Frozen Rear Wheel Hub Nuts

[Paulbeard]

[ClareSutton]

Is PBlaster the same as WD-40? Penetrating oil? Never heard of ATV ( I assume Auto Trans Fluid) with Acetone. This helps to free up frozen nuts and bolts? Interesting!

[Ahwahnee]

[Abscate]

Yeah WD40 is useless for this app, acetone /ATF applied over a week will creep in.

Heat and impact driver will work. You need the impact to break the rust , not torque. No hammers, crappy plate tools, etc.

Once it is off, clean it up and grease it to keep this job easy
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.ssS!

[vwjetboat]

PB blaster is the BOSS of rusty crap.. it DOES WORK

[Nuthin2It]

This Machinist's Workshop magazine study of various penetrating oils is quoted in many places but I can't find the original article. In this forum the writer added a price comparison, although they are 2005 prices.

https://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1078040
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1985 Westfalia 15 degree EA288 Boxeer

[alaskadan]

Though ive never tried it there has been no mention of putting the breaker bar on the nut with the bar on the ground and then put the van in gear ( 1st or reverse depending on which side) and pop the clutch. ? Thoughts?

[vwjetboat]

[jackbombay]

[ClareSutton]

Ok, day 2, passenger side rear axle hub. Yesterday I finally got the drivers side hub nut off so today I started the passenger side. After a few hours of soaking in BLASTER as suggested earlier I started with my impact wrench. Next I tried the 4 foot pry bar on the 46mm socket with lots of heat. No dice. Before I started chiseling with the ball pean I had a thought. Could these nuts be different threads?, one right hand and the other left hand?? Do they both come off counter clockwise regardless of the side? I would think they are the same. Could someone confirm this for me before I go back to it? I have continued to spray with blaster all day.
Thanks.

[Wellington]

same

[vwjetboat]

do you have an Air Chisel ? put a blunt round tipped chisel in it and vibrate the hell out of the end of the shaft..

[ClareSutton]

Thanks for the response, guys. I can get an air chisel. Might give this a try too.

[djkeev]

Ok, here's my issue with pounding on this nut and why I recommend cutting it off if shear torque will not remove it.

Brinelling.....

Look it up, it is damage that can be caused by impact upon a bearing.
When you whack hard on that axle nut, you run a very real risk of damaging the bearing because of that impact.

Turn that nut, don't beat the living crap out of it!

My two cents anyway.......

Dave
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http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=392473

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Beetle
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=482968&highlight=74+super+vert

[Abscate]

I think we beat Brinnel college my senior year ...

For those of you trying to use engine torque to take that nut off, a gas engine will put out roughly the same torque in ft lbs as it does net HP , so compare that to the breaker bar. Of course, you can give it a nice shock by lurching it forward but that sounds Like a good way to break some things.
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.ssS!

[?Waldo?]

With my breaker bar and long cheater pipe I can exert over 2000 ft-lbs of torque. I've always found removing the axle nuts to be downright easy without even using any heat, penetrating oil, or hammering on the bearings, etc...

[vers13]

I haven't seen this tool mentioned yet. This has always worked for me and allows use of breaker bar or a sledgehammer.

http://www.van-cafe.com/home/van/page_1216_335/46mm_axle_nut_tool.html

[IdahoDoug]

I'm with Andrew. I have an 8' pipe that is undefeated in applying leverage. I showed my kiddos the principles of leverage with it. I could not loosen a WBX crank pulley bolt while they watched me stand and bounce on the breaker bar. Then I inserted the pipe over it and handed it to my 95lb daughter and she easily broke it loose. Pick up a fence post at your local hardware store. They make thin crap ones and thicker nicer ones.

The safety comments are worthy. Full protection should be the call. If you've never had a power tool break, and watched the destruction it causes, then you'll have to be smart enough to absorb the concept without the bleeding. I know that's hard to do because we humans are visual. Even if you're very intelligent. But close your eyes and visualize yourself dropping the tool in pain, straightening up and seeing a huge bloodstain on your pant leg growing rapidly. Yelling for your wife. The drive to the hospital. The $8900 medical bill. A month before you can even go back to the garage to clean up and begin again on something you were only 90 seconds from finishing.

That is real and happens every single day somewhere near you. If you do something unsafe once in a while just because its faster, consider changing that. If you want to get old like some of us here and still enjoy wrenching, know that the statistic of cutting corners will eventually catch up to you simply because you enjoy this enough to do it often enough that the statistic will actually happen. If you're a hacker - fine, the statistic may not come to visit.

Off the stump.

Doug
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1987 2WD Wolfsburg Vanagon Weekender "Mango", two fully locked 80 Series LandCruisers. 2017 Subaru Outback boxer. 1990 Audi 90 Quattro 20V with rear locking differential, 1990 burgundy parts Vanagon. 1984 Porsche 944, 1988 Toyota Supra 5 speed targa, 2002 BMW 325iX, 1982 Toyota Sunrader

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