Best DA of the year and this had to happen

[Joe M 2012 2SS]

The DA at Shadyside Dragway today was going to be between 0 and 200....would have been lowest I ever had a chance to run in.

I bought some Race Star 17" and some ET Street R 17" for a great deal on black friday, and was looking forward to going today.

I told the people who were balancing my tires not to put any weights on the center or front of the wheels, as the 17" wheels have very little clearance in this area from the calipers.....I had already test fit one of the wheels prior to having wheels put on and balanced....and of course...they put a few weights in the center......so this morning when I put them on to see if the weights would clear....of course they didn't.

OK...No big deal....I'll Just remove these weights and take them to be rebalanced with the weights only on the inner lip of the wheels...…..I get to the last lug nut, and after 1 turn to loosen it binds up.......…how it got cross threaded I cannot comprehend....I didn't over torque it.....I put my wheels on by hand....not by impact.

The lug actually ends up stuck inside the wheel....and after about an hour I finally got it off.....the stud is toast....and the lug is still stuck in the wheel.....I finally get the lug out with a punch....and it's actually swollen in the middle...........never even heard of this happening before.

The front skinnies are also RS 17", I've had them on/off many times..and never any issues at all......exact same lugs in them.

Now I do frequently swap out my street wheels for drag wheels...and I take the street one's off every couple months to clean the barrels.

I guess from all the on/off's wear is being caused to the lug studs.....so I want to prevent having this issue again.....the only two things I can think of is to get a chase for them....or put anti-seize on them (I realize the torque will need to be reduced by 25% of dry torque). Or maybe do both.

[zlathim]

One of mine did the same thing with the bulge. No idea how either. I happened in the middle of the race season. I replaced the nut but the stud was ok. I haven't had it happen since and I've probably swapped tires 5 or 6 times since then. I think the lug nuts are just crumby.

[Joe M 2012 2SS]

Originally Posted by zlathim

One of mine did the same thing with the bulge. No idea how either. I happened in the middle of the race season. I replaced the nut but the stud was ok. I haven't had it happen since and I've probably swapped tires 5 or 6 times since then. I think the lug nuts are just crumby.

Well at least you didn't have to change the wheel stud...….I called Race Star and they were really nice to me, and they are sending me a replacement lug/washer at no cost....they have excellent customer service.

Lets hope this is a "one and done" thing for both of us!

[Chris49066SS]

Same thing for me. I got a lug stuck on one of the rears last month and went through that nightmare a day before the track. I also have a lug stuck on in the front, so I still have my drag pack on. I don't mind dailying in skinnies and bias ply Street Rs, but I'd rather not put the extra miles on them, and it would be nice to have the extra handling and grip in the colder months.

[Joe M 2012 2SS]

Originally Posted by Chris49066SS

Same thing for me. I got a lug stuck on one of the rears last month and went through that nightmare a day before the track. I also have a lug stuck on in the front, so I still have my drag pack on. I don't mind dailying in skinnies and bias ply Street Rs, but I'd rather not put the extra miles on them, and it would be nice to have the extra handling and grip in the colder months.

Hate to hear this Chris.....I wouldn't leave them on in freezing temps..... freezing cold air isn't good for soft rubber.....I hope, like zlathim you can get them off without damaging the lug stud like I did.

[zlathim]

Originally Posted by Joe M 2012 2SS

Well at least you didn't have to change the wheel stud...….I called Race Star and they were really nice to me, and they are sending me a replacement lug/washer at no cost....they have excellent customer service.

Lets hope this is a "one and done" thing for both of us!

I didn't even think to call the manufacturer... Stupid me, I bought a ten pack of lug nuts and washers.

I would recommend marking (dot of dial in on the tire next to the valve stem) your tires to make sure they aren't spinning on the wheels. The first time I had my tires mounted, they would spin about 2 inches on each hit. I ended up having to break the tires down again and remove all of the powder coat from bead seating area of the wheels to fix it.

[Joe M 2012 2SS]

Originally Posted by zlathim

I didn't even think to call the manufacturer... Stupid me, I bought a ten pack of lug nuts and washers.

I would recommend marking (dot of dial in on the tire next to the valve stem) your tires to make sure they aren't spinning on the wheels. The first time I had my tires mounted, they would spin about 2 inches on each hit. I ended up having to break the tires down again and remove all of the powder coat from bead seating area of the wheels to fix it.

I had the person who put the tires on put a good amount of bead sealer on them...I had also done this with the 18" ET street R's that I had before these, and never had any wheel spin inside the tire.

[Silveradoss573]

Sorry but the hardware is junk from race star. Don't believe me that's fine, just Google the issues. Take those lugnuts etc and throw them in the trash. Hell from what I've ever seen, even the wheels can be questionable. Go buy a good set of lugnuts and washers from summitracing at a minimum.

[Joe M 2012 2SS]

Originally Posted by Silveradoss573

Sorry but the hardware is junk from race star. Don't believe me that's fine, just Google the issues. Take those lugnuts etc and throw them in the trash. Hell from what I've ever seen, even the wheels can be questionable. Go buy a good set of lugnuts and washers from summitracing at a minimum.

I did some research on this.....and yes I saw other people having the same issue.....but I also found several people stating that once they used anti-seize on the lugs......threaded them in by hand at least 1/3rd of the way before putting a ratchet on them.....never use an impact.... they had no more issues with them.....when you put on anti-seize....it's like putting wax or sealant on your paint...a thin layer is all you need.

I found also in the "Technical" tab on the Race Star home page, that they recommend cleaning the studs, and applying anti-seize as well.

The max torque on the 14mm lugs they reccomend on our wheels is 114 ft. lbs.....I got this direct from Race Star.....although I didn't ask if this was a "wet" torque or a "dry" torque value.....I will call them tomorrow again to find out....since they recommend anti-seize, I would think this is "wet" torque.

One thing I have learned is that you can have the best product in the world...but if it's used or installed improperly......it will not work.

I have put my front skinnies on "dry" at least a dozen times since owning them, and never had an issue.

I also found several people who did swap to the "Gorilla" lugs from Summit, and ended up having the same issue....and a few of these mentioned they resolved it with anti-seize.

I don't believe a company.... with as good of a customer service rep as I spoke with today...... could be a company that doesn't care about their customers...…..and sells junk.

It's apparent from all I've read....anti-seize is what is needed.

[Chris49066SS]

Originally Posted by zlathim

I didn't even think to call the manufacturer... Stupid me, I bought a ten pack of lug nuts and washers.

I would recommend marking (dot of dial in on the tire next to the valve stem) your tires to make sure they aren't spinning on the wheels. The first time I had my tires mounted, they would spin about 2 inches on each hit. I ended up having to break the tires down again and remove all of the powder coat from bead seating area of the wheels to fix it.

You and Andrew Cammer have really done an awesome job pushing the M6 all motor, Z! When are you guys coming over to the dark side (auto trans)? That means "normal" looking wheel and tires again Haha Well done gents!

[Silveradoss573]

Originally Posted by Joe M 2012 2SS

I did some research on this.....and yes I saw other people having the same issue.....but I also found several people stating that once they used anti-seize on the lugs......threaded them in by hand at least 1/3rd of the way before putting a ratchet on them.....never use an impact.... they had no more issues with them.....when you put on anti-seize....it's like putting wax or sealant on your paint...a thin layer is all you need.

I found also in the "Technical" tab on the Race Star home page, that they recommend cleaning the studs, and applying anti-seize as well.

The max torque on the 14mm lugs they reccomend on our wheels is 114 ft. lbs.....I got this direct from Race Star.....although I didn't ask if this was a "wet" torque or a "dry" torque value.....I will call them tomorrow again to find out....since they recommend anti-seize, I would think this is "wet" torque.

One thing I have learned is that you can have the best product in the world...but if it's used or installed improperly......it will not work.

I have put my front skinnies on "dry" at least a dozen times since owning them, and never had an issue.

I also found several people who did swap to the "Gorilla" lugs from Summit, and ended up having the same issue....and a few of these mentioned they resolved it with anti-seize.

I don't believe a company.... with as good of a customer service rep as I spoke with today...... could be a company that doesn't care about their customers...…..and sells junk.

It's apparent from all I've read....anti-seize is what is needed.

Alrighty...good luck then

[Joe M 2012 2SS]

The 114 ft. lbs. is dry torque.....so with anti-seize 90 ft. lbs.

[zlathim]

Originally Posted by Chris49066SS

You and Andrew Cammer have really done an awesome job pushing the M6 all motor, Z! When are you guys coming over to the dark side (auto trans)? That means "normal" looking wheel and tires again Haha Well done gents!

Andrew has been threatening to cross over!!

TBH, the thought has crossed my mind, but it probably won't happen for me until I can afford to own 2 cars. I just dig slamming gears too much. I'll never be as fast or consistent as you auto guys. That's why I race in the Super Shifter class, where we are all on equal footing!

[zlathim]

Originally Posted by Joe M 2012 2SS

I had the person who put the tires on put a good amount of bead sealer on them...I had also done this with the 18" ET street R's that I had before these, and never had any wheel spin inside the tire.

Smart move.