What's the best stuff out there to soak a rusty overtightened lugnut? Powerblaster? or is there something better to use?

 

I found the following interesting. Perhaps you will as well:

Thanks to Matthew J. Michalik who posted this on the Yahoo group:


Machinist's Workshop Mag (tm)recently published some information on various penetrating oils that I found very interesting. Some of you might appreciate this. the magazine reports they tested penetrants for break out torque on rusted nuts.
They are below, as forwarded by an ex-student and professional machinist.

They arranged a subjective test of all the popular penetrants
with the control being the torque required to remove the nut from
a "scientifically rusted" environment.

*Penetrating oil .......... Average load*
None ........................... 516 pounds
WD-40 ..................... ... 238 pounds
PB Blaster .................... 214 pounds
Liquid Wrench ............... 127 pounds
Kano Kroil .................... 106 pounds
ATF-Acetone mix...............53 pounds

The ATF-Acetone mix was a "home brew" mix of 50 - 50 automatic
transmission fluid and acetone. Note the "home brew" was better
than any commercial product in this one particular test.

Our local machinist group mixed up a batch and we all now use
it with equally good results.

Note also that "Liquid Wrench" is almost as good as "Kroil" for
about 20% of the price.

JamesC

 

Thank you James, Very interesting and resourceful info. I just sprayed them with PB about an hour ago. I think I am out of acetone (However I could steal my woman's nail polish remover- but I question that being as powerful since it lacks pure acetone properties. I will buy some more tomoorow and definately give that a day before trying any further.

Never hurts to ask- I really did not expect and answer but figured it wouldn;t hurt to ask anyways- GLAD I DID, I LEARNED SOMETHING NEW!!!

Ill report back in a few days on how the stuck lugnuts are progressing.

Just researched it more and it appears the 2 ingredients willnot mix together . It appears the test was done with some earlir ATF/powersteering fluid that may have still had whale oil in it from the 70's. The newer synthetic ATF will not mix with Acetone- they will separate like oil and water.

Since Acetone in small amounts is known to help gasoline atomize better (2-3oz per gln- no more than this or it reverses the benefit becasue it breaks downt he gas molecules too much- I can see just spraying acetone in pure form over the PB to ge tit to penetrate more. That I will try

 

After they have soaked for a decent amount of time . The longer the breaker bar the easier its going to be . Even a length of pipe on a bar will help. One guy with heavy gloves and safety glasses holds it on the nut while the other works the breaker. No sense busting up your knuckles. My brother caries a heavy 5ft. piece of pipe for breaking loose and tightening lug nuts on his 3/4 ton. 4 wheel drive suburban.

 

Very interesting. Thanks.

 

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If you can find Kroil, that's the best hands down, that i have ever used.

 

Not lug nuts, I understand.

My son-in-law came by a couple of days ago to use some of my tools to remove a ball hitch from his Jeep. He'd previously soaked the nut/threads with WD-40. We used a 24" breaker bar. It laughed at us. We used the breaker bar in conjunction with a 6' foot pipe. It laughed again. We used an impact gun. More laughing. Finally we cut the nut with a Dremel, then used a chisel and four-pound sledge to break the nut. No more laughing. I'd never seen anything like it.

JamesC

 

Goes to show even a very knowledge suspension guru can screw up.

Reverse thread on the LR only (non 3rd gen)- go figure ...laughing.

Damn good thing this idiot (me) didn't bust them off. Once the PB cleaned the threads I could see I was tightening them more.