All right, it's not the most technically involved story we've ever tackled here at Jp, but how many times have the gorillas at your local auto repair place friction-welded your lug nuts to your wheels with a 3/4-inch impact gun? Or maybe you've done it yourself? You've got Oprah blaring away on your garage TV and you're so engrossed in discovering who the real baby daddy is that you mash your lugs on so tight that you can't bust them off on the trail -- even with a breaker bar ... and a Hi-Lift handle ... and three fat friends.
We called up Dynatrac for some input on this deep and meaningful topic. And because Dynatrac takes such careful steps when assembling its axle assemblies, we figured the gang there would have a NASA-like operations manual for this subject. Turns out they don't, but here's their advice.
When tightening your lugs, go around the bolt circle in a star pattern. First, get each lug nut snug and then grab the torque wrench. Tighten 1/2-inch studs to 100 to 120lb-ft. Larger 9/16-inch studs can be tightened to 120 to 140lb-ft.
Larger, heavier vehicles and rigs with larger tires should shoot for the higher side of the torque range. Smaller, lighter vehicles and rigs with smaller tires can shoot for the lower side.