Date: Thu, 15 Nov 2012 13:01:15 -0800
Reply-To: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Subject: Re: loose rear axle nut
In-Reply-To: <50A53AA4.2060001@charter.net>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
Not many people have an impact gun that will produce that much torque.
You would need one that claims peak torque of something like 900 ft lbs.
and no one has a 360 ft lb torque wrench unless they work on 18 Wheeler
Trucks or Tanksor something like that.
just the good ole serious breaker bar ( a half inch swivel head one is
way weak and won't cut it at all really )...
need like 3/4 inch drive,
and a good cheater bar pipe.
and that still will not get some nuts off . Not even with a 160 lb
person standing on the end of a 4 foot bar.
Then I heat 'em with a torch.
and even that won't always get them off. Twice I've had to cut the nut
away with a cutting torch ( which can be done without hurting the stub
axle if you're careful ) .
just do careful good work.
S.
On 11/15/2012 10:55 AM, Mike B wrote:
> NEVER tighten your axle nut with an impact driver!
> 1.) You can never be sure of the exact torque.
> 2.) You can strip the threads.
>
> ONLY use a proper torque wrench and manually apply the force to tighten
> it. If none is available, use a 3/4" drive 46mm socket and breaker bar
> with a cheater pipe that fits over the bar. Foot/ pounds is calculated
> by so many pounds applied at so many feet from the fastener; so my 225
> lb. body standing (NOT jumping!) on the spot on a bar that's 2 feet
> from the center of the axle nut will be applying 450 ft/lbs of torque to
> the nut. (or your 150 lb body standing 3 feet out will apply 450
> ft/lbs.; so weight X distance = torque applied) , this simple method has
> worked for me for over 30 years with no fancy torque wrenches or impact
> guns. I've broken many 1/2" drive ratchets and breaker bars doing Beetle
> 36mm axle nuts to 235 ft/lbs and bought 3/4" drive stuff a couple of
> years ago. Craftsman and Snap-On have always replaced them under
> warrantee, even though I kept breaking them for years. Also, NEVER back
> off this torque to align the cotter-pin holes, ALWAYS tighten them
> further to line it up with the next hole.
>
> You will likely find that it takes a LOT more torque to break them
> loose, and you can use an impact driver to loosen them or an axle-nut
> beater tool, but some folks think that this damages your axle bearings.
> I never had this happen to me, but YMMV.
>
> Mike B.
>
> On 11/15/2012 12:45 PM, Stuart MacMillan wrote:
>> Yes, replace all of the parts! This is what can happen if a rear wheel
>> falls off at 65 mph (FF to 1:34):
>> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGKlWqSadlQ
>>
>>
>> Last time I did this job I rented a 3/4 drive electric impact driver and
>> bought a socket.
>>
>> Stuart
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On
>> Behalf Of
>> Jeff Lincoln
>> Sent: Thursday, November 15, 2012 6:25 AM
>> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
>> Subject: Re: loose rear axle nut
>>
>> John,
>>
>> Listen to these guys!!!! I recently had to replace my rear wheel
>> bearings -
>> when I put everything back together I must not have gotten that nut
>> to the
>> proper torque. Everything seemed fine for a while and then I started
>> to hear
>> rumbling while on a trip. We were 3 hours from home when I stopped to
>> check
>> it and saw that one side of the cotter pin had been sheared off!!!!
>> That nut was loose as hell. We got some help and did the best we
>> could and
>> litterally limped home.
>>
>> The bearings I had just put in looked good still but I replaced tyhem
>> anyway
>> - along with the hub and stub.
>>
>> When you go to put that all back together you might think 360 ft lbs
>> is over
>> kill but it is not. I wasn't smart enough to figure out the math of my
>> weight and how long of a breaker I needed. So I just borrowd a super
>> heavy
>> duty torque wrench from a friend. It went up to 450 or 600 ft lbs or
>> something like that. I tell you when I got the wrench to 360 it was
>> still a
>> way before I hit the next cotter pin slot - I don't remember exactly
>> but I
>> was over 380 ft lbs by the time I got to that next slot.
>>
>> Good luck!
>>
>>
>> --
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Jeff
>> '85 GL (Gertie)
>> '78 Bus (Melissa) Patty's Bus
>
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