Just bought some new rims with semi slicks and now considering what is the easiest way to change my tires at the track.

Thinking about investing in a cordless impact wrench to reduce the amount of elbow grease.

Have done some research but looking for some advice on the below:


1. What should be the minimum torque rating of the impact wrench required to break loose lug nuts?

I read recommended torque on most cars is +/- 100 ft lbs for tightening the lugs. But some people have recommended impact wrenches need to be at least 200 ft lbs torque to be effective in removing nuts... but that is way higher than the initial torque they are tightened at....


2. Can i use the impact wrench to tighten the lug nuts?

Common feedback is that using an impact wrench to tighten nuts will risk over torque or stripping the lug nut. This risk is probably greater if you have a very powerful impact wrench.

I see Snap-On selling a torque stick which i think can be attached to the impact gun to reduce the risk of over torque but mixed reviews on this.

3. Recommendations on specific brands / models for cordless impact wrenches being used by other trackies

4. Any other advice for changing tires at the track

thanks in advance

 

I'd say 200+ for sure. I LOVE my DeWalt cordless impact, best f*n thing since sliced bread, has paid for itself I don't know how many times. With a fresh battery and the car in the air already, I can usually remove all 4 sets of lugs (sometimes you'll get a stubborn ones). Dad and I rotate - I rip the lugs off and take the tire off, move to the next, he puts the new tire on and starts 3-6 turns, then I come behind and use the impact just to seat them, not torque em, you just blip the trigger (always use anti-seize!). Remember after removing 20 lugs the battery will be down a bit, so instead of 250lbs your at 150lbs or 80lbs or what have you. After I let the car down I can usually get 1/4 of a turn or less on the torque wrench to 87ft lbs. Doing one side at a time usually takes us 10 - 15 minutes for the whole car maybe, maybe less? I never really timed it. After one full round, that battery won't be able to remove more then 2 more tires before it runs out of torque so the DeWalt comes with 2 batt's, you just swap the other in and rip on it again. Most of the tracks I run at have power, and the ones that don't we usually take the RV to, or charge in the hotel.

 

I have a Makita BTW251 and it works fine on my lug nuts. I will use it to loosen/remove them, and then also lightly tighten them so I don't have to waste time switching tools much. It's easy enough to throttle the torque so you don't overtighten at which point you switch to your torque wrench.

Makita's site says this wrench generates up to 170 ft.lbs.

 

I picked up a cordless Bosch drill from amazon.com It tops out around 70-80 ft-lb but it's been terrific. 2 batteries, rarely need the 2nd one in a weekend unless I'm sharing with others. Charges in like 30mins.

I still tighten (and break them loose) them with my torque wrench. Peace of mind...

Advice - always use jackstands! Don't trust the jack; especially the grass or greasy asphalt.

 

+100, use jackstands regardless. Life and limb. But ya when your in the grass or on soft asphalt bring plywood to use for the jack and jackstands. I used pressure treated 2x4's under the pressure points on the jack when in mushy wet dirt.

 

every body answered your question , so one suggestion left for me LOL
mark your wheels clearly, not the tires, which goes where. Also safe some time and possible confusion. Also i heard the Kawasaki impact gun is good too. /battery powered/ Make sure you do not over tq the lug nuts!!! Good idea to get some racing lugnuts as an extra set. Make sure alll lug nuts are sitting perfect on your wheel set ups. try to not mixed them , the best is a same set up. DO not buy for racing those "called racing lug nuts' Motegi and so on, you know those shiny ones LOL
Also avoid from the lug not lock type. Just make things harder, try to use a same size and type all around ,so you need only ONE tool.
Get some Heavy duty lug nuts for racing.

 

I second the Makita BTW251 1/2" impact. This is a compact tool about the size of most 3/8" drills but it will run the lugs all weekend. Not to mention the other tools in the Makita LXT family are real workhorses. I have owned and worked with many brands of tools over the decades but in the last few years all of the battery powered ones have been replaced with the LXT tools.

Please do hand torque the wheels on the car. Do not trust a power tool to tighten them. When the battery starts to drop in power the torque output declines before you can feel it. We arn't tightening steel wheels on a Nascar bumper car here. Our alloy wheels are more sensitive to the torque they are mounted with.
Plus for these cars 100# is a bit high.
I would not recommend the torque stick. These only limit the impact from the tool but do not allow proper setting of the torque to the rim.

 

I use a Makita BTW251 1/2" as well and it is ballertastic. I also use a 1/2" Snap On torque wrench and it is ballertastic. We check torque settings after every session after having the lovely experience of a wheel coming loose on track!

Dan

 

I used a Snap-on 1/2 CT6850 which has way to much power but alway torq the wheels down to spec to play it safe

 

- I'd recommend a 200+ ft.lbs 1/2" impact

- I'd recommend a 3" long extension (short enough to retain control, long enough to space impact a bit away from wheel)

- get 2 of the relevant sized sockets, vanadium or whatever ones are rated for impact use, not the regular cheapo steel kind (that way you can leave one on the impact, and the other on the torque wrench to avoid having to swap back and forth. And if you lose or can't find one in the heat of the moment, you can always use the other. Also, the ones with a vinyl sleeve on the socket, or you can cover it in electrical tape, can help to protect the finish if you have nice wheels)

- a few extra lug nuts doesn't hurt either. That way if you strip one or temporarily can't find one, you can still proceed and sort it out later

- like others have mentioned it's pretty easy to modulate the trigger to prevent over tightening the lug nuts when putting the wheels back on, even when using a 200+ ft.lbs impact

- I normally thread the first few turns of each lug nut by hand when putting the wheels back on to help prevent cross threading

- always use a torque wrench, set to the recommended torque spec, to finish off tightening the lug nuts. If you've overtightened the lug nuts using the impact (very easy _not_ to do), and the torque wrench clicks straight away, loosen the lug nut a little first, and then re-tighten again using the torque wrench so that you can be sure you're getting the right spec

- a 1/2" drive breaker bar is handy in case your battery or the tool in general just dies

- always recheck your lug nuts with your torque wrench at least at the beginning of the day and after your first session. more often doesn't hurt

- I use an el cheapo Harbor Freight model 220 ft.lbs impact (the one with the metal head, not the plastic head), and while I'd love one of the more expensive (and potentially more reliable) impacts, the HF one has worked just fine for me. I do think it's worth getting one of the more expensive model ones if you have a bunch of other tools of the same brand that use the same size and voltage battery packs. That way you can share battery packs & chargers between your various tools.

 

I've been thinking pretty hard about getting a setup to mount my own tires at home. Anybody else have suggestions?

 

I've got an aluminum jack from Harbor Freight, and a Good Year cordless impact driver from Pepboys. Just started using it for changing tires at the autox, as well as hoem use, and what a difference it makes in time and labor. I do one wheel at a time so no jack stands for me...but I also do not recommend going under a car without the stands.

 

To do it right it wouldn't pay you back until 10 years from now. Don't you guys have a track tire man yet?

 

There's the guys that come to the track and setup shop. Very very helpful.

But $140 to mount 4 255/35-18's adds up. Figure 4 sets a year of those, and at least 2 sets of others and your around $750 in labor pretty quick. I'd also like the ability to flip some tires inside/out personally.

 

I'm a cheap sob so I'm still using my Kobalt cordless drill with an adapter that allows me to use any 1/4", 3/8" or 1/2" drive tools I desire. WOrks fine for changing tires but you need to break the lugs loose first and obviously torque them with a wrench afterwards.

Lately I've been borrowing Chu's Pepboys impact and its working well for changing two sets of tires (4 total changes).