Air tools w/ small compressor?

[kenmac]

my concern would be the studs coming off due to stretching from the impact putting the lugs on.. not the nuts coming loose...

I don't know what happened but it was only 1 wheel on a 1988 ford bronco.Funny thing is,I was headed to your State when it happened. My father had a place there

 

[texasjohn]

Kinda been where you are...this is my experience...am Scottish heritage myself.

I've learned...low end Craftsman wrench destroyed itself too soon. Trying to break loose a nut takes both high torque and lots of air.

Thus, I bought a HFT impact wrench...highest torque they had...I hefted several, one was toooo heavy so I went one step down as regards weight. I think it's a half inch.

I added some old propane tanks for extra CAPACITY...just ran hoses and shutoff valves from one to the next and to my compressor. Before I did this, I ran out of air fast and compressor ran all the time at too low PSI.

Now, I use a wrench to break loose the lug nuts, then the impact to spin them off quickly. Impact spins them on after I start them by hand but ALWAYS do final tightening by hand...else I end up with wobbly rims after a few minutes...don't ask how I know...

I find impact to be really, really handy, but not a complete replacement for the 4 way such as you, and I, have.

I truly believe that your small compressor does not have sufficient CFM air to get the job done by itself. However, if you can find an additional tank of some size and add it, then you will be amazed at how much difference it makes. Do this and get a 80 dollar HFT impact wrench. The high torque results in using less total air than a less powerful impact wrench...thus you actually get the job done faster with the same compressor/air capacity tank.

good luck...and keep your wrenches handy to break loose the TOUGH nuts.

 

[Soundguy]

I don't know what happened but it was only 1 wheel on a 1988 ford bronco.Funny thing is,I was headed to your State when it happened. My father had a place there

well, at least you survived it.

a tire coming off at speed can be deadly.

 

[Grumpy Old Man]

I have way more than my fair share of tools and equipment but I bought a car trailer 100 miles from my house and when I got there it had a flat tire and i just couldn't break the lugs loose with a 4 way .Ran down to the local HF and bought a electric 1/2 impact and plugged it into my 4000 watt inverter I have in my truck (everyone should have an inverter ) and it worked great ,That was 7 years ago and it still works great after being used 100's of times ! Imagine that !

 

[Soundguy]

(everyone should have an inverter )

i agree.. very usefull.

I'd love to get one of those 2-4kw units when hf has them on sale. havn't brought myself to invest that much yet..

 

[Grumpy Old Man]

i agree.. very usefull.

I'd love to get one of those 2-4kw units when hf has them on sale. havn't brought myself to invest that much yet..

google tadd wholesale supply they sell thru e bay I think I paid around $30.00 for my 4000 watt inverter they sell store returns and over stocks (read the condition and return policy also check shipping rates before you bid ) I have seen many people drive from Florida and load their dually and goose neck trailers full of tools and equipment ,I used to buy 3-$5,000 a week from them for resale at a minimum 100 % profit .

 

[N80]

I have way more than my fair share of tools and equipment but I bought a car trailer 100 miles from my house and when I got there it had a flat tire and i just couldn't break the lugs loose with a 4 way .Ran down to the local HF and bought a electric 1/2 impact and plugged it into my 4000 watt inverter I have in my truck (everyone should have an inverter ) and it worked great ,That was 7 years ago and it still works great after being used 100's of times ! Imagine that !

I had not thought about an inverter. The corded impact wrenches cost less than half of what the cordless ones do. Would have to figure in the cost of the inerter but it would certainly have other uses. I know nothing about inverters. How big/much/powerful one would I need to run power tools? Do they require mods to the vehicle?

 

[Grumpy Old Man]

I had not thought about an inverter. The corded impact wrenches cost less than half of what the cordless ones do. Would have to figure in the cost of the inerter but it would certainly have other uses. I know nothing about inverters. How big/much/powerful one would I need to run power tools? Do they require mods to the vehicle?

I keep mine in a plastic box under the back seat of the truck and when I need it just attach the red and black leads to the battery .You can mount them but I don't use it daily. 2-4000 watts will run just about anything and I have used it for my dewalt sawzal /circular saw and air compressors with no problems , You can also hook them up to a marine battery for a short while if you can't get your truck close to where you need power I've seen them up to 10,000 watts but they start getting pricey ! we keep smaller 800 watt inverters in our trucks for recharging cell phones etc

 

[N80]

Northern Tool has a 3000w inverter but it is $379! But, I can see how this could be very useful at a track with no power or getting things done around my property. I'm assuming it can run off my tractor battery as well as my trucks.

 

[Grumpy Old Man]

Northern Tool has a 3000w inverter but it is $379! But, I can see how this could be very useful at a track with no power or getting things done around my property. I'm assuming it can run off my tractor battery as well as my trucks.

I've used mine a few times working off the tractor ,no problems

 

[KennyG]

What are thought on trying anti-seize on lug nuts/studs?

I wonder about this myself. I've been doing this on all my vehicles for 30 years or more and it seems to work well. None seized, none loose. I did have a wheel loosen up once but that was almost 50 years ago. In that event I learned that once they loosen up to the point you can feel it, you should replace the wheel - the holes will be worn enough to screw up the fastener contact.

I remove the nuts with the impact wrench and use it to spin the nuts back on, but I set the nuts with a 4-way. I should probably torque them, but it seems like I've got a good enough feel to keep them on. :thumbsup:

 

[Soundguy]

i don't put AS on the nuts,.. however I do put it on the rim to hub conenction.. that way the rim don't stick to the hub.

reason i don't use AS on the nuts is beacuse i'm pretty sure the torque # specified is for dry, clean threads.. lubed threads need to have the torque # changed.. etc.

it may be fine to do.. I'm just saying i don't do it personally..

 

[N80]

Well, I got a little bonus on my paycheck from last quarter. Did a little research and bought this:



It got better reviews than everything but Matco and Snap-On. I usually like DeWalt and Bosch power tools but this got better reviews than the various DeWalt models. It was very difficult to research the DeWalt models because they make so many with variations in features, battery types, etc etc. Some had comparable prices and some had different prices and reviews were mixed from model to model. Some were impossible to tell apart from the spec sheets and yet had different prices.....so I gave up. I've never bought a Kobalt power tool before but the batteries have a three year replacement warranty and the wrench has a five year replacement warranty. So we'll see.

I have already tested it with a partially charged battery on a lug nut torqued to around 100 pounds. It hammers/clicks a few times and spins it right off. The trigger is easy to modulate and I can spin the lug nut back on and stop before the hammer starts and then hand tighten with the torque wrench or T-bar.

So, I think this will work for my purposes.

However, these larger units will not be particularly useful for other automotive work due to size. For instance, it would not fit in the space available for doing things like changing brake pads and rotors. Will probably be a little more useful working on my tractor and implements since there is usually more space.

 

[kenmac]

AS I posted earlier, I used mine (cordless impact) this past weekend on my sons water pump and his intake removal.His truck seemed to have plenty of room to be able to remove these 2 parts. 1 thing to consider on the inverter.It's been my experence that,Most of the cordless drill batteries require an inverter with true sine wave.

 

[Gary Fowler]

I have been doing some work on my disc taking the gangs off 3/4" socket size (about a half inch bolt) with a 1/2" CP impact from Walmart about 25 years ago and using my Harbor Freight 3/4" drive 650 ft# one to take off the axles nut which is 1 1/4" socket size which is about a 1" bolt size. I had trouble with my 30 gal. compressor and was looking for a new one and found one of the little double tanker models about 3 gallon size with a 7 CFM @90 PSI. I used it to loosen and tighten the nut on the axle with good success. I would hammer it on till it wouldn't tighten any more and then let the compressor build to 130, beat the crap out of the disc blades to settle them in while waiting for the compressor to shut off, then put the big impact back on and hit the 1 1/4 nut again. It is tighter than I could ever get it with a wrench. The good thing with the small tank is it pumps up really quick less than a minute from empty so it isn't like the 30 gallon one that takes 5 minutes (seems like it but never really timed it)

 

[SPYDERLK]

I don't trust a tire store to have calibrated torque slip sockets or extensions.

those items don't last forever.. they wear.

and I wouldn't personally use them for the same reason.. they would serve me no better than a torque wrench.. which at least I can have calibrated at the tool store.

I love an impact to REMOVE nuts.. but not put them on..

Well, you would have control of the tool and it would be as well calibrated as you chose. I dont regard torque wrenching lugs as very important. I always use the impact to run a nut down and snug it; then on sensitive ones like cars or small trucks I finish tighten by feel using an appropriate ratchet and socket. On the tractors I just use the 1/2 impact to snug, and then short bursts to finish.
larry

 

[Egon]

In Canada many large tire dealers use air to run on the lug nuts and then finish with a torque wrench. They also ask you to come back after 100 Killometers to retorque the nuts.

 

[Soundguy]

Well, you would have control of the tool and it would be as well calibrated as you chose. I dont regard torque wrenching lugs as very important. I always use the impact to run a nut down and snug it; then on sensitive ones like cars or small trucks I finish tighten by feel using an appropriate ratchet and socket. On the tractors I just use the 1/2 impact to snug, and then short bursts to finish.
larry

in this world of liability.. I don't want to give all my assets away because I chose to stretch and possibly damage my studs to save 30 seconds vs properly torque them.

I can forsee it looking better explaining to a jury that you took due dilligence in torquing the nuts with the proper tool.. but thru soome unforseen error they broke anyway, shooting the wheel thru the bus of orphans. vs saying.. yeah.. I powere dup the 2 stage 80g compressor and had my brother jed help me drag out the BIG 1" gun and we put the air to it till the breaker popped. Can't imagine why the studs broke your honor.