Lug Nut Torque on 3500lb. Trailer Axles??

bmack95hd

Well-known Member
Any advise on lug nut torque?
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Whatever feels good to you with a 4-way lug wrench should be good. I'm 70 years old and I've not lost one yet.
 
(quoted from post at 21:03:40 10/09/19) Any advise on lug nut torque?
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95 on the 7/16", 105 for the 1/2" and 13mm.
 
(quoted from post at 21:36:05 10/09/19) Whatever feels good to you with a 4-way lug wrench should be good. I'm 70 years old and I've not lost one yet.
Over-tightening is just as bad as under, and at $20 for a cheap torque wrench, I'll do it my way thank you.
 
I'm sure I'm not doing it right according to others. I put everything at 90 pounds motorcycle wheels car truck trailer tractor farm equipment whatever haven't lost a tire yet or come close to doing so.
 
Just to clear up torque values here is a chart. However I am over 80 and never used a torque wrench when tightening wheel nuts or studs and never lost a wheel.

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I worked at Demco Manufacturing back in the day-- they built trailers for the rental people -- We set the lug nuts to 120 ft. lb;s -- Roy
 
That's for regular bolts, the increased friction of a tapered lug nut makes a big difference
 
A cone lug nut on a 1/2" stud has a torque range of 90-120 lb/ft, 9/16" is 120-140 lb/ft. Being at an exact number is not as important as being in the range.
 
i don't know what they should be torqued at, but what ever the tire shops tighten to is way over done. try to change one with the tools your vehicle comes with out on the road and you'll have a whole new look on it.
 
Just to play devils advocate, This is all for Nuts and studs. What about Cap screws instead of studs?
I just used what seemed right and not lost any wheels or twisted them off.
 
Thanks for the replies, I took them to 85lbs., they were barely at 65 and that is what the tire shop had them at.
 
(quoted from post at 13:57:57 10/10/19) Thanks for the replies, I took them to 85lbs., they were barely at 65 and that is what the tire shop had them at.
I'll stick with the 95 and 105 as I stated earlier, but I think there is a good bit of wiggle room. Especially with steel wheels. The bigger issue is with equal torque on each nut, especially with aluminum wheels. That's why I always use a torque wrench.

Reminds me of a conversation with a co-worker many years ago. He was quite proud of himself for doing his own maintenance on his Mustang, and had rotated the tires over the weekend, but now the car was wobbling down the road. I asked about what torque he set the lug nuts at, and a look of confusion came over his face. He didn't own a torque wrench, and had never used one. I suggested he get a torque wrench, back off each nut and retorque in sequence to the specified setting. His problems immediately went away.
 
I think biggest problem is over tourking. Tourkning enough you cannot get nut off or stripping threads or even snaping lug bolts off. Been with all these poroblems but never with a nut not tight enough. If a problem with a nut being loose then probably missed tightening it like my uncle seemed to have a habit of.
 
(quoted from post at 13:36:05 10/09/19) Whatever feels good to you with a 4-way lug wrench should be good. I'm 70 years old and I've not lost one yet.

Tight as you can get them with a 4 way wrench and you're good to go. The torque wrench thing comes into play when installing wheels on cars with disc brakes, to prevent warping the hubs. Never had that problem with band brakes and brake drums.
 

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