GrantG

Mussl Kar

Can weld and fabricate a bit. Made a 6 foot breaker bar. Hell Yeah!

rezanourai

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'll be helping a friend do brakes on his C7 vette in a couple weeks at my place, and I'll try again with him to see if we can get these open. I suspect previous person over torqued them or didn't apply enough grease. Thanks!

Szpet

I use a Stahlwille 720Nf/80. It´s very sturdy and easy to use. 105cm long and you can use it as a breaker bar.

911rox

Centrelocks are usually a pain to get off after track use. The extreme heat from the track tends to dry the paste between the mating surfaces and this doesn't help the process.

To get them off as others have suggested, you need leverage. I use a snap-on 3 foot breaker bar and I sleeve it with a 5.5 foot pipe. It then requires my full body weight applied at the end of that pipe to crack them (and I weigh 85kg). I would suggest cracking them whilst only slightly jacked but still on the floor and then lifting the car to loosen them.

Also, you should push down on the end of the breaker bar, don't pull up. You won't be able to apply the force required and you will do your back. Let gravity and your weight help you.

If you find the clamp on the brake doesn't hold, get a friend to sit in the car, start it and press the brake. Often without the brake booster, it's hard to clamp the kind of force required to get them on and off...

A/S

I work out often (4 to 9 times a week), and I had problems breaking and tightening the CL nuts using the Precision Instruments package (torque wrench, breaker bar, extension), these tools are now long abandoned. You can hurt yourself for life if trying to change wheels in these cars and you're not in top shape.

I bought a 6:1 Torque Multiplier (not cheap), and I use it with a 1/2" breaker bar, and a 1/2" Snap-On torque wrench. Super easy, and no mega strength needed.

One time I measured the strength needed to break loose on nut, using my P.I. torque wrench to break it as to measure actual torque needed: 680 ft-lbs needed, more torque than the maximum produced by my GT3 RS, or my C7 Z06, or my 991 Turbo S, any 3' or 4' breaker bar would require a lot of human force to break this loose, but with the 6:1 multiplier: 113 ft-lbs on a 3' breaker bar is super easy.

A/S

You will destroy a lot of aluminum parts, cannot be used. Anyway, they haven't invented a cordless impact drill that can handle upward of 700 ft-lbs.

I have the latest Dewalt 1/2 impact, works in all my cars, except the two ones with CL.

steve porter

GrantG

I love the Stahlwille torque tools - the best! Unfortunately, they're expensive and the tool above is around $1,000 with shipping to US at discount rate from Germany:

https://www.hanico.com/gb/stahlwille....html?___SID=U

But in the US, they cost nearly double:

http://www.transcat.com/stahlwille-50190081-50190081

So, I bought the American one that most on this board use.

I have Stahlwille for all the smaller stuff (3/8" and 1/2" torque wrenches and many attachments) which are slightly more affordable. In fact they're so well made and hold their calibration so well (no need to store at "zero"), that it's usually very safe to buy them used on ebay (often have to search Germany)...

rezanourai

Got myself a torque multiplier wrench. Will try it out this coming weekend and see how it goes

Wild Weasel

1963SWC

I've had mine on and off a dozen times or so swapping around wheel/tire combos and have never done the WD40 cleaning. I do check the paste patterns and smooth it as needed each time.
At this point, I prefer CL to standard lugs.

montoya

You won't be jealous when there is 25K transmission rebuild after 80 hours, LOL!

Make sure to use a piece of hardwood under the reaction bar if you don't want a divot in your garage floor. Good luck!

GrantG

I'm not jealous of the sequential gearbox (love the manual, even on track)

But watching that guy change wheels with no floor jack, jack stands, breaker bar, torque wrench, or nasty aluminum paste in a couple minutes did make me green with envy

SCCAForums

I was such a fan of the C/L wheels... but after changing them a couple dozen times already, I can tell you if they offered a 5 lug version... I'd pay for it every day!

I've got the entire swap down to less than 20 minutes (and I re-apply the paste every time). But the friggin 'mess' you get on your hands and your tools... with the friggin alloy paste is ridiculous!

Just give me an impact and 5 lugs... Wouldn't take 10 minutes and would be clean every time.

Another 'trick' is to set the emergency brake and then have someone hold the brake pedal (Or use spreader clamp on wheel/brake)... that usually makes the rears fairly easy. The Fronts, I prefer to have someone 'in the car' to hold the steering wheel straight.

You'll get it!

Best Regards,
Dave