Better choice lug wrench

I'm sure I saw a post on this subject but I cannot find it right now.  After "spinning" the pretty chrome cover on two lug nuts (one each side) and scaring myself silly believing that I somehow stripped the nut or stud, I replaced my trusty 1/2" drive Craftsman 3/4" (12 point) socket with a 6 point impact wrench socket...one of those black ones.  Highly recommend using one of those, especially for 100 pound torque, to keep those shiny nuts looking right.  I had to carefully tap the new socket onto the covered lug nut to seat it and remove the nut.  I think I'll just replace the two ugly lug nuts with locking nuts.

Yup.  Worked just fine and made no undesirable contact with the wheel.  The 6 pt impact socket is a bit more than an 1/8" or so larger OD than the 12 pt.  About the same as an old fashioned lug wrench.

TJsGPa,

Originally posted by Kantuckid 12pt =bad for lug nuts!

Agreed!!!  6-point sockets should be used for anything that requires much torque to get on or off.  I'm not sure what the advantage of 12-pt sockets is, other than maybe going on a nut a little easier in a tight spot.  Lug nuts aren't in a tight spot and they can require a lot of torque.  That advantage rarely outweighs the likelihood of rounding off the nut or bolt.

Impact sockets, if they aren't too fat to get to the nut are fine, but shouldn't be necessary.

TT

I saw a 12V impact wrench on Harbor Freight, so I ordered it since it is on sale at an excellent price. I wanted something to remove the wheels from the R-Pod so that I could get to the hubs to grease them. I already have a torque wrench for tightening the lug nuts.

The impact wrench comes in a carrying case with 6-point sockets. Both the impact and torque wrenches use 1/2" drive, but I needed a short extension as the hub gets in the way of being able to seat the socket fully on the lug nuts. I had one that was part of a kit. It isn't an impact extension, but it is very heavy duty, and will probably be more than adequate. The impact wrench does not operate like AC or air powered ones. This one has to spin up before it makes an impact. It will then spin up again and make another impact. About 4 or 5 hits, and the lug nut spins off.

I've used the impact wrench to snug up the lug nuts and then switched to the torque wrench to finish tightening them to 100 ft. lbs. When we put it on the road again, I will check periodically to make sure the lug nuts are properly torqued. I did not do that on our first big trip and did not have problems. However, since I removed the wheels, I will check to make sure.