise coming from the frontend. Yup, loose lugs!

I always take one final torque pass around a rim to ensure that I didn't miss something.

 

[CMV]

I once thought that anti-seize was a good idea, but I ran across a discussion that said "NO." Best place to look to is the trucking industry:

Debunking a myth | Fleet Owner

If service manuals say to re-torque at certain intervals then DO IT!

Can't recall how many hours were on my Kioti when I caught this slight creaking noise coming from the frontend. Yup, loose lugs!

I always take one final torque pass around a rim to ensure that I didn't miss something.

Interesting read. I ALWAYS thought the anti-seize was a good preventative measure AND allowed you to get a little more torque without stressing the fasteners, and still require same amount of effort to remove roadside if need arose. I have no idea where I picked that up, but 30+ years of owning/driving cars and I always thought that was correct. Interesting when thinking about it though - I never bought a new vehicle that had anti-seize on the lugs from the factory (not that I could see anyway). Never had new tires put on a vehicle and the shop used it. Didn't think about it really until reading above, but makes sense.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I have put a dab of grease on every stud I have touched since 1976. Never had any nuts go loose. I don't want to be that moron at the side of the road that can't get his flat tire off.

 

[deezler]

I have put a dab of grease on every stud I have touched since 1976. Never had any nuts go loose. I don't want to be that moron at the side of the road that can't get his flat tire off.

Same. Just a tiny dab, not very much at ALL. Keeps the rust and seizing away. Over-lubing would probably be a pretty bad idea though.

The idiots at goodyear tire always blast my parent's cars lugs/bolts up to what feels like 200 lbf-ft. When I try to help them change a tire, I need a cheater bar. @$$holes

 

[buckeyefarmer]

I have to check one of my tractor tires every time, cant keep lugs tight.

 

[oldballs]

I rotate my own truck and sedan tires and use a torque wrench to set them. I put nothing on the studs, but carry a large cheater bar in both vehicles. Hey........I'm only `143 lbs and an old gezzer. .... I can just barely get the 160 ft lbs of torque. As to the tractors...........well........guess I do check the lugs once in a while. Thanks for the reminder.
Cheers,
Mike

 

[FatTire]

I drove to the Kubota dealer about 4 miles away, and after about $50 in parts and $150 in labor (15 minutes of labor) I was able to go finish my day.

They charged $150 for the 15 minutes to put the wheel back on with new hardware? Am I reading this correctly? Suddenly I love my dealer, I'm not sure if they'd even charge for that.

 

[Complete Turf Care]

They charged $150 for the 15 minutes to put the wheel back on with new hardware? Am I reading this correctly? Suddenly I love my dealer, I'm not sure if they'd even charge for that.

That is correct. I just assumed it was a minimum charge. I didn't even look at the invoice. But, it was worth every penny to me. It saved me several hours of time and I was able to finish my day. And, this was not the dealer I bought the tractor from. This was a dealer about 80 miles from my shop. They just happened to be close to where I was working on that day.

I got the new rim today and took it to my local tire shop. They were not able to put one of the new studs in place because the threads in the hub are messed up and need to be cleaned. But, now I have a new rim and 5 lugs holding it on. I even went back over the 5 lugs with a breaker bar after I got it home, just to be sure.