I keep breaking 1/2 ratchets on my lug nuts.

[pughde]

My adventure with Lug nuts:

This impact can supposedly create 1000 ft lbs of torgue, not sure how it is measured.

Facts:
GMC 6500 flat bed truck 10 lug 33MM

MIXPOWER 6-Point 3/4-Inch Drive Deep Impact Socket- 33mm (Metric)

DEWALT 20V MAX Cordless Impact Wrench Kit, 20V MAX, Using an adapter ½ to ¾ broke only 7 of them

The 3 others used a 6 foot long pipe on a breaker bar with me 200 lbs standing on the end of it bouncing up and down

 

[5030]

You did something wrong and torque (not torgue) on any impact tool is always measured in 'breakaway torque', never tightening torque.

Lucky you didn't bust your melon standing on the end of a 6 foot johnny bar (pipe) bouncing up and down. No breaker bar I know of can stand that level of abuse and survive very long.

You should have heated the lug nuts, applied some penetrant like PBlaster and heated them again before attempting to remove them and used your impact tool and not the johnny bar.

 

[Ridersupfarm]

Wrong tool for the job and Harbor Freight tools are probably all made in China which should not give you a warm fuzzy feeling when it comes to durability. Use your impact tool with impact sockets or upgrade to 3/4" breaker bar and socket for this job.

 

[5030]

Actually, I use Harbor Freight black oxide impact sockets all the time and I've never broken one yet. Only issue is they only come in 1/2" drive. I've split everything else, Snap-On and MAC included and they always fail the same way, they split up the side. I replace a lot of snowplow wear bars and they are always held on with grade 8 dome head plow bolts and they get corroded real bad so I just use the appropriate sized HD impact socket and shear the bolts off. Never heat them or use penetrant, just crank on them and they either fail or come apart.

 

[heyinway]

harbor freight and craftsman have broken on me getting lug nuts loose. I am rough with them using a 6 ft pipe.

I do have a impact driver maybe that will work better.

harbor freight and craftsman have broken on me getting lug nuts loose. I am rough with them using a 6 ft pipe.

I do have a impact driver maybe that will work better.

You are nothing but a tool abuser. Heat your nuts and they will easily come off. Then replace all the studs and nuts...they are stripped

 

[mllud]

You did something wrong and torque (not torgue) on any impact tool is always measured in 'breakaway torque', never tightening torque.

Lucky you didn't bust your melon standing on the end of a 6 foot johnny bar (pipe) bouncing up and down. No breaker bar I know of can stand that level of abuse and survive very long.

You should have heated the lug nuts, applied some penetrant like PBlaster and heated them again before attempting to remove them and used your impact tool and not the johnny bar.

Good advise by 5030
Heat will break the bond through expansion of the nut. It's reliable with stubborn nuts when it's going to break off a stud before coming loose.
Heat will save the stud. There are exceptions but they are few. You only need heat the lug nut to a dull red but if you have several wheel lug nuts to heat up you may want to allow some cooling time of the hub in between after doing two or three nuts.
The faster you can get the nut hot and get the torch off of the nut you will have less heat sinking into the wheel and hub.
You don't want to cook your bearing grease.

Propane torch won't do. You need an Oxy/acet or Oxy/propane setup.

 

[geargle]

My solution, as I don't have the torque I used to have, is to load my tractor, skid steer, etc. and haul it to my tire dealer (~8 miles) into town. He can easily get said wheel off and repair made (even new tires), usually without unloading the tractor/skid steer. A big win for me!

 

[mllud]

I took a 12'x20' Quonset hut apart once. Hundreds of grade-5 5/16 bolts. They were rusted bad, so my son held the bolt head, and I was on the other side with a breaker bar snapping them off. There was no way that I was going to loosen all those bolts.
It went well.

 

[mllud]

Geargle
Thats a good solution but $$$ and hauling isn't always an option. I seldom pay for work.
Just my 2 cent outlook

 

[Deere Dude]

I had a busy local tire shop put new tires on my GMC dually. Miles later I decided to rotate the tires myself. I was 260+ Pounds and had a heck of a time loosening the nuts. I used a 2' breaker bar and really leaned into it. On every nut, it just popped like a gun going off when broke loose because they were so overly tight.

I was concerned about a wrench breaking beside the road in the future so I needed a fix. Every time I take the car or truck in for tire work I recheck the torque after I get home, even though I make them aware of my concern. The last time I checked when home, all the nuts were good except one whole wheel was a bit more than finger tight. I check for tighness and also to make sure they were not overlooked.

Because of this thread I bought a 3/4" 40" breaker bar and sockets. I do have a new torque multiplier I bought a couple years ago but I thought a breaker bar would be easier to figure out when changing a tire at midnight on the side of the road.

 

[Hay Dude]

 

[Too many Kubotas]

One thing many fall for is bypassing a stubborn nut, loosening all but that one.

Well, if it was hard to turn before, now it really is when the two next to it aren't helping push the wheel center in.

 

[mllud]

View attachment 3228191

I'm Guilty

 

[redleg105]

harbor freight and craftsman have broken on me getting lug nuts loose. I am rough with them using a 6 ft pipe.

I do have a impact driver maybe that will work better.

Sounds crazy but might be left hand thread

 

[stuckmotor]

The only American made Craftsman socket I remember breaking was on a lug nut, with a breaker bar. I think they were called flex handles back then. I never broke an American made Craftsman ratchet.

 

[Bentrim]

Back in the early 70's I got tired of trying to chase down the shops 3/4 drive. The Snap on found a sucker because I bought a 3/4 drive set. Glad it was then and not now.$$$$$$
Had a fellow bring in a tire/wheel with the lug holes wallowed out and wanted a new wheel and the tire changed. The drive tire on a combine "only" 10 ply -- awfully stiff. Well a week later he was back for the same thing. Asked him what he was using to tighten the bolts and he pulled out a 1/2 ratchet. Told him that was not enough, he said any tighter and the bolts would twist off. Took my 3/4 ratchet with the long handle (about 4 foot) and demonstarted it with a machine on the lot. Then I told him I would lend him my ratchet and to tighten the lugs that I really did not want to change those tires anymore. Yes the ratchet came back and no more tires to change. The ratchet handle now has a slight bow from all the years use.
Had a tractor with 1" bolts in the drawbar so I bought a torque multiplyer 250 ft lb 1/2 drive in 1000 ft lb3/4 drive out. Just needed a good prop for the reaction bar.

 

[Cycledude]

Never broke a ratchet of any brand but I have never attempted to use a 6 foot cheater bar on a ratchet, seems like doing something like that is simply asking for trouble.

 

[boblamp]

harbor freight and craftsman have broken on me getting lug nuts loose. I am rough with them using a 6 ft pipe.

I do have a impact driver maybe that will work better.

Wrong tool for the job. Ratchets are never intended to break loose nuts and bolts. You should be using a a breaker bar, a LUG NUT WRENCH or an impact driver. Also, if you use an impact driver, it should NEVER be used to tighten the lug nuts. Your manual will specify the torque specs, you should be using a torque wrench to secure the lug nuts.

 

[WinterDeere]

Wrong tool for the job. Ratchets are never intended to break loose nuts and bolts. You should be using a a breaker bar, a LUG NUT WRENCH or an impact driver. Also, if you use an impact driver, it should NEVER be used to tighten the lug nuts. Your manual will specify the torque specs, you should be using a torque wrench to secure the lug nuts.

If only someone had said that, somewhere in the 18 preceeding pages!

 

[90cummins]

Dry rusty fasteners can be very difficult to install & remove. A dry fastener will often not torque up smoothly often resisting torque then snapping loose as more torque is applied which can be painful and break tools.
I always clean & lubricate my lug nuts or screws before assembly.
I always use a torque wrench when installing wheels.
Torque specs are generally for clean dry fasteners so I reduce the torque setting to avoid over torquing.
90cummins