rvascion

I had the great misfortune of snapping off two of my wheel studs when first working on my Scion xB (2010). I didn't have any power tools like an impact driver...oddly enough since I just moved I didn't have any washers in town either.

I had an incredibly difficult time keeping the whole thing from rotating and trying to tighten the stud into place so it is flush.

No where to jam a wrench into. Not enough arm/leg strength to hold a wrench in between two studs myself. Car couldn't get high enough where I could put a wheel under it and jam a wrench down into the wheel to keep it from rotating. I've seen all the cool kid tricks on youtube.

I spent a good 1-2 hours dying trying to put in a wheel stud by hand with what I had. I destroyed a new one in the process which was heart breaking...The hardest part was stiff arming any leverage to keep it from rotating as you tighten...

So I devised the perfect contraption and once I figured that out each wheel stud took 2 minutes if that.

This is the front left of a 2010 Scion xB

The trick and really the KEY to it all is to put a metal bar into the lower caliper bolt spot (I used an extension for a ratchet). Followed by a wrench or in my case a breaker bar. For safety reasons you have to put in two lug nuts to keep the breaker bar from sliding out and potentially popping you in the face or just ruining it in general. Then you have two wrenches behind the lug nut. If you have washers that's even better...I didn't but I had a full wrench set.

Needless to say the extension bar stops the wheel as you tighten your wheel stud into place...works flawlessly. Then you just pull out that extension bar, rotate the breaker bar up an inch and slide the bar back into the whole so you can reverse it and remove your lug nut that just helped get your wheel stud into place.

I didn't see this type of attempt in my research. I figured if one person sees this and can do it with minimal tools then that's great.

http://imgur.com/C8kzQ4l

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*Administrator's Note: OP's Original Pic has Expired and Not Available

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ZAHIR

Thanks for the insight. I snapped another one today trying to do a tire rotation. I have extra lugs from when I replaced the front ones. I will attempt the rear ones sometime this week. I dont have any power tools either.

drizzoh

Oh man.. This makes me happy I have air tools.

ZAHIR

I got it done today. Wasn't bad at all took less than 30 minutes. I was working on the rear driver side. I pulled the wheel out.
I had done the tire rotation so the wheel was already loosened and not rusted on as it was earlier when I had to give a couple of bangs with a 15 lbs dumbbell (couldn't find my mallet)
I already also kept the small bolt that pulls the drum off. That got the drum out in a matter of minutes. I took the same dumbbell and whacked the two broken lugs studs. I popped in the new ones.
Here it was tough to tighten them back in as the hub kept spinning. I put a lug nut on one of the working lug studs and kept it in place with my long breaker bar held in place with my foot. I used another breaker bar to tighten a lug nut in so that the lug stud was fully in place. I did that for two I replaced. Then put the drum and wheel back on. Good to go.
(I did check my drum brakes they were good, otherwise it would have been a good time to get that done)

62Fender

If the hand brake won't hold the hub securely, try mounting the wheel (w/ inflated tire) and lower the jack just enough for the tire rubber to grip the pavement. (If you're on gravel, it might not work.)

ZAHIR

I should have put the hand brake.. I didn't do that, lol. Silly me! Would have made it easier. Either way, the job is done for now. I will keep in mind for the future

62Fender

For the front wheels, you can chock the wheel with an object. I use a short piece of quartered firewood. It's a near triangle and works almost as well as the rubber chocks at the parts store.