Rust bleeding on hubcap on new trailer

[bjmiess]

Our trailer is only 2 months old and we are noticing rust bleeding onto the hub caps already. Any tips on what to do for this? It appears to come from the drum or wheel studs. Any protective coating to do?

[Kevin245]

You can try some lubricant on the wheel stud threads and high temperature paint on the brake drums if you suspect one is the source.

[Moflash]

Can u post a picture?


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[overlander63]

I've seen this on another Classic. I think it was because the chassis sat outdoors in the rain while awaiting production.
I know on big trucks, a trail of rust from a wheel stud/lug nut was a potential sign of a loose lug nut. For safety's sake, go around the trailer with a torque wrench, and make sure the lugs are torqued to 110#.

[ROBERT CROSS]

I have never lubricated wheel stud or nut threads.

On our vehicles I will wire brush or chase the threads and wipe down with solvent if I can't turn the nut by hand. Do NOT over torque, thread stretch, not good.

A quality solid lug,,(watch the Vid), will not allow moisture in, I have not had any rust/siezeing problems when using a solid capped nut.

Bob

[bjmiess]

Thanks for all the tips! We did check the lug nuts for tightness right away. We will try the lubricant next.

[overlander63]

FYI, a lubricant can encourage overtightening. Be careful what you use. For example, Nev R Seize will cause more problems than it solves, when it has been applied for a long time, and dried and baked in place, it can cause the lug nut to stick.

[Jim A]

Had the same thing happen on one of the wheels on our 27. Took the cover cap off and dumped the water that had accumulated during driving in good rains. No more problem

[Kevin245]

Torquing of bolts/studs is often a bit misunderstood. When a specification calls out a certain torque value the intent is for the fastener to be tensioned to a design (clamp) load so that fastener is neither over or under tensioned.

Over tensioned fasteners either strip, or stretch (plastic) and are rendered ineffective.

Under tensioned fasteners can stretch (non-plastic) when design loads are applied because the specified pre-tension value was never met, which can lead to fatigue.

In tensioned (specified torque) fastening applications the lack of lubrication can lead to under tensioning of the fastener because we measure torque as a relation to bolt/stud tension. If the threads are not lubricated, or there is damage or debris present then rotational resistance values indicated by the torque wrench are typically higher than the actual load applied due to increased friction between faying surfaces. In such cases you typically end up with some value under the specified tension.

Common industry practice calls for helical planes and faying surfaces to be clean, undamaged, and lightly lubricated. If they are not then we've seen torque reading resistance values increase by as much as 30%.

As an example only:

Let's say that the specified wheel stud torque value is 110 lbs ft, and let's say the stud tension (clamping force) at this torque value is 1,000 lbs., and that the stud will experience a maximum applied tensile load of 800 lbs in service.

Now let's say I install un-lubricated, dinged, dirty fasteners that "Torque" to the 110 lbs ft as indicated by the wrench, but due the the increased friction I end up with a 700 lbs clamping load rather than 1,000 lbs specified. I now have a structural connection that is not fully pre-tensioned. When the connection experiences tensile loads greater than 700 lbs, but less than the 1,000 lb. design load, the fastener will stretch and relax each time the a load is applied. This can lead to fatigue failure of the stud.

In our chase to correctly install the wheels on our rigs we need to recognize that under tensioning is just as detrimental as over tensioning, and there are common rules to correctly install bolts and studs.

By the way the common lubricant used by bolt manufacturers is paraffin or a wax based product.

[MelGoddard]

Originally Posted by overlander63

FYI, a lubricant can encourage overtightening. Be careful what you use. For example, Nev R Seize will cause more problems than it solves, when it has been applied for a long time, and dried and baked in place, it can cause the lug nut to stick.

When torqueing a threaded fastener, (wheel nuts) use the specified torque given by the mfg'r. with a clean dry thread.
-If you are going to use a lube such as Never Seize, C-5, Colloidal Copper or such; you must reduce your torque by about 40%, or stretching the bolt to failure will result.
This is due to the fact that only 10% of your torque actually stretches the bolt. The other 90% is lost to friction; 40% on the nut face, 50% in the threads.
-In general; stay with the mfr.s spec. with clean threads; 'cause unless you really know what you're doing, it's a 'minefield', and you're asking for trouble!

(A former Premier Fasteners Ltd. Agent.)