Got my 1st impact wrench yesterday to help take off some frozen lug nuts on my 64 Fury. None had been off for years and no longer being a spring chicken trying to break them loose manually was a real struggle.

Removed the right front wheel nuts effortlessly. So I proceeded to the left front wheel. Yes I saw the little L in the middle of the studs but this is my first Mopar so it never dawned on me what it meant. Yep, kept trying to remove the nut turning the wrong way. ZIIIPPPPPP and nut is spinning but not coming off.

So, I either stipped the lug nut or stipped the stud right at the wheel. Hopefully the nut so I can save the drum.

I would appreciate any suggestions to get the nut off the stud. I figure I might have to buy another drum but don't want to loose the wheel as it is original to the car.

Thanks,

Butch

got room enough to get a nut splitter in there? & if not might have to take the wheel/drum assy off & drill it out from the back side

Is there a center cap?
That is can you get to the dust cover over the wheel bearing?

If you can, then open that up and pull the cotter pin then take off the castle thing and the pull the nut and you should be able to take it all off in one piece with the wheel.

then grab it from both sides to loosen that lugnut.

If not, then they make a nut splitter you could see if the local parts store rents one.

i has to get a torch on mine, this is the last resort, i messed the rim when i cut off the stud,
my buddy did one and did not hurt anything, he works with torches all day, it works but you have to be very careful

thanks

randy

You can try pulling out on the wheel while using the impact to turn the lug. That can put enough pressure on the stud to hold it from turning.

and if you can get it to jam thats a good thing! Then just put a breaker bar on it and shear the stud off. Then you can get the rim off and replace the stud.

I can remove the drum and wheel together and drill out the stud from the back or maybe even get a nut splitter on the nut once the wheel/drum assy is removed from the spindle if there is room. I think the torch is out of the question as I'm not a torch person.

I was hoping there was some other miracle cure without have to drill the stud from the back as I'm sure it's pretty tough metal and I don't have a machine shop available. But, that might be my only choice.

Maybe once the wheel/drum assy is removed I can removed the other four nuts and drive a wedge in between the drum and the wheel at the problem stud and slowly try to rethread and remove the nut.

Can't believe I was that dumb !

Butch

Butch, You don't even need to take the hub off the car and drill from the back. You said you could see the "L" on the stud so that tells me its a regular lug nut. All you need to do is simply drill the lug stud out to 1/2". start with a smaller bit in the center of the stud to assure that you get it centered, then step up to a 1/2 inch bit and drill down in the stud till you are deep enough and the lug nut will pop off onto your drill bit. This will ruin the nut and the stud but chances are, they are both already shot. I have had to do this many times with customer's cars (Chrysler products) with the stainless capped lug nuts that the cap falls off and they keep using the same 19 mm socket on a lug that is now 18 mm due to the .5 mm thick cap missing and it strips the outside of the lug. I have been able to save many alloy wheels that other shops were about to take the "blue tip" to. It saves alot of time not having to fish a cotter pin out through the center hole of the rim (if your rims cover the bearing cap) Oh, by the way the studs are not hardened so they drill pretty easy!

or since you can get to the back, just use a pair of vice grips or something on the stud at the hub, then use the impact to get it off the rest of the way.

Thanks Guys,

That sounds like a good approach. Can I replace the bad stud after drilling or should I just buy a new drum? Didn't know if the studs are replacable.

Butch

The studs are replacable, but you may find the hole wallowed out and you might have to find an oversize stud. It won't be part of the drum either way. It is the hub that would have to be replaced or drilled out a little more to accept the larger stud.

press in a new stud & have your machine shop swedge it with their tool to lock it in place. Probably best to have them press it in also & get it all done in one shot

As a follow up I finally had the time to drill the stud which was very easy and then removed the wheel from the hub. The local O'Reilly says they have the stud and nut in stock and suggest I drive the old stud out (after soaking with penetrant) with a sledge and drive the new stud in the same way.

Good idea or not?????

I don't have a local machine shop that I use but could find one I'm sure. But, if I can do this at home it would be much better, but I don't want to ruin the hub at this point. I have about 1/4" of the stud still protruding from the hub with a 3/16" hole in the middle and the hub looks fine.

Yes...No...?

Butch

Knocking it out with a hammer is okay. A standrad sized hammer will do it. You can tap the stud in a little then put a few washers on the stud and run the lug nut flat side down to pull the stud in place.

A whiz wheel would work great, just cut the nut in half from the top of the stud down. It would ruin the stud, but it probably is ruined already. Then just put a new one in.

I'll do that very carefully as I don't need another stripped lug nut.

Thanks,

Butch

Whoa, hang on here a minute. That stud is probably swedged from the outside. I think all of them are on 62-64 cars. You can punch it out outside to inside, but that swedge will make it extremly difficult with a hammer. Its hard to do it with a press, which may rip out more hole than you want to. Anytime I have taken them off I have either drilled the stud head off, or ground it off. If the drum is not loose on the hub, its because of the swedge. You might want to re-think the hammer thing.

Thanks SportF!

I'll look at it more closely. I keep forgetting that what works for even late 60's model cars doesn't work for early 60's cars. The hub and drum are tight. I'm sure I can carefully drill out the stud from the outside rather than driving it out.

Just hoping someone who has done this before on a 62-64 can say what works for sure.

Butch

I have done it a bunch of times. Take a good look at the outside of the drum and you can see the splines swedged over on the top of the stud, flush with the drum. That is what has to go, or you have to drill from the back side. I actually don't think you can hammer it out with that swedge. I have used a press, as I said, and it made the hole bigger as it went through. That is why I started to drill the heads off the back and push them out that way. I do have a drill press and it will take bigger than a 1/2 drill bit to do it. Or, use a dremel and start removing that swedge from the front. Good luck.

Once I removed the old stud without damaging the hub will I be able to install the new stud with a hammer or does it need to be pressed in. I'm assuming the swedge is put on after the stud is installed so a new stud will fit the existing hole? Is this swedge necessary on the new stud if the others are swedged on or is it okay to run one without the swedging?

Thanks,

Butch

I wouldn't use a hammer to install the new stud. Two options

1. Press

2. (some debate on this) after inserting the stud from the back of the hub place a washer on the stud and put on a lug nut (reversed so the flat side of the nut faces the hub) and draw the stud into the hub. Use lubricant on the splined parts of the stud.

You shouldn't need to swedge the new stud. If the hub hole wasn't damaged and the stud is tight the lug nut will keep it iin place.

Good luck
Frank