Forum Discussion

brulaz's avatar
brulaz
Explorer
May 24, 2018

Trailer Lug Bolts

How easy is it to knock out and install new lug bolts in a trailer hub?

For some reason one hub on our trailer is breaking lug bolts. Only one hub: I lost two bolts about 24k miles ago, and now I've busted two more of the original lugs at 44K miles.

The other three hubs have never had a problem.

I'm afraid the next time it'll happen on the road when I'm changing a flat (rather than at home-base during the annual rotation).

So I'm wondering if changing a lug bolt can be easily done with just a hammer, punch and wrench. There's some stuff on the internet that suggests it can be done ...
  • Check for enlarged holes in the wheel. The nut might be tightening on the hub leaving only a couple of studs doing all the work. Hole enlargement is caused by excessive tightening of the lug nut and the fix is replacement.
  • Get some heavy pipe to use as a backup set atop concrete

    Use something like a 2 lb drilling hammer plus a plug punch

    Studs that are untouched when the drum is not supported beneath the broken lug will absorb all the hammer energy by ringing and flexing. That's why a short piece of heavy pipe is used right underneath the broken stud to be driven out. I've seen people hammering the krap out of a drum. After I slip a piece of pipe under the stud, a medium tap of the hammer has the stud falling out. The difference is surprising.

    When installing studs, give them some love taps to get them started in straight before wailing on them.

    Same wheel stud problems are usually caused by a tire monkey whose impact wrench has a higher IQ than he does. Inspect the coin shaped flange of every hole. Harbor Freight sells cheap 1/2" torque wrenches that are good enough.

    WEAR EYE PROTECTION or risk spending the rest of your life looking like Captain Ron.
  • I have learned some lug bolts come out easy. Some do not. I have also learned that a torque wrench when tightening is a wise choice.
  • 3 to 5 lb sledge should make easy work of it.
    Good automotive parts store will have a press if you prefer.
  • Does ORV use wheel bolts or studs? (Studs I would expect.) Press-in studs like in photo below are easy to drive out with a heavy hammer. If not enough stud left protruding out, use a suitable dia. drift. Stubborn studs could possibly need some penetrating oil, heat or a puller. Could also take the hub off and take it to a shop.

    I *think* bolts/studs used on travel trailers are usually grade 5. Maybe replace with grade 8 if available?

    Yes, odd that it is happening to the same wheel. I'd want to investigate and see if there is a cause instead of just replacing the bolts once more and hoping it won't happen again. Is a wheel bearing loose, does the wheel/hub run true, lug nuts not torqued correctly or maybe bent spindle? Do the shoulders on the nuts have the correct angle to match the rims?

  • Wonder if they were way OVER-TORQUED sometime and failure was guaranteed!
  • Check the lug nuts to make sure they are the correct ones for the wheel. Maybe they installed the wrong ones at some point, or wrong from the factory. Mistakes happen. Seems odd only one wheel is having issues. Might check the hub too, maybe there's a casting error and the wheel isn't seating flat.
  • wa8yxm's avatar
    wa8yxm
    Explorer III
    Generally it is fairly easy but I'd have to see the hub to be sure.

    Remove wheel, Remove brake drum, Use a Drift to punch out the bolt (Back into the brake area) and fish out the debris, insert net bolt replace drum, replace wheel and torque the nut down to spec.

    Most likely cause of failure is over torquing of nut.
  • Actually did this once when the in-laws trailer broke 4 of 5 lugs on the road. We ended up taking one of the lugs from another wheel, punched it out and inserted it into the bad wheel. At least the bad wheel had 2 lugs now to keep the trailer moving. Then, it was limped to a repair shop who fixed everything for them. But, this was an older camper too. Not so sure about newer ones. Still... nothing ventured, nothing gained. If you have the luxury of experimenting in your drive way now, then do it. As you said, better in your drive way than on the road.

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