Tire Wrench

[timsease]

Today's question:

What size lug wrench do I need for a 2016 Keystone Lite 27 RDS fiver?
Do they come in a + configuration?
What Auto Parts Store do you recommend?

Thank you and HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!

Tim

[slow]

Originally Posted by timsease

Today's question:

What size lug wrench do I need for a 2016 Keystone Lite 27 RDS fiver?
Do they come in a + configuration?
What Auto Parts Store do you recommend?

Thank you and HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!

Tim

Rather than a + configuration wheel wrench, buy a "clicker" torque wrench instead. Not sure of the socket size required for your rig, but mine is 13/16 if I recall correctly.

[chuckster57]

If it's 6 lug, most likely 3/4". I don't use a torque wrench for lug nut removal, I do have a + wrench for removal.

[Pull Toy]

+1 for Chuckster.

By using the + wrench, you'll be able to use the wrench for your TV too.

[jsmith948]

Our Cougar has 6-bolt 15" wheels. Lug nut size is 13/16. I carry a 1/2" drive torque wrench. Use my 1/2" drive breaker bar (with a short aluminum cheater pipe fashioned from an old load lock) to break the lugs loose then remove with a 1/2" drive 'speed handle'. Re-install lug nuts by starting by hand - snug with the speed wrench - then torque in three increments to 120 lbs/ft.
I use a Craftsman torque wrench - but many folks on here swear by the inexpensive torque wrenches found at Harbor Freight.

[JRTJH]

My 15" 6-lug wheels also are 13/16" lugs. I use an old deepwell socket, a 6" extension and a Harbor Freight 25" breaker bar. Normal price for the breaker bar is $12 but with the 20% discount, it's $9.50 plus tax. http://www.harborfreight.com/12-in-d...bar-60819.html

To reinstall, I use "fingers to start the lugs" then my battery powered impact wrench to "snug them tight" and finish with the same socket/extension and a Harbor Freight 1/2" drive adjustable torque wrench. Normal price is $20, but is usually on sale for $15, or with the "newspaper/magazine coupon" it's almost always $12 and comes with its own carrying case. http://www.harborfreight.com/1-2-hal...rench-239.html

Total cost for both is about $22 and change.

a 4 way lug wrench is available for $11 also, but with it, there's still the need for the socket/extension/torque wrench, so the breaker bar is the same price and easier to store than the 4-way lug wrench. http://www.harborfreight.com/20-inch...nch-94110.html

Pretty much either will do the job. I'd recommend that everyone who hasn't already done so, to actually assemble the tools and jack to keep stored in your RV and to really "get dirty and change a tire" in your driveway. Don't forget that if you have a "bumper mounted spare" the nut holding the wheel to the spare rack is probably a 3/4", so you'll also need a way to get the spare to the ground before you can mount it on the trailer axle. It's possibly the same size as your stabilizer jack drive handle, but maybe not....

Don't be lulled into thinking through the job and believing you have everything, only to find out "the hard way" that you're missing one "critical component"..... Do it at home and then immediately put those tools into the trailer.......

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by JRTJH

My 15" 6-lug wheels also are 13/16" lugs. I use an old deepwell socket, a 6" extension and a Harbor Freight 25" breaker bar. Normal price for the breaker bar is $12 but with the 20% discount, it's $9.50 plus tax. http://www.harborfreight.com/12-in-d...bar-60819.html

To reinstall, I use "fingers to start the lugs" then my battery powered impact wrench to "snug them tight" and finish with the same socket/extension and a Harbor Freight 1/2" drive adjustable torque wrench. Normal price is $20, but is usually on sale for $15, or with the "newspaper/magazine coupon" it's almost always $12 and comes with its own carrying case. http://www.harborfreight.com/1-2-hal...rench-239.html

Total cost for both is about $22 and change.

a 4 way lug wrench is available for $11 also, but with it, there's still the need for the socket/extension/torque wrench, so the breaker bar is the same price and easier to store than the 4-way lug wrench. http://www.harborfreight.com/20-inch...nch-94110.html

Pretty much either will do the job. I'd recommend that everyone who hasn't already done so, to actually assemble the tools and jack to keep stored in your RV and to really "get dirty and change a tire" in your driveway. Don't forget that if you have a "bumper mounted spare" the nut holding the wheel to the spare rack is probably a 3/4", so you'll also need a way to get the spare to the ground before you can mount it on the trailer axle. It's possibly the same size as your stabilizer jack drive handle, but maybe not....

Don't be lulled into thinking through the job and believing you have everything, only to find out "the hard way" that you're missing one "critical component"..... Do it at home and then immediately put those tools into the trailer.......

I do virtually the exact same thing. I really like my battery impact driver. I also carry a set of Harbor Freight impact sockets in their metal carrying case. My sockets, torque wrench, breaker bar (and other "stuff") sit under my back seat.

I bought one of the gadgets that you drive up on to elevate the flat tire thinking that it would work for 15" tires......be sure you check it. I had to take my small shovel and dig out from under the flat tire before I could get it off using that device. I also put a 2x8 on top of it but that isn't very confidence inspiring when pulling a tire off the wheel

[Mike484]

This one folds up to make storage much easier.

http://www.harborfreight.com/14-inch...nch-95932.html

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by Mike484

This one folds up to make storage much easier.

http://www.harborfreight.com/14-inch...nch-95932.html

I had one of those a couple years back, the first time I used it on a "really REALLY TIGHT" lug nut, it broke apart in my hands. So, unless they've improved the "axis bolt" on this type wrench, I'd be careful. It's no fun to eat the side of a trailer when the wrench snaps in half when you're "giving it all you got"......

[Desert185]

Absolutely use a torque wrench. Buy a 1/2" drive, deep, 6-point impact socket from Lowe's with a 6" extension or buy the complete impact socket set from HF. Get a size that fits your TV, too, so the complete set may be the best bet for you. Remember to get the black impact socket set if you decide to use an electric or pneumatic impact wrench. Do not buy the pretty, 12 point chrome set.

Download the Keystone Owner's Manual and read the wheel/axle section for the correct torquing procedure, if you are unfamiliar. The manual will also help you in other areas.

FWIW, my 1/2" drive torque wrench is rated at 200#, so it has a long enough handle to easily turn a lug nut to 120# or the 135# my Ram requires. Those + wrenches are more like torture wrenches than torque wrenches at 120#.

[Dave W]

The torquing info above is fine.

Lugs themselves are 1/2". Lug nut socket size can be either 3/4" or 13/16" which is the most common. There are some aluminum wheels with special lug nuts with a fairly wide cone contact area that are 3/4". Not a big deal price wise - either one, 3-4 bucks each though some wheels just wont let impact sockets fit in the nut recess. You can most likely use the same size socket on your tow vehicle too, especially if it's a Ford F250/350 SRW.

[notanlines]

I can't for the life of figure out why families will spend 30K to 100K on a travel trailer/5'ver and shop for their repair/maintenance tools at Harbor Freight. Please, please tell me you can afford a real 4-way lug wrench not some POS from HF.

[timsease]

I never thought about the spare. Good advice.

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by notanlines

I can't for the life of figure out why families will spend 30K to 100K on a travel trailer/5'ver and shop for their repair/maintenance tools at Harbor Freight. Please, please tell me you can afford a real 4-way lug wrench not some POS from HF.

I don't know that there's much difference in buying a "Chinese wrench" from HF, or buying a "Chinese wrench" from Sears or buying a "Chinese wrench" from Ace Hardware or buying a "Chinese wrench" from Tractor Supply, etc. I can say that I wouldn't pay the $90+ for a Snap-On wrench to sit in the trailer and rust away....

Now, if I used the tool "EVERY DAY" I'd have the best quality money could buy, but so far, the ones that are stuck in the trailer haven't been used but 4 times in 4 years. Honestly, I probably should have just used the ones in the garage and not even checked the ones in the trailer for rust, but being proactive, I wanted to make sure they were still serviceable.

So, in answer to your "Please, please tell me...." in my situation, I can easily afford the Snap-On brand, but chose to buy and store in the trailer, the ones that more equitably mirror my needs and usage (emergency, side of the road, one time/very infrequent use)...... Thinking about it, I probably won't even use them in an emergency, so long as Good Sam's Roadside Service is "prompt and available"....

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by notanlines

I can't for the life of figure out why families will spend 30K to 100K on a travel trailer/5'ver and shop for their repair/maintenance tools at Harbor Freight. Please, please tell me you can afford a real 4-way lug wrench not some POS from HF.

Ummmm....I guess I will try to speak to that because until about 4 years ago I felt the same way.

They sell all sorts of stuff and some is worth having and some is not. Their chrome plated sockets, ratchets and wrenches will mess up on you and the sockets don't fit anything well. On the other hand, their deep impact sockets are comparable to most anything I have. Their torque wrenches are unbelievably cheap and work OK...not as polished as my Matco, Craftsman or Snap On tools but good. I also bought 2 8 ton hydraulic jacks and they do the job OK. Just got to know what to pick up - all of their products are not POS.

I don't know how most folks are but I have extensive sets of tools at my main house/shop, an extensive set at my main vacation home and sets of tools in other places, including my truck. I have plenty of "room" to be able to buy cheaper tools to put in the "arsenal" and try out....and some work unbelievably well for the price. And yes, I can tell you for certain that I can afford a real 4 way wrench.....I just don't like them

[66joej]

After so many years in the Automotive/Heavy Equipment field I have learned where you need so-called Snap-On quality and where a lesser quality/priced tool will work. On an RV for all intents and purposes CanadianTire's Mastercraft (on sale) tools or the equivelant works just fine for me. Some Shade Tree types will still want the top line tools/equipment which is a personal choice. In a former life I supervised a large R.C.M.P. patrol vehicle shop in BC. Actually the only in the province. Because the taxpayer was supplying tools/equipment so Snap-On was the tool of choice for the Techs.

[chuckster57]

I knew this would turn into a love or hate Harbor Freight tools kind of thread.

I do have HF tools and storage boxes at work and HF tools at home.

Call them all POS if you want, but the tech next to me sure has no problem borrowing my POS stuff when his Cornwell or Mac stuff doesn't work.

There are somethings I won't buy from HF, but hand tools have served me well for over 30 years of wrenching on cars on the side and now wrenching on RV's for the last 5.

Everyone has their personal "preference", but I will always take offense to anyone that makes the blanket statement that HF sells POS tools. My torque wrench is going on 20 yrs old, and well over 500 engines built, 1000's of head gaskets replaced WITHOUT a single failure says it isn't a POS.

Rant off.

[notanlines]

I stand duly chastised! I'm not exactly standing here with my hat in my hand, but I will say that it was a blanket statement with the term POS used in haste.
I tried a set of sockets and 2 ratchets for the toolbag in the motorcycle and inside a year they were rusted heavily. Now for a slightly positive side, the $3.00 rubber hammer we use at the beach for the windscreen works fine. And I do have the 4 black deep-sockets that come as a pack for lug nuts. The wheel chuck I bought there wasn't so great so it hit the trash and I bought a couple that were recommended here some months ago. I can tell you a horror story about their cheap pancake compressor for $70.00 but it is long and sad. And doesn't have a happy ending.

[Pull Toy]

Why is your lug wrench in the trailer?

After fifty years of keeping one behind the seat of my numerous trucks, I never would have thought of that! (Lots handier that way, when you're not near the trailer, and never had one rust there yet!) LOL

[jsmith948]

These are all interesting comments. I am not a professional mechanic - although I have always tried to do the maintenance/repair of my vehicles (including an in-frame overhaul of a 'Big Cam 400 Cummins' when I was an owner/operator).
I have never been inclined to buy the high end tool brands such as Proto or Snap On. I have always made do with Craftsman or something equivalent. However, I wouldn't hesitate to buy a HF torque wrench based on the positive comments from other members on here. I carry a Craftsman torque wrench because it is what I already own.
Most of my tools are probably 45 years old and I still worry a little bit about leaving them in a tool box "locked" in a compartment to which everyone else has a key.
I think it's prudent to use what you already have or, if you are buying tools specifically for the RV, to buy less expensive tools just in case someone 'borrows' them and then forgets to return them.