Fellas,
I have read through a bunch of the forums i am on and there seems to be very little on this topic; Replacing your wheel studs and the interface with your wheels. I have posted this in some other forums but I think it probably best belongs on Expo. First some background on my story.
I was recently on an adventure involving a few Jeeps; including my XJ, and a few rough trails and a whole lot of camping. It wasn't too far in the backcountry, but it was remote. We were working our way through a canyon, one that was once a good size river that was now a hydro electric project. The area was great off-roading, and really not all that challenging, a few river crossings, a few boulders to negotiate. Nothing big! That was until my wheel busted off!!!
So this was a shocker, but i have had this happen before, and yes I thought I had learned my lesson. I always torque my lugs before I go out, along with a grocery list of other pre-trip checks.
So since we didn’t have a lot of time left in the day, my friends and I sprung into action. Pulled down the high-lift, jacked up the Jeep, checked the wheel and it looked fine. Searched and luckily located all but one of the lug nuts on the trail. I brought spare lug nuts, and used them just in case the old ones had stripped. We got it all sewn up, even my Bushwacker flare which had popped off, and we were on the road. I re-torqued all the other wheels and thought maybe it had just vibrated loose.
So we get continue about 2 Kilometers (1 mile) down this trail. Had a few more river crossings and a few more obstacles, when BOOM! The same wheel comes off. This time there are no more spare lugs because they are in either a river, or back down the trail and who knows where...
So this has my brain in a twist, we again jack up the Jeep and this time I grab a F%*&$ OFF! rock and smash the wheel studs out. The rationale is that they are the obvious the weak link, but the question is why is this happening? We decide to leave the XJ in the Canyon over night, go to a service station in the next major town and come back with new studs. This did take a bit of work to get the studs back in and seated without airtools but we were able to limp it out to the highway by re-checking torque every so often. I flat decked the Jeep back home but I think there are some lessons to be learned, so I will pass them on.
1. Stock Wheel Studs are weak and likely stretched or deteriorated.
Dont let this happen to you!! You could be stranded as hell. To upgrade your wheel studs to 190,000psi Moroso or similar Wheel studs and open ended lug nuts will cost you less than $100. They are above Grade 8 and when you put the studs in, they will guarantee security. If you need to use garbage GORILLA spline drive lug nuts so your wheels dont get jacked, you can use them as an addition to the open ended lugs and it will be both secure and safe at the huge shockload values. Almost like a lock nut action only using two lugs. I'm probably not the first to think of this but in case you like a little extra security do this small upgrade which will take all of 45 mins to do. I believe the studs we used were 5/8" they had a better Knurl and had a way better purchase on the axle, also the "dog ends" are a nice way to prevent cross thread and wear. We had to "Clean out" the hole a slight bit to get them to take. I was originally looking at the ARP studs but they seemed a little too big.
2. Shiny Lug nuts but are they strong?
Im still searching for various high quality lug nuts, but I settled with NAPA cone lug nuts for now; which are also above grade 8 rating. Additionally I will use the Gorilla spline drive lug nuts replaced by the store and re-use merely as shiny decoration and security from thieves. The difference is the new ones will have to also have to be open ended. I highly suggest you use steel as oppose to the Aluminum ones. Durability and strength are higher in the Steel ones.
3. Wheels fit or universal?
The wheels I am running are Ultra Wheels Baja Champion, and can hopefully be repaired (although only used as a spare in the future). Most aftermarket wheels are made with a larger centerbore to accommodate a wide range of vehicles; also known as lug-centric wheels. Stock wheels fit the hub with an exact fit centerbore; these are known as hub-centric wheels. My XJ has a 71.5mm centerbore and the wheels have 83mm centerbore.
4. Hub-centric Rings (Hub rings) for perfect fit.
Hub-centric rings will fit over the hub to adapt the centerbore to the wheel. Most are made of plastic, but you can find some made of aluminum or other metals. The idea is not to carry the weight but to center the wheel perfectly to the hub. This will eliminate vibration or an un-centered wheel on installation. Here are some examples:
Like all of you, my purpose built XJ is made for Overlanding, with that the stresses are increased. It has a huge ARB bumper at 150lbs, Warn XD9000 winch add 75lbs, 5- 33" tires at 50lbs each, a rack with 3 cases full of gear on the Defender rack and you can add at least 300lbs, it has a tire carrier with one of the wheels and two 20L Scepter gerry cans. Add on a Long arm kit and some armor, inside I run a 20L water carrier, Thermoelectric fridge, Cooler, slide out kitchen and all loaded with camping gear, chain saws, chains, fluids, tools, snatch blocks, passengers etc etc. All in all Off-roading/ Overlanding adds a lot more weight than a stock vehicle as a result the stresses increase equally.
To my surprise this issue is overlooked on most forums considering how much we all overbuild every other little thing on our jeeps and Overlander rigs. I never really thought it was an issue either. The studs that are stock are weak and are meant for stock use, the replacements are often just as weak. Just ask what grade of bolt they are and you would be surprised how many say they dont know, or have no rating or guarantee at all. The high quality ones like ARP, or Moroso do. One bit of advice i might give is to stay away from Aluminum. The lug nuts i had were Gorilla brand which are not much different from most, but add to a weak system. Gorilla provides no rating on their lug nuts at all, but they sure look shiny and do provide security from theft. I have had my Jeep to a few tire shops over the years and no mention was made to upgrading the wheel studs, hub-centric rings or lug nuts.
I looked on all kinds of forums and the only mention of upgrade was on
Jeepspeed forum. I choose to upgrade and if you plan on wheeling hard its a pretty cheap piece of security. I say overbuild whenever you can especially when its cheap to do so. Please feel free to input anything on this topic. It is not meant to scare you, but if you have a Jeep Cherokee as old as mine (1999), or other similar Overland rig it might be a good idea to look into.
I have read through a bunch of the forums i am on and there seems to be very little on this topic; Replacing your wheel studs and the interface with your wheels. I have posted this in some other forums but I think it probably best belongs on Expo. First some background on my story.
I was recently on an adventure involving a few Jeeps; including my XJ, and a few rough trails and a whole lot of camping. It wasn't too far in the backcountry, but it was remote. We were working our way through a canyon, one that was once a good size river that was now a hydro electric project. The area was great off-roading, and really not all that challenging, a few river crossings, a few boulders to negotiate. Nothing big! That was until my wheel busted off!!!
So this was a shocker, but i have had this happen before, and yes I thought I had learned my lesson. I always torque my lugs before I go out, along with a grocery list of other pre-trip checks.
So since we didn’t have a lot of time left in the day, my friends and I sprung into action. Pulled down the high-lift, jacked up the Jeep, checked the wheel and it looked fine. Searched and luckily located all but one of the lug nuts on the trail. I brought spare lug nuts, and used them just in case the old ones had stripped. We got it all sewn up, even my Bushwacker flare which had popped off, and we were on the road. I re-torqued all the other wheels and thought maybe it had just vibrated loose.
So we get continue about 2 Kilometers (1 mile) down this trail. Had a few more river crossings and a few more obstacles, when BOOM! The same wheel comes off. This time there are no more spare lugs because they are in either a river, or back down the trail and who knows where...
So this has my brain in a twist, we again jack up the Jeep and this time I grab a F%*&$ OFF! rock and smash the wheel studs out. The rationale is that they are the obvious the weak link, but the question is why is this happening? We decide to leave the XJ in the Canyon over night, go to a service station in the next major town and come back with new studs. This did take a bit of work to get the studs back in and seated without airtools but we were able to limp it out to the highway by re-checking torque every so often. I flat decked the Jeep back home but I think there are some lessons to be learned, so I will pass them on.
1. Stock Wheel Studs are weak and likely stretched or deteriorated.
Dont let this happen to you!! You could be stranded as hell. To upgrade your wheel studs to 190,000psi Moroso or similar Wheel studs and open ended lug nuts will cost you less than $100. They are above Grade 8 and when you put the studs in, they will guarantee security. If you need to use garbage GORILLA spline drive lug nuts so your wheels dont get jacked, you can use them as an addition to the open ended lugs and it will be both secure and safe at the huge shockload values. Almost like a lock nut action only using two lugs. I'm probably not the first to think of this but in case you like a little extra security do this small upgrade which will take all of 45 mins to do. I believe the studs we used were 5/8" they had a better Knurl and had a way better purchase on the axle, also the "dog ends" are a nice way to prevent cross thread and wear. We had to "Clean out" the hole a slight bit to get them to take. I was originally looking at the ARP studs but they seemed a little too big.
2. Shiny Lug nuts but are they strong?
Im still searching for various high quality lug nuts, but I settled with NAPA cone lug nuts for now; which are also above grade 8 rating. Additionally I will use the Gorilla spline drive lug nuts replaced by the store and re-use merely as shiny decoration and security from thieves. The difference is the new ones will have to also have to be open ended. I highly suggest you use steel as oppose to the Aluminum ones. Durability and strength are higher in the Steel ones.
3. Wheels fit or universal?
The wheels I am running are Ultra Wheels Baja Champion, and can hopefully be repaired (although only used as a spare in the future). Most aftermarket wheels are made with a larger centerbore to accommodate a wide range of vehicles; also known as lug-centric wheels. Stock wheels fit the hub with an exact fit centerbore; these are known as hub-centric wheels. My XJ has a 71.5mm centerbore and the wheels have 83mm centerbore.
4. Hub-centric Rings (Hub rings) for perfect fit.
Hub-centric rings will fit over the hub to adapt the centerbore to the wheel. Most are made of plastic, but you can find some made of aluminum or other metals. The idea is not to carry the weight but to center the wheel perfectly to the hub. This will eliminate vibration or an un-centered wheel on installation. Here are some examples:
Like all of you, my purpose built XJ is made for Overlanding, with that the stresses are increased. It has a huge ARB bumper at 150lbs, Warn XD9000 winch add 75lbs, 5- 33" tires at 50lbs each, a rack with 3 cases full of gear on the Defender rack and you can add at least 300lbs, it has a tire carrier with one of the wheels and two 20L Scepter gerry cans. Add on a Long arm kit and some armor, inside I run a 20L water carrier, Thermoelectric fridge, Cooler, slide out kitchen and all loaded with camping gear, chain saws, chains, fluids, tools, snatch blocks, passengers etc etc. All in all Off-roading/ Overlanding adds a lot more weight than a stock vehicle as a result the stresses increase equally.
To my surprise this issue is overlooked on most forums considering how much we all overbuild every other little thing on our jeeps and Overlander rigs. I never really thought it was an issue either. The studs that are stock are weak and are meant for stock use, the replacements are often just as weak. Just ask what grade of bolt they are and you would be surprised how many say they dont know, or have no rating or guarantee at all. The high quality ones like ARP, or Moroso do. One bit of advice i might give is to stay away from Aluminum. The lug nuts i had were Gorilla brand which are not much different from most, but add to a weak system. Gorilla provides no rating on their lug nuts at all, but they sure look shiny and do provide security from theft. I have had my Jeep to a few tire shops over the years and no mention was made to upgrading the wheel studs, hub-centric rings or lug nuts.
I looked on all kinds of forums and the only mention of upgrade was on
Jeepspeed forum. I choose to upgrade and if you plan on wheeling hard its a pretty cheap piece of security. I say overbuild whenever you can especially when its cheap to do so. Please feel free to input anything on this topic. It is not meant to scare you, but if you have a Jeep Cherokee as old as mine (1999), or other similar Overland rig it might be a good idea to look into.
