Cheap Lug Nuts and Air Impact Wrenches - A Cautionary Tale

[Heimkehr]

They love rattle guns and torque sticks. I take pride in hand torquing my wheels on rotations etc. It only takes one idiot to stretch the studs or scratch the rims all up with a turned up impact.

Yep.

Impact wrenches have their place. Coupled with a few precision sprays of Aerokroil, my Milwaukee Fuel 1/2" impact made a doddle of removing the original struts on my daughter's Honda.

Key word: Removing. Installation of the new strut assemblies was done 100% by hand.

Sponsored

 

[Pig-Pen]

Ive been using cheap lug nuts on my vehicles for years, with no issues. Of course, i am the only one who touches my wheels. Ive had shop monkeys cross thread lugs and way over torque them in the past. No issues at all when i do it myself.

 

[GRAK]

Hm. Wonder if I should replace these now

https://www.cjponyparts.com/lug-nut...8-2021-gladiator-2020-2021/p/WHLLN61/#reviews

 

[jthoms1]

Hm. Wonder if I should replace these now

https://www.cjponyparts.com/lug-nut...8-2021-gladiator-2020-2021/p/WHLLN61/#reviews

I honestly don't think you need to worry about that style of lug. The walls on those are way thicker than the spline style.

 

[longfiredragon]

I have said it for years. I always tell the service manager make sure the lug nuts are hand torqued. And make sure they write it down. Which unfortunately is still not enough, you have to stand outside the bay door and watch. More than once I have had the tech pick up his impact to reinstall the nuts, and I yelled at him, don't even think about touching my vehicle with that. Read the work order and put those on by hand, and torque by hand.

His response, I always use my impact. My response, I don't care what you normally do, or think you know. Do it by hand or I will step in there and do it myself.

These younger tech.s (and most aren't actually tech.s there off the street and no next to nothing) but they think an impact wrench is a do all tool.

I could go on and but it annoys the shit out of me.

I have one guy now that I go to and he knows what I want when I get tires changed. All rotations are done by me.

Glad you got it fixed.

 

[jthoms1]

These are the lug nuts in question...old and new. No name brand on the left and Gorilla on the right.

Sponsored