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Can't get a factory alloy wheel off - Help please

M

MoFo

NAXJA Forum User
NAXJA Memorial Lifetime Member
Location
Near Rochester NY
1987 XJ Laredo

I just removed the lug nuts and tried to take the drvier's side front wheel off and it won't budge from the hub. I tried a bottle jack on the side against a 2x4 to the bottom of the opposite tire. I got it up to about 1000 lbs of pressure in front of the hub, then beat on the side behind the hub with a 4# deadblow hammer. Then I tried the trusty HF 13# slide hammer, hooked into the rim slots. I popped out the plastic cap and sprayed PB Blaster between the inside of the wheel and the hub. I let is soak 4 hours, then repeated the above. This wheel will not come off.

I have been beating and kicking the tire, because I don't want to bend the rim. How much abuse will this rim take?

Can anybody recommend a way to get this off? Hopefully I won't have to cut it off and ruin the wheel.

TIA
 
Wow not sure if this will work, but when mine stick I put the lug nuts back on but not tight, and drive it. Pretty much a quick punch of the gas or locking up the brakes when you have traction pops mine right off. Try this at your own rish.
 
98XJSport said:
Wow not sure if this will work, but when mine stick I put the lug nuts back on but not tight, and drive it. Pretty much a quick punch of the gas or locking up the brakes when you have traction pops mine right off. Try this at your own rish.
Click to expand...

Wow, yeah that is kinda risky but I can see that would definitely work.. How many lb's to you put the lugs at?
 
Hand tight, usually all 5. And when I say drive, I mean like back it up in the driveway and lock them up, or punch it if you have enough forward room.
 
98XJSport said:
Wow not sure if this will work, but when mine stick I put the lug nuts back on but not tight, and drive it. Pretty much a quick punch of the gas or locking up the brakes when you have traction pops mine right off. Try this at your own rish.
Click to expand...

Also might try putting the lug nuts back on, one full turn loose, then the lower the jeep back down and see if the drop/bounce does not kick it loose. If not put it in gear and rock it just a bit forward / backward a few inches, that should do it.

I had a similar problem except it was getting the last lug nut off after Wally Worlds High tech mechanics installed my new tire and torq the behgebers out of the nuts ( I was trying to do a brake overhaul next).

I used a six foot long 2" sch. 80 steel pipe as a cheater bar and bent the 1" thick solid steel tire tool and it still did not budge. The lug nut and bolt held fast too!

Gotta love Wally World.
 
Yeah, you've got rust and aluminum corrosion holding the wheel where it's "hubcentric" on the axle flange. Some penetrating oil and some soak time, then do the loose lugs, drive back/forth thing - it should come loose. Lugs should be no more than one full turn from contact with the rim.

Be sure to use some fine grit sand paper or emery cloth to clean the flange surface and the inside of the rim hubcentric part to keep that from happening again, then put just a bit of bearing grease on those surfaces before bolting it back up.
 
Second the suggestion that you put the lugs on just a little loose, just enough so that the tapered seats aren't quite down, drive it on a paved driveway or whatever, and hit the brakes hard. It will rotate the wheel enough to crack the hub loose without doing any damage. This has always worked for me even when the biggest BFH wouldn't budge it.

Of course this only works if the reason you're taking the wheel off is not either a flat tire or a non-working brake!
 
Okay, I've had to do this once before. The following method should be used as a last resort, you could break stuff, including your face.

Get a chain. Get a strong chain, not the kind on your kid's swing set, the kind you use for tying stuff down with. The heavier it weighs, the better. You will also need a slip hook at one end. A slip hook with a safety catch is better.

Make a loop of chain around one spoke of your wheel. Stand back. Take the other end of your chain and hold it loosely in your hand. Snap the chain like a bullwhip. If you have to, swap spokes to spread the shock around every once in a while.

Try not to let the chain smack against your paint (if you care).

There are probably lots of better ways to get the tire off, but it was the only way that worked in the situation I was in.

Stupid company trucks not having any tools......:gonnablow
 
It is a good thing the tire is not flat. However, the reason I wanted to take it off was to get clearence to take off the front drive shaft, so I could remove the yoke and take the shaft out of the TC. Since the TC is half apart, I don't think I will be driveing it anywhere tonight. I will work around the wheel to get the TW SYE installed. Once the TC is back together and the driveshafts are on, I will try the suggestions. Thanks everybody.
 
during the 6 years at the tire store we always used the BFH on the tire method. then PB Blaster and more BFH on the tire. Last resort was a real good hit on the back side lip of the wheel. I never totally ruined a wheel but some were noticably "used" afterwards (ie. some bends, dents, or scratches.) My words of caution are we used a BIG hammer. full 15 lbs sledge I believe. laying on the clean flat shop floor with a ***VERY*** secure jack under the vehicle and preferably jackstands also. Sometimes we would try dropping the jack with loose lugs to "bounce" it loose but this only worked with the hammer not instead of the hammer. I can't stress enough that we smacked the tires VERY hard and the chance of throwing a vehicle off of a smaller jack would be great. We had excellent commercial jacks.

Capt Obvious tip: be sure to turn the tire 1/4 turn each HARD hit, and work your way around and around and around until it pops right off.

But I digress..... yes the wheel can take some conciderable hits and still be useable.
 
happened to me.

grab a sledge hammer. raise and support the ONE WHEEL. tap each side of the TIRE so that it loosens up.

[i tapped the right side 3 times, then left 3 times, then right rear, then left rear -each 3 times]

after a couple of taps, if it still is not budging -even a little- start to really whap it.

worked great for me
 
fiyre,

Did you ever break the cords in the tires when you hit them with the BFH? I know in the business you were takeing them off to install new tires, so you didn't care, but this XJ has tires with less than 5K miles on them (plus 2 years in the barn). I had hoped to keep them and the rims to run on the street.
 
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