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Old 04-02-2015, 10:47 PM   #21
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Consistency counts more than accuracy. Check the table below the curve on this page for variance factors in torques:
Bolt Preload Tension Force Equation Calculator - Engineers Edge
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Old 04-02-2015, 11:12 PM   #22
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If the manual calls for 90-95 lbs., one could question the need for accuracy.
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Old 04-03-2015, 12:42 AM   #23
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Ok I am really out of it I was guessing I might have to tighten my lug nuts but now it is sounding like a science project I've never tightened any lug nut on any car or trailer I guess I should but I never knew I should measure it just make it reasonably tight. I thought I had a lug nut tightener but it looks pretty simple I must be missing something here.
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Old 04-03-2015, 01:30 AM   #24
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I only started torquing lug nuts a dozen or so years ago after a tire fell off on the highway the night after I rotated them. Wheels go surprisingly far when not connected to the vehicle.
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Old 04-03-2015, 08:41 AM   #25
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I only started torquing lug nuts a dozen or so years ago after a tire fell off on the highway the night after I rotated them. Wheels go surprisingly far when not connected to the vehicle.
Hi: padlin...Never re torqued my 5.0TA, never lost a wheel, but I have lost my way... a time or two. Alf
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Old 04-03-2015, 11:03 AM   #26
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Originally Posted by Fox hunt View Post
Ok I am really out of it I was guessing I might have to tighten my lug nuts but now it is sounding like a science project I've never tightened any lug nut on any car or trailer I guess I should but I never knew I should measure it just make it reasonably tight. I thought I had a lug nut tightener but it looks pretty simple I must be missing something here.
The best part of my Orientation was Reace reminding me to tighten the lugs after 500 miles or so. I finally remembered at around 750 at a rest stop and asked to borrow one. They were loose.

Look back at Fishbiogirl's experience with hers she had delivered to her and on the first trip I believe she said she almost lost a wheel.

It's not hard to do: loosen the lugs then re-tighten with lug wrench lightly. Then follow the star pattern with a torque wrench and do them first at 20-25 ft. lbs., then 50-60, then finally 95-115.

Tandem axles have more stress on their sidewalls than do single axle trailers therefore a more critical need for them to be checked more regularly.
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Old 04-03-2015, 11:50 AM   #27
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Originally Posted by tractors1 View Post
Consistency counts more than accuracy. Check the table below the curve on this page for variance factors in torques:
Bolt Preload Tension Force Equation Calculator - Engineers Edge
After looking at the accuracy of ±35% with a torque wrench vs ±5% by bolt elongation, it appears to me that the most accurate would be to snug up each nut, then turn it an additional fractional turn to get the correct elongation, if we knew what that was. (If I remember right, that is how the tightening of SMA coax connectors is specified.)
In practice, I'll probably snug the nuts up (after we get our 21' in July), then keep track of how much further I turn them with the torque wrench – if there is any consistency, then I could skip carrying the torque wrench and use any socket wrench for subsequent 'retorquing.'
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Old 04-03-2015, 12:14 PM   #28
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Ok I am really out of it I was guessing I might have to tighten my lug nuts but now it is sounding like a science project I've never tightened any lug nut on any car or trailer I guess I should but I never knew I should measure it just make it reasonably tight. I thought I had a lug nut tightener but it looks pretty simple I must be missing something here.
Yes, some of the answers have tweaked the subject to the nth degree. You are right, it's about making sure the lug nuts aren't loose. The torque wrench just adds some consistency. Don't sweat it, just check the tightness and don't worry about the science project overtones.

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Old 04-03-2015, 12:59 PM   #29
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At our lab we certified torque wrenches to +/- 5% of value, from 20% to 100% of the wrenches range. In order to maintain that tight tolerance we re-calibrated each wrench every 60 days in a very controlled environment where external factors, including humans, were removed. When the wrench was used in the field, every external contributing factor that could affect torque was to be applied to the calculated tolerance of that wrench for that torque. Since I only calibrated the wrenches, I can’t report on their use, like what calculations were used for extensions, lubricants, area cleanliness, etc. All I can tell you is without an initial calibration you don’t know how accurate your wrench is, and without regular re-calibrations you don’t know how accurate your wrench remains over time.

Luckily, as Charlie Y states, torque consistency of each lug nut is more important than accuracy when it comes to wheels. And that is good because if we use the example provided to us by Charlie Y and his link, (un-lubricated torque +/-35%, or 31.5ft/lbs at 90 & lubricated torque +/-25%, or 22.5 ft/lbs at 90) it’s just luck if we’re within the 90-95 ft/lbs recommended by ETI. That’s what I meant earlier about torque being very inaccurate.

Following the torque sequence shown by Rossue in an earlier post and using the three step process given to us again by Rossue for attaining the required torque (your trailer and tow vehicle) is very important in attaining the required consistency. If you’ve ever had a lug nut work it’s way loose, or worse yet, lost a tire, you may have had inconsistent torque applied to your lug nuts.

Personally, I don’t use lubricants on the threads of wheel bolts because they tend to collect contaminants. And contaminants can have more adverse effect on torque accuracy and consistency then dry threads. But I believe some lubricants are suggested to control electrolysis due to dissimilar metals. If that’s the case, the lubricant should be cleaned off and reapplied every time the lug nut is removed and reinstalled, thereby reducing the contamination.
Sorry for the science project, I’ll be quiet now
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Old 04-03-2015, 01:12 PM   #30
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Sorry for the science project, I’ll be quiet now
Tom
Please don't be quiet. I was very curious about this topic given my engineering background and I have learned a lot, particularly the comments about consistency being most important. I haven't paid any attention to this on my last trailer (vintage) as I had no information on what was the right torque but when I replaced a tire, the Discount Tire people torqued the wheel nuts and I thought all they did was use impact wrenches. They got my attention and now I plan to recheck the torque before each trip.

I guess I provided some consistency before as I tightened the lug nuts with a tire wrench and I tried to get them uniformly tight. I'm not that strong so I am sure I didn't over-torque them.
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Old 04-03-2015, 03:27 PM   #31
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At our lab we certified torque wrenches to +/- 5% of value, from 20% to 100% of the wrenches range. In order to maintain that tight tolerance we re-calibrated each wrench every 60 days in a very controlled environment where external factors, including humans, were removed. When the wrench was used in the field, every external contributing factor that could affect torque was to be applied to the calculated tolerance of that wrench for that torque. Since I only calibrated the wrenches, I can’t report on their use, like what calculations were used for extensions, lubricants, area cleanliness, etc. All I can tell you is without an initial calibration you don’t know how accurate your wrench is, and without regular re-calibrations you don’t know how accurate your wrench remains over time.

Luckily, as Charlie Y states, torque consistency of each lug nut is more important than accuracy when it comes to wheels. And that is good because if we use the example provided to us by Charlie Y and his link, (un-lubricated torque +/-35%, or 31.5ft/lbs at 90 & lubricated torque +/-25%, or 22.5 ft/lbs at 90) it’s just luck if we’re within the 90-95 ft/lbs recommended by ETI. That’s what I meant earlier about torque being very inaccurate.

Following the torque sequence shown by Rossue in an earlier post and using the three step process given to us again by Rossue for attaining the required torque (your trailer and tow vehicle) is very important in attaining the required consistency. If you’ve ever had a lug nut work it’s way loose, or worse yet, lost a tire, you may have had inconsistent torque applied to your lug nuts.

Personally, I don’t use lubricants on the threads of wheel bolts because they tend to collect contaminants. And contaminants can have more adverse effect on torque accuracy and consistency then dry threads. But I believe some lubricants are suggested to control electrolysis due to dissimilar metals. If that’s the case, the lubricant should be cleaned off and reapplied every time the lug nut is removed and reinstalled, thereby reducing the contamination.
Sorry for the science project, I’ll be quiet now
Tom
I'm I getting this correct to first loosen all the lug nuts then re tighten using the 3 step . Won't the constant loosening and tightening do something to metal ? Or is this the proper way to do it . I just have been going around checking with torque wrench before trip .
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Old 04-03-2015, 03:59 PM   #32
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Just concern yourself with checking the lug nut torque. The three step torquing sequence is used when the wheels have been removed. It has been my experince that the lugnuts securing alloy wheels should be checked more frequently.
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Old 04-03-2015, 04:54 PM   #33
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Just concern yourself with checking the lug nut torque. The three step torquing sequence is used when the wheels have been removed. It has been my experince that the lugnuts securing alloy wheels should be checked more frequently.
Thanks Bob . That is what I will keep doing . Pat
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Old 04-03-2015, 05:38 PM   #34
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Alloy wheels should defiantly be checked more often but all wheel types should be check periodically. After removing the wheels I find they will be loose every time I check them for a few hundred miles. When I remove wheels I check them at 25, 75, and 200 miles. Then usually before each trip after that.

I have had 2 friends lose wheels on campers and one hit a car. Get some kind of torque wrench and check your wheels!
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Old 04-03-2015, 06:42 PM   #35
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Alloy wheels should defiantly be checked more often but all wheel types should be check periodically. After removing the wheels I find they will be loose every time I check them for a few hundred miles. When I remove wheels I check them at 25, 75, and 200 miles. Then usually before each trip after that.

I have had 2 friends lose wheels on campers and one hit a car. Get some kind of torque wrench and check your wheels!
Excellent summary.
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Old 04-03-2015, 07:11 PM   #36
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OK, ok. I give.

What size is the lug nut again?
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Old 04-03-2015, 07:17 PM   #37
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13/16
same as your Toyota
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Old 04-03-2015, 07:26 PM   #38
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Also over tighting can bend wheels, stretch wheels studs and weaken them or break them off. Using a torque wrench is the only way to know how much you are tighting them and to get them all the same torque.

Most trailer wheels are 13/16
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Old 04-03-2015, 08:18 PM   #39
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spellcheck, over tighting not over nighting....
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Old 04-03-2015, 08:25 PM   #40
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iPad is getting smaller and smaller these days.
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