Left tighten bolts

[plee4139]

I just found out one of my wheels is left tighten. Can that be changed to regular right-tighten?

[Skip Lackie]

It's probably both wheels/hubs on the same side. To change, you would have to buy ten new right-hand thread studs and have a machine shop replace the old left-hand stud with them. This requires cutting the swedge around each stud and then pressing in the new ones. An alternative would be to find two good used brake drums with right-hand studs. Or just learn to remember that they are left handed.

[gordr]

Somebody may have replaced a right-hand threaded brake drum with a left hand, because it was available. Just paint the left-hand studs and nuts red, and live with it. Left-hand studs are marked with a stamped "L" on the end. Usually.

[Noxnabaker]

In the "old days" with rough roads left threaded on left side was needed. Later on only brands that raced used it such as Jaguar, Chrysler & some others, I'm not sure why Studebaker kept to it but they might have kept to it cuz it was a pretty good idea, even if a bit expensive.
I had a -81 Cadillac hearse & that was a pretty heavy car & it would have needed it as I had to re-tighten the left side wheels from time to time.
So don't see it as a bad thing; it's a quality thing!
(my -56 Chrysler also has it)

[Mark L]

I had the same problem on my 1962 Lark. All four drums should have had right-hand threads on the lugs, but I found that one drum had left-hand threads. It was probably a used drum from an older car.

I did exactly what Skip suggested in post 2 above. I ordered five new right-hand thread lugs and five new right-hand thread lug nuts from one of our fabulous vendors. I took the drum to a local 4x4 garage that has a good machine shop. They cut out the old left-hand lugs and swedged in the new right-hand lugs.

Also, some of our vedors are now selling brand new drums with right-hand lugs.

[billslark]

The Chrysler Corporation used left hand lug nuts and studs back into the 1940's, on the drivers side, maybe further back. They used them up through 1971. Starting in 1972 they switched to right on both sides of the car.


Bill

[Noxnabaker]

Yep, I have a -77 8,1/4 on Josephine = right hand lugs & a -68 8,3/4 on Yolandi = left hand lugs.

[nvonada]

The questions to ask yourself are why would a struggling car company do this unless it was necessary? And do you know more about cars than the Studebaker engineers? I paint my left-hand studs bright yellow. When I had the tires done I reminded the shop twice. The only real hassle is if your torque wrench does not work that way,

[jg61hawk]

And do you know more about cars than the Studebaker engineers?

Funny thing is at this point we (SDC) have just about the same experience with Studebaker cars that Studebaker did.....
Studebaker first car 1902 until 1966 = 64 years
SDC founded 1962 until 2024 = 62 years

Crazy how time flies!

As for left handed vs right handed I was always told the idea was the lugs should turn to tighten as the car is stopped. Seems like overkill to me...it's not like the nuts all over the car are held on by gravity. Hey, it's your cow, milk it as you please.

[altair]

The left hand thread was a carry over from the old wagon days, the big nut would tighten up as the wheel turned nothing to do with coming off. A cotter pin had to be installed to avoid the nut from backing out as the wheel turned.

[Jeffry Cassel]

Altair gives a highly plausible explanation! It really did not make much sense though since the wheel does not turn on the stud. I've never had any problem since it is confined to mid 50's cars and the studs have an "R" or an "L" stamped on them. Indeed, I would probably be confused by right hand threads on the left side of a 56 Commander. Many a grease monkey has broken studs off by trying to remove a left hand nut by turning it CCW. (or is that ??!) (It is sorta like the notion that electrons scamper along the wire to the anode or + terminal so the + terminal had to be the ground.) (Yeah, that cotter pin is really important. A classmate came in late one day because the guy who repacked her front wheel bearings forgot to re-install the cotter pin and her wheel fell off.)

[bensherb]

Not confined to the mid 50's ; Chrysler used left hand studs until the 70's.

[altair]

I was one of those grease monkeys, I bought a utility trailer with warn tires and while attempting to remove them it had right and lefts on it and I thought it was just tight, added a long pipe and broke it off. Then the lite came on.

[Rafe Hollister]

I was on a cross country trip in a Mercedes Sprinter van. The left rear wheel came loose and when we noticed the vibration the wheel bolts (not nuts on this) had hogged out the holes a bit in the wheel. No matter how much we tightened them, within 10 minutes they were loose again.
I wished I had thought to switch the wheel to the right side to see if it would still loosen. Then I might have an opinion on this subject. But as it is now, you just wasted a few minutes reading this worthless post!
Rafe Hollister

[Noxnabaker]

I had a -81 Cadillac hearse, that's a commericial chassis as in extra heavy built, & the left side nuts would need to be checked & sometimes tighten about once a week, so I'm happy with my Studebaker & my Chysler's left threaded left side!

[bensherb]

That's why all my VW's wheel bolts have been replaced with studs and nuts Rafe. Beside the fact it's way easier to install wheels on studs than to hold the wheel up with one hand and install a bolt with the other; that is unless you have the Porsche wheel installation tool.
ALL my vehicles now have right hand studs and I've NEVER had one come loose. I do torque them though,at least twice after removing a wheel, the second time after 5-10 miles; there's torque wrench in the trunks of my cars in case I need to use a spare.

[rockne10]

I've related before the story of the time my dad twisted a four-way lug wrench in to a pretzel trying to get a left tire changed on his '51 Hudson.
Most of the trucks larger than heavy duty pickups (Step Vans, OTR tractors etc) still come from the factory with left studs on the left.