I finally stopped using impact guns on lug nuts after that tire shop incident

Everyone at my shop swears by impacts for everything. But after a 2018 Ford F-150 came in with stripped studs from my own gun, I changed my mind. I was at Andy's Tire & Auto in Cleveland when the guy showed me how much torque my old Ingersoll Rand was actually putting out. It was reading 175 ft-lbs on a spec of 100. Now I hand torque wheels on every car. Took me an extra 10 minutes per job but zero comebacks in 6 months. Anyone else ditch the impact for wheels?

3 comments

3 Comments

young.ryan8d ago

175 ft-lbs on a wheel that calls for 100 is a little high, but stripping a stud from an impact alone takes some serious abuse.

gracethomas7d ago

175 on a 100 spec wheel? That's wild.

theas287d ago

Nah, honestly I gotta push back on that a little. Stripping a stud with an impact is way easier than people think if you're using a cheap impact gun with no torque control and the nut's been on there for years with rust. I've seen guys snap off studs at 120 ft-lbs just because the threads were all jacked up from cross-threading or corrosion. Plus not every impact gun even hits the same torque, some of those cheap ones can go way past what they claim. 175 might be a lot but if the stud was already weak or damaged, it's not that shocking it gave out.