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Lug Nut Torque

ralphnjoann
Explorer
Explorer
My fifth wheel has 15" five bolt load range C tires. What should the lug nut torque be? Would 80 foot pounds be about right?
13 REPLIES 13

fj12ryder
Explorer III
Explorer III
And there's no reason you ever should.

I use anti-seize on my lug nuts, and tighten them to about 5-7 lb.ft. less than the recommended. Never had a lug nut come loose in 40 years, and I can always get them off with the tools at hand. Which is the main idea. I've had friends that cannot say the same when they needed to change a tire.
Howard and Peggy

"Don't Panic"

3oaks
Explorer
Explorer
JIMNLIN wrote:
Good point.
Dry such as a new lug and a new nut with no rust present on the lug nuts or studs or where the nut contacts the wheel.
Lug nuts and studs can become rusty over time to the point they are hard to break loose and pop when broke loose. When this happens on any of my trailers I add a couple of drops of heavy oil or a touch of red grease to the stud and run the lugs in and out a few time for good coverage and getting rid of rust and the nut contact point.
Don't over lube the threads on a old nut or stud.
I so similar, only I give them a shot of WD-40. And to all the nay sayers, I have never had a lug nut work loose from using WD-40 on the threads.

time2roll
Nomad
Nomad
ralphnjoann wrote:
Thank you, everyone. Per earlier posts, I found a chart on eTrailer which shows 90 to 120 foot pounds. I'll stay on the lower side.
That is what my sticker said. I have similar wheels and tires. I use 105 to split the difference.

ralphnjoann
Explorer
Explorer
Thank you, everyone. Per earlier posts, I found a chart on eTrailer which shows 90 to 120 foot pounds. I'll stay on the lower side.

LOFAT36
Explorer
Explorer
Aluminum wheels 105

MFL
Nomad II
Nomad II
I would say 80 lbs would be about right, not more than 90 lbs. It does make a difference, depending on wheel type.

Mine are 6-bolt 5,200 lb axles. I set mine about 90 lbs, and they do not loosen, after the initial couple tight checks, required from wheel removal. I have white spoke steel wheels.

Jerry

MarkTwain
Explorer
Explorer
ralphnjoann wrote:
My fifth wheel has 15" five bolt load range C tires. What should the lug nut torque be? Would 80 foot pounds be about right?


Contact the customer service of your trailers MFG or look in your RV's manual or you could just call your local RV shop as they would have all these torque numbers.

JIMNLIN
Explorer
Explorer
Good point.
Dry such as a new lug and a new nut with no rust present on the lug nuts or studs or where the nut contacts the wheel.
Lug nuts and studs can become rusty over time to the point they are hard to break loose and pop when broke loose. When this happens on any of my trailers I add a couple of drops of heavy oil or a touch of red grease to the stud and run the lugs in and out a few time for good coverage and getting rid of rust and the nut contact point.
Don't over lube the threads on a old nut or stud.
"good judgment comes from experience, and a lot of that comes from bad judgment" ............ Will Rogers

'03 2500 QC Dodge/Cummins HO 3.73 6 speed manual Jacobs Westach
'97 Park Avanue 28' 5er 11200 two slides

TxGearhead
Explorer II
Explorer II
Whatever value you settle on, torque values are usually stated as "dry". So no grease or anti-seize on the threads.
2018 Ram 3500 CC LB DRW 4X4 Cummins Aisin Laramie Pearl White
2018 Landmark Oshkosh
2008 Bigfoot 25C9.4
2014 NauticStar 21 ShallowBay 150HP Yamaha
2016 GoDevil 18X44 35HP Surface Drive

allen8106
Explorer
Explorer
jfkmk wrote:
what axles do you have? The Dexter axles on my TT call for 100-120 ft pounds.


Same here.
2010 Eagle Super Lite 315RLDS
2018 GMC Sierra 3500HD 6.6L Duramax

2010 Nights 45
2011 Nights 70
2012 Nights 144
2013 Nights 46
2014 Nights 49
2015 Nights 57
2016 Nights 73
2017 Nights 40
2018 Nights 56
2019 Nights 76
2020 Nights 68

JIMNLIN
Explorer
Explorer
Dexster axle and wheel torque
Axle manufacturers like Dexster or Rockwell American/other have a max torque for their lugs however the wheel manufacturer may have less torque requirements.
Example Dexster says their 1/2"-20 thd axle lugs are good to 120 ft lbs.....then their steel wheels may go to from 90 to 120 ft lbs.
Most aluminum wheels use max torque numbers.

A google has tons of reading on the subject.
"good judgment comes from experience, and a lot of that comes from bad judgment" ............ Will Rogers

'03 2500 QC Dodge/Cummins HO 3.73 6 speed manual Jacobs Westach
'97 Park Avanue 28' 5er 11200 two slides

eHoefler
Explorer II
Explorer II
Depends on stud size. 1/2" usualy 90ftpds, 9/16" 140ftpds
2021 Ram Limited, 3500, Crew Cab, 1075FTPD of Torque!, Max Tow, Long bed, 4 x 4, Dually,
2006 40' Landmark Mt. Rushmore

jfkmk
Explorer
Explorer
what axles do you have? The Dexter axles on my TT call for 100-120 ft pounds.