EZ Flex hanger bolts creeking - triple axle

[tsetsaf]

As the title states I have a triple axle with the upgraded EZ Flex hangers and wet bolt setup. Last few hundred miles it developed an annoying squeak. I greased everything and it was still there. Grab the torque wrench and checked bolts. The hanger bolts got almost a full turn to get back to 75 ft lbs. Still creaking but better. Any ideas on how to quiet it down? It is the hanger bolts for sure. Just spray with some lithium grease?

[Cool_Canuck]

Those shackle bolts should be torqued 35-50 ft.lbs. Not 75 ft. lbs. They will strip very easy. The nuts are a crush type and should not back out easily.

The spring eyes are anything but round. The bronze bushings will break and crack. I'm not sure how much of a problem that is.

EZ Flex Installation Instructions

[bkirkpatrick]

You are correct

[fj12ryder]

Sometimes there is a slight amount of movement and initial bedding in, which will require fasteners to be retorqued. Since you're welded the nuts on you don't know how tight the fasteners are now.

[bkirkpatrick]

Copy. As I have stated, my tac weld is just that. a 1/8th dab. Just for insurance. I would not weld or drop a 1/2 inch tack on it because you would be there for a while trying to grind it off. I lifted my Raptor 4" with blocks and new (larger) u-bolts. I did not want to have to go through a re-torquing of them and since they were all steel, I tacked each one after I torqued them down. 8 years later, they are good to go. I know the steel could flex and I would be SOL but everything has held so far.

[dodgboy]

bkirkpatrick what I mean by not welding is I have had to replace a broken spring miles away from anywhere. I take a lot of tools with me but I don't carry a grinder so depending how much weld was put on would make it more difficult to remove the spring bolts.

[bkirkpatrick]

fj12ryder wrote:

bkirkpatrick wrote:
(snip) We are trying to find solutions for the OP whose nuts are backing off of the bolt (no pun intended). We could always recommend drilling the nut and bolt and putting a piece of safety wire through it but that is not realistic. (Snip)

The main problem with your welding idea is that you're not addressing the problem, you're putting a band-aid on it without determining the issue. The fact of the matter is that those bolts should not work loose, and if they are, there are deeper problems that need to be located. Welding the nut, or double-nutting, or whatever, doesn't fix the real problem: Why are those bolts loosening up?

The same thing if I had to rebuild my engine in the wilderness? really?

[bkirkpatrick]

I agree with the OP's current situation and there is something wrong if they are coming lose.

[fj12ryder]

bkirkpatrick wrote:
(snip) We are trying to find solutions for the OP whose nuts are backing off of the bolt (no pun intended). We could always recommend drilling the nut and bolt and putting a piece of safety wire through it but that is not realistic. (Snip)

The main problem with your welding idea is that you're not addressing the problem, you're putting a band-aid on it without determining the issue. The fact of the matter is that those bolts should not work loose, and if they are, there are deeper problems that need to be located. Welding the nut, or double-nutting, or whatever, doesn't fix the real problem: Why are those bolts loosening up?

[dodgboy]

Problem with tack welding is what happens if you have to change a spring out in the wilderness?

[bkirkpatrick]

fj12ryder wrote:
My thought would be that if you have enough of a problem that you feel you need to weld the nuts on, then there are some real serious issues somewhere. I've never worked on anything that was so poorly designed that the nuts had to be welded to keep from coming loose.

That is not true. Simply a matter of piece of mind. We are trying to find solutions for the OP whose nuts are backing off of the bolt (no pun intended). We could always recommend drilling the nut and bolt and putting a piece of safety wire through it but that is not realistic.

I had an F350 and had a spring shackle rivet fail. I popped them all out and put in grade 8 hardware and after I tightened them down, I dropped about a 1/4 inch tac on them. The tac was not because something was wrong but because I did not want them coming off. No chances with the tac.

[fj12ryder]

My thought would be that if you have enough of a problem that you feel you need to weld the nuts on, then there are some real serious issues somewhere. I've never worked on anything that was so poorly designed that the nuts had to be welded to keep from coming loose.

[bkirkpatrick]

fj12ryder wrote:
Makes removal, retorquing a bit a challenge doesn't it? 🙂

Why would you re-torque them? I could see if they were aluminum or something where the metal was soft but steel is steel. Also, I am not talking about a complete tig weld around the nut. Just a dap of spot weld.

[fj12ryder]

Makes removal, retorquing a bit a challenge doesn't it? 🙂

[bkirkpatrick]

Why not tac weld them. I did that to my ubolt nuts.