Messed up the first post.Anyone have problems when using unilug aluminum slotted mags like them not staying tight or others issues.Also what are the tourque specs for aluminum mags.Thanks
I don't know torque specs. Be sure to use the right washers and tighten them again after a few miles . Check once a week.
My experience with uni lug mags was not really good. Even when they were new and the washers were also new they were difficult to keep tight. If you forgot to check them things can go wrong quickly and then they’re damaged. I found that they were more trouble than they were worth and went to a standard style wheel. There are good reasons why they are not making them anymore.
Back in the day they were known for coming loose, quite a few guys would not run them. My brother had a set of uni-lug ET Slots break 4 of 5 studs off on a '73 Monte Carlo but got it stopped before it broke the 5th and surprisingly didn't tear up the wheel....just had to replace the studs, lugs, and washers. Washers were specific shape and size depending on brand...Cragar washers wouldn't fit ET , Indy, Fenton or Ansen and vice versa. Each brand had their own, they couldn't be mixed and matched. Some are now extremely hard to find if you need replacements. 7/16" diameter stud, 60-70 ft.lbs. 1/2" diameter studs, 80-90 ft.lbs torque
did you see the replies to your other thread? btw, it's a good idea to not create two identical threads. If you think you posted it but maybe not, wait to see if it shows up, before posting again.
Ran unilugs on my '65 impala from '67-'70 , nobody told me they'd come loose ,never had a problem , have had them on my t-bucket now for 19 years and haven't had them come loose ...
Like many things designed in mechanical area, they were good if used properly. Like all new wheels, especially after market wheels , they have a proper torque and should be rechecked at least once after install. Then checked periodically after that. Sometimes, this was not done properly and the failure was blamed on the peticular new item, in this case “ uni-lug”. I have seen shops forget to even tighten all four wheels before. Wheels coming loose is a common thing on all types of wheels! Lots of big companies have “ things” on their lug nuts to show if one is loosing up, to prevent wheel loss and possibly wreck. So it’s not unique to uni-lug to loose a wheel. Ive got a set of custom wheels on my avatar car that “uni-lug” insert, is just a washer over the slotted hole! They are coming off, in favor of a different style that fits my car! Bones
Like any aluminum wheel the lugs should be checked often when new, they have a tendency to loosen, when I installed the American mag 5 spokes I drove the car less than a hundred mikes and found 7 of the 20 lugs had become loose. after a few weeks I cjecked them again and only found one real loose and I checked them all. As I recall the Unilug wheels had a eccentric washer that is specific to the wheels. HRP
Take a few minutes and measure with a CALIPER both the washer thickness and the lug shank length as well as the hole through length of ALL WHEELS make sure ALL the lugnuts in ALL the wheels aren't too long and don't reach past the wheel mounting surface. All it takes is one or two being too long by as little as five thousanths of an inch.
I've ran UniLugs on the 38 Chevy for years and never experienced any problems, maybe I over tightened them
I will NEVER run another set myself. Had one come loose on a OT big block elcamino going down the highway @70mph, Sheered 3 studs and the other 2 loose. Was real lucky there was a scrap yard where I could get some used studs and wheel nuts.. This was along I-40 Near Yucca AZ and if any one knows the area there isn't SHIT for mile either way.
He hit on the main issue with running a set you find now. Several of the outfits that made them have been out of business for years and the others don't supply the correct washers or nuts for their obsolete wheels anymore. The correct ones were near impossible to get in the late 80's when I worked part time in a parts house that had bins of mag wheel lug nuts and washers of all brands in the back. The slots in the wheels and the slotted washers are just enough different that they won't usually interchange on a lot of them. If the washer is the least bit loose in the slot they can want to move around a bit.
In addition to the washer thickness and shank length issues mentioned above, removing and reinstalling can cause wear to both the lug nuts and washers, creating a loose condition. It happened to me on prom night, while wearing a new suit
I wasn't sure how to correct the lack of a title and asked that the mods. could remove that thread but they corrected my mistake.Thanks all for all the advise.The mags center hole is 3 1/4 in dia.so not riding on the hub.The lugnut holes are slightly worn from bevel shape washers.I have longer then stock studs and I'm using McGard lug nuts that are long enough so they won't bottom out on the studs and the studs will thread beyond the shoulder of the lugnut and into the head of the lugnutThanks to all who replied.
I tend to overtighten wheel lugs according to my dad but have never had uni lugs come loose. I always recheck after installing any wheels
I never was a big fan of those, I call them Cragar style, because that was the ones I first saw with them. Might as well just wallow out an oversize hole in the wheel and use a big flat washer---kinda dumb! The ET style, with the elongated steel washer that fit into a cast in pocket on the wheel was my choice. With just a couple or three sets, you could fit almost any 5 lug pattern with the same wheel. Not that they wouldn't work loose, they would sometimes, I had one break the studs off an OT Toyota pickup rear axle. Luckily the drum sat down in the wheel and I coasted to the shoulder. I had bought both truck and wheels new and they had never been on anything else, I just failed to keep a check on them I guess. I found that if you take something and slightly rough up the washer seat, taking the smooth off the chrome, they didn't work loose as easily. I took a punch and made a few divots in the seat, very lightly, just enough to raise the edge a hair, and didn't have any more problems with them working loose. I guess it worked like a little light rust on the nut and washer mating surface, it gave something to bite into.
Thanks for the reply.Seems to me that installing them right and occasional maintenance helps keeping them safe.
I run them on the front only. Vintage Cragar 14" slots. I'm not confident that unilug aluminum wheels would hold up to the torque of a high-RPM launch.
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