half-size lug nut socket?

[visionguru]

After years of beating by impacts, the lug nuts on one of my cars like to stuck inside the socket. Sometimes I have to use a pin punch and hammer to free them.

I recently found on Amazon that "half-size“ is a thing, which seems to be the solution to this problem. Anyone has those?

 

[ericg]

I have this set and it comes in real handy, especially with swollen lug nuts.

11-Piece - 3/8" Drive 1/2 Size Socket Set - 9.5 - 19.5mm | Astro Pneumatic Tools

• Ever grab a 13mm socket and it's too tight, but 14mm feels lose? And it's not SAE? • Not every bolt and nut on vehicles remain factory perfect t ...

www.astrotools.com

 

[geneg]

After years of beating by impacts, the lug nuts on one of my cars like to stuck inside the socket. Sometimes I have to use a pin punch and hammer to free them.

I recently found on Amazon that "half-size“ is a thing, which seems to be the solution to this problem. Anyone has those?

Rather than using a pin punch to remove the nut, lay the socket on the floor & hit the side of it sharply with a hammer. Pops it out most times with 1 tap. Don't go caveman on it- just a quick tap.

However, if lug nuts are deformed, just replace them!

 

[2ndGearRubber]

You need 18.5, 19.5, 21.5, and 22.5. I use mine several times a week.

 

[BrandonV]

That set is pretty cool. I swear I've run into that issue on an Infiniti. Arizona car, no rust, single piece lug nuts but for some reason a 19mm was too loose and a 20mm was too sloppy. 19.5mm probably would have helped. Guessing it has something to do with plating or coating inconsistencies.

 

[welder4956]

I'm going to guess that your lug nuts are like the ones on our Ford Expedition (and many other cars) that have.a stainless steel shell on the outside of a carbon steel nut. Over time the shell becomes distorted by use of impact wrenches and sticks inside the socket. After going through the socket beating ritual many times during tire rotations, I finally bought a complete set of solid lug nuts from the rain forest people. I think they were around $50 for a complete set for all 4 wheels. Go ahead and replace them now and be done with the need for half size socket or beating them with a hammer and punch.

 

[BrandonV]

I'm going to guess that your lug nuts are like the ones on our Ford Expedition (and many other cars) that have.a stainless steel shell on the outside of a carbon steel nut. Over time the shell becomes distorted by use of impact wrenches and sticks inside the socket. After going through the socket beating ritual many times during tire rotations, I finally bought a complete set of solid lug nuts from the rain forest people. I think they were around $50 for a complete set for all 4 wheels. Go ahead and replace them now and be done with the need for half size socket or beating them with a hammer and punch.

Ran into that on a Ford Escape once. Absolute insanity. I was going to change them before I took the car to Discount Tire. When I got the car back half of them had been zipped on to the point where the outer jacket was free spinning.

 

[Steve_P]

If it's the stainless capped lugnuts, the steel nut rusts and expands which forces the cap to expand and makes it a tight fit inside a socket. A vehicle doesn't need to see much, if any, salt for this to happen over time. I have several like this on my Tacoma and have a 21/21.5 flip socket that I use. I have two different brands of these, last one was a CTA that I bought on Amazon.

Here's a set, if you don't want to buy just a single

Amazon.com

 

[JeepYJ]

How about getting new lug nuts that don’t ****?

 

[2ndGearRubber]

How about getting new lug nuts that don’t ****?

"Customer declined"

 

[rust in the eye]

As stated above it sounds like you have the steel nuts wearing stainless coverings.
Two proper solutions: buy new chrome lug nuts or factory style again and quit impacting them.
Buying some oddball socket to accomodate the re-use of a failed nut is absurd*.
As an aside, this exquisite little problem seems to be a windfall for my local Ford store. I have several neighbors that have had their cars serviced exclusively at this dealer who mangles the lug nuts with impacts then proceeds to charge the customer an exorbitant amount to replace them, over and over.
* those forced to deal with customer cars excused

 

[JeepYJ]

"Customer declined"

When the customer is also the mechanic and it’s their own vehicle…..

 

[mreisner]

I have a set of the Astros and I'm really happy with them.

 

[plinker]

I've got the half size flip socket set that everybody re-brands. Works fine. Normal deep sockets would bet nicer. That Astro set looks interesting.

 

[WWheeler]

Astro 78204 4-Piece 1/2" Drive 1/2 Size Thin Wall Lug Nut Socket Set - 17.5-22.5mm
Same set that I've seen Eric O. use in his videos, like he does in his most recent video here.

Amazon.com

What the heck, I just placed an order for a set. There's been a few times in the past I wished I had them.

 

[liliysdad]

I sure think I would be replacing lug nuts before worrying about band aid sockets.

 

[Fedwrench]

How about getting new lug nuts that don’t ****?

Problem is if the person is at the dealer, the dealer is going to sell them the same OEM screwed up lug nut design.

To all of those peeps that replied just buy new lug nuts, you often need the half size sockets to get the old swollen, damaged, reduced sized socket off. Half sized sockets aren't a band aid tool, they're a much needed, time is money specialty tool that are probably worth their weight in gold.
The Astro is bargain priced and is really nice. There is a wide selection of individual sizes and sets on Amazon.
Speaking of Amazon, the best replacement one piece, all steel construction lug nuts are bargain priced sets sold there.

 

[KnurledNut]

For everyone saying get new lug nuts, you still have to remove the old ones.
Sometimes the chrome caps come off and youre left removing the inner nut. The half size down works wonders in such instances.

 

[Southernbuild]

Astro 78204 4-Piece 1/2" Drive 1/2 Size Thin Wall Lug Nut Socket Set - 17.5-22.5mm
Same set that I've seen Eric O. use in his videos, like he does in his most recent video here.

Amazon.com

What the heck, I just placed an order for a set. There's been a few times in the past I wished I had them.

Looks worth having... This place is expensive

 

[WWheeler]

I sure think I would be replacing lug nuts before worrying about band aid sockets.

At my nephew's shop they quit even mentioning the swollen nuts to customers unless they were already so far gone like the chrome had come completely off, because so many of them were getting furious with them whenever they tried to explain the job would cost $60 to $80 more because their nuts were swollen (which is half what the dealers here charge for the same thing).

Customers don't believe them and think the shop is just trying to rip them off and get mad and want their vehicle back to take somewhere else. It was a daily occurrence until they just gave up. Whatever size socket it takes to get them off & put them back on and all they'll do is make a note on the repair order about it.

EDIT: A quick google will show you the same thing. People don't believe it's a real thing and take to the internets to complain they are getting ripped off.

extra cost due to swollen lugnuts - Google Search

 

[2ndGearRubber]

At my nephew's shop they quit even mentioning the swollen nuts to customers unless they were already so far gone like the chrome had come completely off, because so many of them were getting furious with them whenever they tried to explain the job would cost $60 to $80 more because their nuts were swollen (which is half what the dealers here charge for the same thing).

Customers don't believe them and think the shop is just trying to rip them off and get mad and want their vehicle back to take somewhere else. It was a daily occurrence until they just gave up. Whatever size socket it takes to get them off & put them back on and all they'll do is make a note on the repair order about it.

Yup, front desk would rather strangle a toddler than attempt to sell lug nuts.

You need these half sizes, plus extractor sockets, plus drill bits, for all phases of lug nut stupidity.

 

[oldschoolcraft]

When the customer is also the mechanic and it’s their own vehicle…..

Why would a mechanic need to replace their worn lug nuts, when the mechanic owns 19.5mm lug nut sockets?

 

[2ndGearRubber]

Why would a mechanic need to replace their worn lug nuts, when the mechanic owns 19.5mm lug nut sockets?

Have experience at the front desk I see.....

 

[Dakotadadv8]

Buy new lug nuts.

 

[JeepYJ]

To all of those peeps that replied just buy new lug nuts, you often need the half size sockets to get the old swollen, damaged, reduced sized socket off.

OP says he gets the lug nuts off but needs to beat them out of the socket. He just needs to replace them rather than buy special sockets to take them on/off regularly.

 

[whateg01]

Instead of beating on them, I just stop while the nut is still on the stud and rock the socket so the lugnut comes loose, then finish zipping then off. Then they just fall out.

 

[oldschoolcraft]

I just start off by buying 20.5mm lug nuts to begin with so when they swell, they wind up becoming the proper size.

see @bobg03 I'm not an engineer.

 

[dscheidt]

Yup, front desk would rather strangle a toddler than attempt to sell lug nuts.

You need these half sizes, plus extractor sockets, plus drill bits, for all phases of lug nut stupidity.

like 20 years ago, I had a car roll in with a leaking tire, on a sunday morning. they were on vacation, not a local. I looked at it, said 'you need lug nuts', because I could see it did, from 10 feet away (and I looked, because it was a ford that had real problems with them.). I could see the guy about to boil over when his wife asked 'how much are they?' I told her (I think we charged a buck a piece; our cost was like 20 cents. We bought several sizes in boxes of 50 or 100 -- part of being able to actually fix things on Sundays is having stuff available.). Then I got the back story -- someone, probably the dealer, had told her she needed them done, and they'd be $400.

 

[2ndGearRubber]

like 20 years ago, I had a car roll in with a leaking tire, on a sunday morning. they were on vacation, not a local. I looked at it, said 'you need lug nuts', because I could see it did, from 10 feet away (and I looked, because it was a ford that had real problems with them.). I could see the guy about to boil over when his wife asked 'how much are they?' I told her (I think we charged a buck a piece; our cost was like 20 cents. We bought several sizes in boxes of 50 or 100 -- part of being able to actually fix things on Sundays is having stuff available.). Then I got the back story -- someone, probably the dealer, had told her she needed them done, and they'd be $400.

Yep, people just lose their minds over lug nuts. **** for all the nonsense "shop supplies" we're tacking on the ticket you'd think we'd stock some lug nuts.

Our shop would rather spend 5 bucks a piece from Napa "as needed" than buy in bulk. Same deal with drain plugs, and everything else.

 

[ex-x-fire]

I find using these half size sockets is hit or miss, when the lug nuts are so swollen they have a peak to them.

 

[oldschoolcraft]

**** for all the nonsense "shop supplies" we're tacking on the ticket you'd think we'd stock some lug nuts.

Our shop would rather spend 5 bucks a piece from Napa "as needed" than buy in bulk. Same deal with drain plugs, and everything else.

Maybe the management is concerned that stockpiling lug nuts and drain plugs at a discount would actually be more expensive than buying them as needed, since when they buy them as needed, they'll be billed to a car, whereas stockpiling them might result in a lot of them going home with techs, or being used on cars without being billed for. Just a guess, maybe the management is just incompetent.

 

[2ndGearRubber]

Maybe the management is concerned that stockpiling lug nuts and drain plugs at a discount would actually be more expensive than buying them as needed, since when they buy them as needed, they'll be billed to a car, whereas stockpiling them might result in a lot of them going home with techs, or being used on cars without being billed for. Just a guess, maybe the management is just incompetent.

Management doesn't want to pay taxes on inventory sitting around, nor lose a bonus over "excess" expenses over a given time frame. They'd rather deal with cross-threading a lug nut on or send a rounded drain plug back out the door than do right by the customer.

Funny enough, whenever management "Sends it out", the cars always seem to find their way back for the next service. Then it's the techs fault, since "we did it last". Now I just walk away from the car if they want to play games. No drain plug when I say "needs a drain plug"? Roll my cart away, someone else can do it. They want to con the tech into trying to reuse it, then when the pan is damaged or the plug needs extracted next time "it's your fault you did it last" so you don't get paid anything for it. I'm too smart for that nonsense.


It's easy enough to just "socialize" something like a drain plug when bought in bulk, and you really only need 4 sizes for the vast majority of cars on the road. That sort of thing, a dab of RTV, misc bolts/washers, etc is literally what shop supplies are supposedly for. The industry needs to drop that **** because the customers see right through it now as just a profit add-on that makes us look bad. Lug nuts you'd need to sell, but I can't get a set for less than ~$40 my cost for 20. We could get them for less in bulk, and that supplier doesn't always have what we need. Otherwise we're getting gouged buying singles for $4-$9/each, which obviously you can't make any margin on.

 

[oldschoolcraft]

Funny enough, whenever management "Sends it out", the cars always seem to find their way back for the next service. Then it's the techs fault, since "we did it last". Now I just walk away from the car if they want to play games. No drain plug when I say "needs a drain plug"? Roll my cart away, someone else can do it. They want to con the tech into trying to reuse it, then when the pan is damaged or the plug needs extracted next time "it's your fault you did it last" so you don't get paid anything for it. I'm too smart for that nonsense.

It's this kind of shenanigans that got me interested in doing my own car work. They want to save 50 cents so now I have to be inconvenienced by a full day to take it back.

 

[2ndGearRubber]

It's this kind of shenanigans that got me interested in doing my own car work. They want to save 50 cents so now I have to be inconvenienced by a full day to take it back.

100%. Makes the shop look bad, wastes everyone's time, just not worth doing. Generally when the techs fight back hard enough such things can't happen often. Work is a bit more adversarial as a consequence, but it's better than a free oil pan or stud replacement.

Mistakes happen, but insistence on reusing stuff like junk lug nuts just creates more headaches. Although I do have sympathy for the front desk as the general public cannot handle being told they need hood struts, lug nuts, etc.

 

[oldschoolcraft]

Mistakes happen, but insistence on reusing stuff like junk lug nuts just creates more headaches. Although I do have sympathy for the front desk as the general public cannot handle being told they need hood struts, lug nuts, etc.

I think the problem the from desk doesnt understand how to explain things to the public. They probably dont understand themselves. If you had a component mechanic who had a background as an elementary school teacher and could break stuff down into things the public can understand, then the front desk could say:

Here's the options:

Option 1: we reuse these parts. And there's a 90% chance you're going to come back sometime between 2 weeks and 6 months with this problem, because the service life of this part is X and we've exceeded that, and this part does Y. I dont recommend this route but it's the cheapest in the short-term but will be most expensive over a 6 month period.

Option 2: we spend $50 to replace these parts and avoid having to spend another $200 in labor in 6 months. We're already in there, so there's no labor charge to do it, we'd have to put the old parts back in anyway so this is the most efficient and cheapest route even though it costs a little more right now.

 

[ex-x-fire]

Our shop does stock lug nuts, I think we have 3 maybe 4 different boxed set of solid chrome nuts. They were bought on-line for the best deal. We do sell them as a set most of the time.

 

[rust in the eye]

**** for all the nonsense "shop supplies" we're tacking on the ticket you'd think we'd stock some lug nuts.

My recollection is that the "shop supplies" fees were invented in order cover little bits of hardware, etc. that were consumed on SOME jobs, rather than itemize every zip tie, dab of grease or can of brake kleen, which some guys treat as a parts washer.
Years ago an odd lug nut, especially if "we" distroyed it, may have been a gimme. Not a full set but if one or two were buggered.
"shop supplies" now is just gravy. I've seen R.O.s with charges for the most miniscule things AND shop supplies. ************ with gravy then.

 

[WWheeler]

Astro 78204 4-Piece 1/2" Drive 1/2 Size Thin Wall Lug Nut Socket Set - 17.5-22.5mm
Same set that I've seen Eric O. use in his videos, like he does in his most recent video here.

Amazon.com

What the heck, I just placed an order for a set. There's been a few times in the past I wished I had them.

And they were sitting here waiting for me when I got home today.

 

[VolvoRyan]

How about getting new lug nuts that don’t ****?

Can be hard to find lug nuts that don't ****. So much junk out there nowadays. It's gotten to the point where I just stock them.

-Ryan

 

[jimmy12345678]

Management doesn't want to pay taxes on inventory sitting around, nor lose a bonus over "excess" expenses over a given time frame. They'd rather deal with cross-threading a lug nut on or send a rounded drain plug back out the door than do right by the customer.

Funny enough, whenever management "Sends it out", the cars always seem to find their way back for the next service. Then it's the techs fault, since "we did it last". Now I just walk away from the car if they want to play games. No drain plug when I say "needs a drain plug"? Roll my cart away, someone else can do it. They want to con the tech into trying to reuse it, then when the pan is damaged or the plug needs extracted next time "it's your fault you did it last" so you don't get paid anything for it. I'm too smart for that nonsense.


It's easy enough to just "socialize" something like a drain plug when bought in bulk, and you really only need 4 sizes for the vast majority of cars on the road. That sort of thing, a dab of RTV, misc bolts/washers, etc is literally what shop supplies are supposedly for. The industry needs to drop that **** because the customers see right through it now as just a profit add-on that makes us look bad. Lug nuts you'd need to sell, but I can't get a set for less than ~$40 my cost for 20. We could get them for less in bulk, and that supplier doesn't always have what we need. Otherwise we're getting gouged buying singles for $4-$9/each, which obviously you can't make any margin on.

Number one rule in the automotive field:

The tech is ALWAYS the *******, damned if you do, damned if you don’t.

Idgaf if you like me or not, but I won’t take piss down my back and being told it’s rain, or that they’re somehow doing me a favor by giving me a **** job they undersold/wont sell