PSA....change out your factory lug nuts before it is too late 31k miles

[CoronaRaptor]

Here is a pic of the locking design that I do not recommend. If they they are overtorqued, they can shear where the cross sectional area is reduced in the middle, then you have a project to drill out the lug bolt (times 9 in my case). Trust me that operation is not for the faint of heart.

View attachment 148806

I couldn't even imagine doing that, I would be throwing sh-t!

 

[lateralis]

So which rims can use stock lug nuts? I don't think all tuner style lugs are bad. I've never heard of anyone splitting the full spline style lugs.

 

[EricM]

So which rims can use stock lug nuts? I don't think all tuner style lugs are bad. I've never heard of anyone splitting the full spline style lugs.

Mine were American Eagle AE12s- they had a Raptor specific fitment that was hubcentric and used the stock lugs. They don't sell those wheels anymore though AFAIK.

"Tuner lugs" will never be as robust as an OEM sized lugnut if they are made of the same material. Given the weight of the Raptor's wheels and tires and the usage patterns these trucks see, I'm just not down to run some tiny ass lug nut simply because the wheel manufacturer cannot design a wheel that uses the proper OEM sized lugs. Do I think tuner lugs are going to cause your wheel to fall off? No. Is the OEM design better? Yes.

It is possible for the wheel companies to make a wheel that use OEM lugs- they just choose not to so they can make the least amount of SKUs possible to fit the most amount of trucks. IE, they are cheaping out and forcing you to buy a new set of lug nuts that are markedly weaker than the OEM design. Half the junk being sold isn't even hubcentric either. Method has been the poster child for cheap, chicom cast, non-hubcentric, tuner lug required wheels for a decade. Raptor guys love them too- go figure huh? A lot of their stuff is finally getting to be hubcentric at least.

 

[Oldfart]

after much research, I ordered the Gorilla vs McGard because the Gorilla lug nuts are shorter then McGard. For my Velgen wheels I didn't like how the longer lugs stuck out too far. Curious now to see if i have any problems with the Gorilla Lug Nuts. Still debating if I should have tried black vs chrome, really would have liked a gray or brushed lug, but no such luck.

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If you want to do a brushed look with yours, you can do it with a Dremel and a light touch with a soft wire wheel. You just have to pay attention to keep your spin direction consistent. Start in the middle and work your way out and down the sides.

 

[GordoJay]

If you want to do a brushed look with yours, you can do it with a Dremel and a light touch with a soft wire wheel. You just have to pay attention to keep your spin direction consistent. Start in the middle and work your way out and down the sides.

Taking a Dremel to your nuts? That’s hardcore!

 

[Milo12]

Here is a pic of the locking design that I do not recommend. If they they are overtorqued, they can shear where the cross sectional area is reduced in the middle, then you have a project to drill out the lug bolt (times 9 in my case). Trust me that operation is not for the faint of heart.

View attachment 148806

That’s a design "feature". Torque to shear off the drive and you will never have to worry about having your wheels stolen.

 

[Sunchild714]

The thing I've seen is a lot of people use the wrong socket. They will use a socket that is one size off, and it works fine to remove them with a bit of slop- but it damages the exterior cover on the 2 piece lug, especially when air tools are used. Next time around, the correct size is used and the lug nuts get stuck in the socket. I would wager that 99% of the issues with the OE lugs are due to this.

I've owned Fords for 30+ years and I rotate my tires myself. I've never needed to replace a OE Ford lug nut due to swelling.

Even the lug wrench that comes with the truck sucks. Ford F'd up. That's it. Plain and simple

 

[Oldfart]

Taking a Dremel to your nuts? That’s hardcore!

Nobody ever said being pretty was easy!

 

[EricM]

Even the lug wrench that comes with the truck sucks. Ford F'd up. That's it. Plain and simple

I agree that they probably did **** up the tool. The factory lug wrench is for emergencies only and is cheap crap. If you damaged a lug using that crappy tool, it's not surprising. That tool is typically either stamped metal formed into a hex, or it's the even crappier "tire iron" style with horrible tolerances. Use a proper sized deep well socket and a breaker bar and you will never have issues. I have never used a factory tool on any lug nut now that I think about it. I only use the hooked/rubber coated end to pry off center caps.

Ford's lugnuts have a stainless steel outer shell to keep them from getting as rusty as normal chromed lugs get. If you beat the crap out of that thin outer shell with an impact and/or a loose fitting socket, it's going to roll over at the corners. They don't swell. The rolled corners are what makes it stick in the socket. Again, use a proper sized deep well socket and a breaker bar and you will never have issues. You can use impact tools no problem, but only if you have a tight fitting deep well socket on the lugnut. If the offical size of the lug is 21mm, but a 13/16 socket actually fits tight with no slop- using the 21mm will destroy the lugs. You have to get a socket that fits tight with no slop, and never use the "well this is close and it will remove them so it's good enough" size. If you do that one time, the tight fitting socket will never fit again and it just gets worse and worse as you used oversized sockets to accommodate the previous damage.

 

[GordoJay]

Nobody ever said being pretty was easy!

I hope you're using plenty of polishing compound.