Special lug socket - needed?

I'll be ordering my wheel spacers for my 348 soon. I am wondering if I should buy that special aluminum socket for the lug bolts. it is $77. Can I just use a 4 way wrench and be careful?

Rodney Dickman
1990 348 TS

 

This is a great tool as the aluminum liner in the socket prevents wear of the bolt face, however it is not really necessary.

I use a deep metric socket and a 18 inch breaker bar and have noticed no damage to the bolts.

Make sure you torque your lug bolts to 72 ft Ilbs with a torque wrench.

 

I have the spacers installed (15mm F, 25mm R) and use the aluminum socket all the time. It works great and cannot damage the chromed bolts because the aluminum is softer than a steel socket which could do damage if mishandled. I would never use an air or electric impact gun. Remove or install the wheel bolts by hand, using a 1/2" drive ratcheting torque wrench, a 6" half inch drive extension, and the alum socket. IMHO this is the best way to avoid scratching anything. Torquing the spacers and the wheel bolts to correct values is mandatory.


Richard
'92 348tb

 

Don't use that torque wrench to loosen anything!

Break-away torque can greatly exceed the value the fasteners were tightened to. This is not good for it.

Torque wrenches are precision instruments designed for one thing, precise repeatable tightening of fasteners. nothing else.

Make sure to return the adjustment to "0" after use. Some wrenches lose calibration if left set at the proper torque value.

 

I use a beam type torque wrench and always use it to loosen bolts. As long as you don't exceed the max rating you're fine.

 

I'm a believer in the Aluminum-lined 6-point sockets for the plated lugbolts -- the contact stresses along the sharp edges is very high. If the plating is of good-quality (and you don't get big flakes coming off ), it won't be very noticable (i.e., obviously people can, and do, get by being careful with a steel socket and hand tools -- and sometimes a plasitc bag), but having the socket material have a lower strength and hardness than the lugbolt makes sense to me -- JMO.

Sears (Craftsman) and OZAT brands are also options for for a 22mm (7/8") 6-point Aluminum-lined socket.

 

Searched and searched and searched and could not find a aluminum lined socket in 7/8" or 22 mm.

Anyone have any information?

Rodney

 

Do a search on "OZAT" here and read those 5 threads

http://www.newmantools.com/ozat/08ap.htm

I mis-remembered and should have said "Snap-On" (not Craftsman -- although they may have them also -- I do know Snap-On does too).

 

Daniel has it at Ricambia. Best company to work with.


http://www.ricambiamerica.com/index.php?cPath=7&sort=3a&page=2

 

The aluminun lined sockets are regularly sold on ebay as well.......just search Ferrari tools

 

The price I received for a 7/8" Ozat aluminum lined socket was $54.50 plus shipping. I guess I'll just buy the better socket.

Rodney Dickman
1990 348 TS

 

Don’t forget that the Ozat drives on the corners of the bolts which can put undue pressure on the corners where the chrome normally chips off - the other problem is that as 7/8 is bigger than 22mm and it exaggerates the above problems as well - the Hill socket is 22mm & drives on the flats (flank drive) to avoid that problem. Knowing that the chrome is literally adhered to the surface of the bolt, I would never use any socket that drives on the points.


Just my .02!

Paul

 

Paul -- Can't agree that this is a fair (negative) point about the OZAT -- at least the OZAT socket that I have is also flank-drive (with relief radii in the hex corners). One small negative is that the depth of the OZAT socket is deeper than the lugbolt head height so you have to be mindful not to push the end into the painted wheel surface (although it wouldn't be impossible to add a non-maring stop inside the socket -- guess I'm just lazy ).
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Steve,

I will check the Ozat socket I have on my desk - from memory if there is any relief its very minimal on my one. They advertise is as a six point - nothing related to flank drive - I think we can safely say that its not a true flank drive socket (in the traditional sense of the lobed points like the Snap-on sockets)

The Hill socket comes with a rubber insert in the base of the socket so the socket fits onto the bolt all the way home and with no interference in the wheel as you mention. I think the main thing here is that we developed this tool specifically for the Ferrari Bolts - nothing else, so we spent a fair amount of time getting it exactly right - as you say I remember the days of using plastic bags in the days before these sockets - The 7/8 socket did come in quite handy then as is was that tad bigger. We just wanted to create something that you could use straight out the box (even though it comes in a bag!)

Paul

 

My jpeg isn't very clear (since only the upper edge area is visible), but the corner reliefs on my sample are fairly significant, and, deeper in the socket, it's clear that there's a ~4mm wide channel at each hex corner without contact to the lugbolt (i.e., no contact within ~2mm of any vertical lugbolt edge) since the original red (alodine?) finish is unmarked.

Don't disagree that the OZAT literature isn't very specific, but, if you are making a soft-lined socket specifically for plated fasteners, wouldn't it be a little crazy not to use a flank-drive?

Maybe we just have different pieces -- the only "part number"-like number stamped on my example is "0814AP"
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