66mm wheel studs and 21mm spacers installed without hammer(Picture Tutorial).

[kangl7]

Like many people on this board, I've wanted to get some Fuchs 16x8 for the rear to fill out the fender flares. With 16x8 prices being sky high, I went to plan B which was to get some 21mm wheel spacers and install some 66mm wheel studs. It seems like most people hammer out their studs and pull in the new studs. I was OK with pulling in the studs, but I wasn't a big fan of taking a big hammer to the hub.

Enter ball joint separator from Harbor Freight.


This picture shows my stud pressing setup. No need to remove the hub from the car. You just have the remove the spring and the star adjuster wheel to be able to fit the 66mm studs.

The base lip of the studs were just a tad bit too big to be pushed between the two prong end, so I had to put two nuts on either side as spacers. It was a little tricky getting everything to line up while holding the two nuts in place, but once the apparatus was set, it was a breeze pushing out the studs. The upside down hammer is there to prevent the hub from rotating while I am ratcheting.

Here's the setup for pulling in the new studs. Again, the hammer is there to prevent the hub from rotating.


Some hints and tips for doing this job.

Get some steel wheel nuts for pulling in the studs. You don't want to damage your factory aluminum nuts.

Make sure you have a 19mm wrench for the caliper to trailing arm bolt. The top bolt is easy to reach, but the bottom bolt has very limited space and you can't get a socket in there unless the bolt is halfway screwed in. Use the 19mm wrench to get the bolt started and then switch to the ratcheting socket halfway through.

Support the caliper after you unbolt it. It's only connected to the car with the hard brake line and you don't want to damage the line.

The hardest part of the job was probably removing the spring holding the hand brake pads together. The combination of needle nose pliers and flat head screw driver did it for me, but it wasn't easy. Get some eye protection because you'll be fighting that spring.

When you reinstall the brake disc after installing the studs, make sure that the hand brake inspection hole on the hub lines up with the one on the brake disc. I made the mistake of installing the disc, and bolted the calipers back on only to realize that I had misaligned the disc. Doh!

Of course, pictures of the result. Extremely happy with the wheel offset now. It's just right. If you've been debating this job, do it, you won't regret it.

[sc_rufctr]

Thanks for the write up.

Those wheels fit perfect now. Well done!

[David]

Will the tool work for removing the longer studs? I need to put in shorter studs since I'm not using the spacers.

[kangl7]

Originally Posted by David

Will the tool work for removing the longer studs? I need to put in shorter studs since I'm not using the spacers.

If you grind down the 2 prong end instead of using the 2 nuts as spacers, then you can gain a little bit more travel. I was basically bottoming out using the two nuts as spacers for 45mm studs. I think something in the 60mm range might work. Another option would be to cut down your long studs, then press them out.

[KTL]

Nice job! I have one of those ball joint tools and hadn't thought of using for pressing out studs (because it's a ball joint press........ ) I'm bummed that I can't use my press tool because I have some long studs on cars I want to swap out, and I can't cut them (I want to reuse all of them). But i'll keep this in the brain bank for future use.

I know the hammering idea is not pleasant but it does work OK. The hub is extremely strong material and a small sledge + brass driving rod knock them out easily.

Tip for anyone doing this work. Whatever press tool you use, C-clamp (for front hubs) or ball joint press, be sure to use lubricant on the press tool threads and on the wheel studs when pulling the new studs in. Lubricant is very important to avoid galling the threads because there's a lot of force transmitted to the threads. Excess friction hinders your ability to apply the force to the area you want it to be applied- the splined area of stud head and hub