Wheel stud popped off

[SenorCole86]

Hello guys, I got my new tires in today. I'm really excited about getting them on, but as I was taking off the old ones, one of the wheel studs on the rear driver's tire popped right off almost at the drum. As far as I know, all you need to take off to replace one of these is just the drum right? It can all be done right there on the axle? I would do this, but all three of those drum to hub retaining screws are too rusty to get a screwdriver in. Should I just drill them out and retap? If so, what size drill bit to use?

Also, how long and how hard can I run on four wheel studs? I MAY be able to get a few threads on this broken one, but I doubt it. I have a good buddy coming down from Houston tomorrow and he wanted me to take him Jeeping with my new tires. I might add, I got wheel spacers with the tires, sooo, if it is ok to run with four lugnuts for a little while, is it ok to run on four lugnuts on a spacer for a little while? Any help at would greatly greatly greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot guys, adios.

 

[JeepcrewX5]

Hello guys, I got my new tires in today. I'm really excited about getting them on, but as I was taking off the old ones, one of the wheel studs on the rear driver's tire popped right off almost at the drum. As far as I know, all you need to take off to replace one of these is just the drum right? It can all be done right there on the axle? I would do this, but all three of those drum to hub retaining screws are too rusty to get a screwdriver in. Should I just drill them out and retap? If so, what size drill bit to use?

Also, how long and how hard can I run on four wheel studs? I MAY be able to get a few threads on this broken one, but I doubt it. I have a good buddy coming down from Houston tomorrow and he wanted me to take him Jeeping with my new tires. I might add, I got wheel spacers with the tires, sooo, if it is ok to run with four lugnuts for a little while, is it ok to run on four lugnuts on a spacer for a little while? Any help at would greatly greatly greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot guys, adios.

Hey man sounds like an issue, let me get this straight, you cannot remove the axle shaft? or just not enuf time on your hands. Either way, you can ride on four lugs for a while, I did it for two years on my 79 CJ5 does that make me smart..... no just lucky, get it fixed asap after your trip.

 

[Bounty__Hunter]

The drum is fastened to the axles with screws? That's some old school stuff I'm not aware of.

Once you pop the drum off, you should be able to drive the broken stud out and install a new one from behind the wheel flange. Pull the new one through with a few washers and a lug nut.

 

[OutOfStep]

I hear in Canada they only run 4 lug nuts on every wheel

 

[JeepcrewX5]

I hear in Canada they only run 4 lug nuts on every wheel

I hear in Canada they do alot of stuff we don't do here.

 

[Sparky-Watts]

I hear in Canada they only run 4 lug nuts on every wheel

I've known that you've been short a lug nut or two for years now!!

 

[OutOfStep]

I know, I'm missing enough that I'm wobbly at high speeds :lol:

 

[jay79cj7]

The drums on my 79 were missing those screws when I got it and I never replaced them... You should be fine no matter what you do to get them off.

 

[88Wrangles]

How would screws hold the drum on? The drum rotates with the wheel...which would snap off any screws that where there the first time you tried to drive anywhere.

The screws you're seeing, are they on the backside? If so, they're probably holding the backing plate on.

The drum should just slide off once you have the wheel off. Might be kind of stuck on there...so you might have to back the shoes off a little bit, and use a big hammer. Just don't bend the backing plate.

 

[jay79cj7]

No, there are screws on the wheel face of the drum to hold it in place.

 

[88Wrangles]

I'd just drill them out and leave them off then. Probably only there to hold the drum on when it was on the production line.

 

[mud4feet]

Simple repair and cheap. My dumb-arse replaced 3 of them on my TJ (something like a dollar or so apiece), so if I can do it, anybody can.

 

[Jeepr89]

You might want to try an impact driver to get the screws out. I do this all the time at work when those screws are not cooperating. Don't worry about putting them back in when you are done.

 

[SenorCole86]

Ok, trip ended up not happening, but that's ok. I went to go take the drum off this morning and it will not come off. I drilled the screws out and they are not hindering the drum in any way, I thought I backed the adjusters off correctly. You have to turn the star wheel downward, right? I'm kinda confused on this. You have to hold the lever away from the star wheel while backing them off or not? Anyways, I can kidna pry the drum off with a screwdriver and it looks like it's sticking in the middle, like it's rusted to the hub. I'm just letting it soak in PB right now. Any help at all would be great guys, thanks a lot.

 

[jay79cj7]

Lots of PB and a hammer...