Another question. I managed to strip one of the holes in my left side drum on my 53 Desoto. Threads are 1/2-20 and the drum is left hand thread. I'm having troubles finding a 1/2-20 helicoil kit for left hand anywhere, like this. http://www.handsontools.com/HeilCoil-5528-8-Fine-Thread-Repair-Kit--12-20-x-750_p_9187.html Been searching and no luck. Doesn't exist?
When I was 15 I spent about 2 hours trying to remove a 40 Dodge wheel. Dad got home and had it off in about 2 seconds.
^^ I found that kit but it's $100. I'm looking for a $30 kit like above. Thanks tho. And as for understand Chrysler and LH bolts... me neither.
"Makes no sense"? Well, yeah, it does. The rotation of the wheel causes a tightening effect on the wheel bolts, or nuts, as the case may be. Ever lose a wheel going up the road? If so, I'll bet it was on the left side and it had right hand threads. Semi's and most trucks two-ton and up still use 'em.
Chrysler has been a serious player in military efforts for years and part of many gov contracts required left threads it just carried over . To make it simple a loose reverse lug wont back off , Its a physics thing .
You've kinda got your physics wrong. Rotational forces only affect torque of the fastener on things like grinder wheels and saws, where a single fastener holds the rotor on. In those cases, the nut is typically loosened in the direction of rotation. Wheels on a car (not knock-off wheels) that are held on with separate studs and nuts don't work like that. That's why Mopars are no longer built like that today. As to why big trucks may be that way, think of it as engineereing voodoo, rumors and theories get passed on through generations and accepted as fact.
Nope, I've never lost a wheel, in 30 years. Always GM junk, with RH lugs. If there was substantial merit to this "idea", Chrysler would still be using LH lugs; and all the other manufacturers would have followed suit becasue their wheels kept falling off.
My 37 Chrysler had lug bolts (all 4 wheels R.H. thread) that held the wheels on instead of studs with lug nuts. I suspect the L.H. strangeness originated from lug bolt failures. The wheels WILL fall off of a 37 Chrysler if the lug bolts are incorrectly tightened. I can neither confirm nor deny the reason I know this.
IIRC all knock-off spinners are LH thread on the left side of the car. An engineer explained to me that inertia of the hardware under the sudden shock of braking would loosen RH threaded hardware. The shock of acceleration is much less, unless you're at the drags.
Not that it matters,since you need a helicoil,but any decent bicycle shop will have a 1/2-20 LH tap,and a 9/16-20 LH tap,too...Cranks are tapped left on the left hand side,the 1/2 for one piece cranks,the 9/16 for three piece..
i do remember snapping off 2 lug bolts on my 36' plymouth before the old dude at the service station walked over all 120lbs of him and loosened the remaining lugs and he just laughed "left hand threads boy"! that a positive ground had me all screwed up. they do sell thread restoring tools.
You may be able to find a lug stud drum on a later model ChryCo that will fit. My 50 Plymouth coupe had a left side rear drum with all RH lug studs and appropriate nuts. Worked fine.
Totally O/T, but kinda funny nontheless. A few years back, my boss told me that when he worked at another shop, he once tapped a hole in a part wrong. The hole was supposed to be left-hand, and instead, he tapped it right hand. The cutomer was on his way to pick up the part, so in a panic, he simply set it back up in the mill, and ran the left hand tap in a hole that was already tapped for right hand threads and it worked! Not really knowing what to think, I had a job in our shop making ten saw arbors, 5 left-hand, and five right-hand, plus nuts to go with each. Then I made a nut that I tapped with both threads just to see what happens. It's hard to believe, but the threads only cross in one spot in the nut and you actually have to look very close to see anything's wrong. Plus it goes on either type of thread easily. Again, stupid but true...
Try these guys. The Olander Company Inc. is located at 144 Commercial Street, Sunnyvale, CA 94086 Call Toll Free (800) 538-1500 Fax: (408) 735-6515 E-mail: [email protected]
That does help. I'd rather pay them $15(?) for a quick tap vs $100 for a kit. Thanks, I'll contact one. I'll try them too. Thanks
Yes, but totally different forces with knock-offs. Lug nuts or bolts are not effected the same way. Same reason the pedal and bottom bracket cup are left hand on a bicycle. I used to wrench at a bike shop after my day job and walked into the shop to see the owner with a cheater bar on a customer's pedal - with the customer standing there all out on the sales floor! Haha. I wheeled the bike into the back and "fixed" it. (that shop has long since gone out of business) Also saw a couple of really high end frames ruined because a mechanic used the wrong side tool to chase the bottom bracket threads. I would be tempted to make all of the holes on that side right hand - or do a really good job of marking that single one.
Some wood lathe faceplates are tapped both right and left hand threads. Like you said, looks weird. I made a chuck plate that had both right and left hand threads for a pal who was a serious woodworker. Reason for both threads is, the face plate - or chuck - can be used on either end of the headstock. Right hand threads on the right (normal) side of the headstock and left hand threads on the left side of the headstock. If you had right hand threads on the left side and ran the lathe in normal rotation the face plate/chuck would unscrew itself. You can't run the motor in reverse because a woodworker needs a down force on his hand-held cutting tool.
Fwiw - tandem axle car trailers loosen up their R.H. thread lugnuts pretty fast on both sides - about equally in my experience. Enjenjo explained it to me a while back, it's because the wheel is flexed a lot on tight turns. Something you can't help, but hitting them with a torque wrench pretty often will stop a lot of problems. Take a look at trailer wheels in the junkyard, most of them have damaged lugnut seats.
So why don't you just drill all the holes to the appropriate size and pull in some 1/2-20 rh studs? That's what I did on my 59 Plymouth so I could run mags. Just wondering.
Wasn't aware it was that easy, but an excellent point. Probably what was done on my 50 Plymouth coupe. It was a total stocker - except for 12V - and it all worked so no big deal.
Get a machinist to make an insert plug retapped to the right thread.might cost $60,might fail too.But it is cheaper than the Helicoil. -G-
Yeah, the size of the hole depends on which stud you get from your local parts place. This involved using the bone breaking Black&Decker, gear reduction 1/2 drill to drill the drums. I put the stud in the hole, placed a spacer I made out of a piece of pipe over the stud, started a mag lugnut on the stud that fit in the spacer, and used an impact gun to draw the stud into place. The mopar drums had things that looked like rivets between the studs that didn't quite clear the mag center. I cut the inside half of each of them off with a side grinder before I pulled the studs in. All
Ok, so I've called about 10 places, no luck. Auto repair, bike shops, machine shops. There's got to be a place around here that specializes in classic mopar. Here's what I'm thinking... cheap 33/64 drill bit $4.90 http://www.amazon.com/Quality-Speed-Steel-Shank-Drill/dp/B0007Q75HS 1/2-20 LF helicoil $3.42 http://www.mcmaster.com/#92090a147/=3qdc93 1/2-20 LH helicoil insert tap $56.33 http://www.mcmaster.com/#92090a347/=3qdeov 1/2-20 helicoil tool $18.67 http://www.mcmaster.com/#92090a547/=3qdd2g Skip the expensive $70 tang tool http://www.mcmaster.com/#92955a127/=3qdh1a Expensive mistake Or just run 4 lug bolts.
Running four lug nuts - and presumably lug bolts - on a five lug wheel only gives you 55% of potential strength and not the 80% that you'd think. I really like Kerry's suggestion to drill the drum/hub for lug studs. That should be the cheapest way to go. Heck, be really cheap, drill just one and it would be obvious which one was RH....
I hear you on the B&D wrist breaker. Dad had one and gave it to little brother. Didn't hurt my feelings any....
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