quality studs? vorshlag = :(

[nando]

had two studs break on me at the track today. I got lucky and found two bolts for $4 at a local shop. I don't want to ever do that again though.

I'm thinking they couldn't handle the heat - my front brakes are getting up to 600+ degrees (mission is murder on brakes). Freshly torqued nuts came loose (I think the loctite may have given up as well, studs were loose in the hubs), I felt something was wrong - pulled over, couldn't torque them down. two of them broke when I tried to remove them.

They were visibly longer than the others before I tried to remove them as well. lucky enough was sticking out I was able to remove them with a pair of vice grips.

this is my second set - I always use antisieze and I'm pretty religious about checking the torque of my lugs. I know they don't last forever but I don't think they should have broken.

anyone have the turner set?

[Jean]

Ouch.... I am glad it didn't cause any damage !!!

[Dyno4mance]

Did you have the black race studs (bullet nose) they sell or the regular plated ones?

[nando]

Did you have the black race studs (bullet nose) they sell or the regular plated ones?

they are the regular plated ones but with black nuts. they didn't have any bullet nosed studs in standard length when I got them or I would have (I don't need longer ones) .

I also hand thread them in before using my impact, don't want to cross thread them.

I want standard length (60mm?) bullet nosed if I can find them.

[laz]

I run the bullet nosed ones that require a 5mm spacer (I think they have that sorted these days). I don't anti sieze the studs, and I get an occasional siezed nut and stud back out, but that's all the trouble I've had in 1.5yrs of once monthly spec e30 racing. I use an impact gun all the time.

I've had 2 of the the silver non-bullet nosed ones shear on track on my e36 m3. Luckily I made it back into the paddock with a loud WOMP WOMP WOMP :)

[nando]

yeah, I don't want to slander them or anything. I don't think the regular plated ones are good enough for track use, I'd just never heard of them failing before. sounds like I'm not the only one.

I think people should know about this, although getting studs for a street-only car is pretty pointless. They weren't so great for autox either, after one season my old set were pretty well trashed. the hardened black nuts & anti seize helped a lot, the plated nuts are garbage.

at least mine didn't shear! although they may have if I had continued for another lap :o

I was actually glad that it was the stud that failed and not one of my front hubs, avoiding damaging the hubs was one of the reasons for going with studs in the first place!

[SkinnyVT]

you guys aren't retorquing them when they are hot are you?

[whiltebeitel]

you guys aren't retorquing them when they are hot are you?

This. Heat stretches bolts, and when you re-torque them hot, and they cool, the stress on the bolt rises a huge ammount, as if you torqued them like the crank hub bolt. Turner Studs fail under the same circumstances, saw a good friend lose the RF wheel to the trees in a left hander. Tyhe studs sheared because they were way too tight, and the load of the c orner did them in. Luckily, he was safe and only needed to replace the studs and fender.

If I may be so blunt, I hope you aren't tightening the nut with the impact set to a "torque"

[GotCone?]

You should contact Vorshlag, I'm sure they will make things right.

I've been using a set of their older 80mm studs on the E30 track car w/o issues. It's had a full share of thrashing this year too.

Thanks - Jon

[cheades]

Definitely call them, I have had theirs for quite a few years and never had any issues with them (plated for like 3 years, black for 2).

[2002maniac]

I also had problems with vorshlag studs. They would constantly back out (even with red loctite) and were a general pita. The problem is that screw in studs are not ideal.

I eventually switched to moroso press in studs. They were a pita to install (pull the hubs off, drill out the threaded lug hole, and press in studs) but I needed to change all my wheel bearings anyway.

If you don't use spacers thicker than 5mm or so you can get "extended" F-body studs at NAPA for like $1 each.

[AlarmedBread]

Glad that they broke in the pits, could have been hairy.

I'm using vorshlag race studs, but tack welded them to the back of the hub so I could use an impact to remove wheels.

[iflytii]

Call Vorshlag, I'm sure they will take care of you.

Those plated studs were sold by several different vendors and I really haven't heard too many bad things about them. I ran them for a couple years but swapped them out as regular maintenance and "upgraded" to the hardened "race" studs. I never had any issues with them but every year or two I swap my studs out as a precaution.

[whiltebeitel]

I also had problems with vorshlag studs. They would constantly back out (even with red loctite) and were a general pita. The problem is that screw in studs are not ideal.

This is why Vorshlag's first studs had an interference fit thread on the hub side, so they studs would feel like they wer cross-threading, but were just exteremly tight to the female threads of the hub, to keep them from rotating out. People didn't like it, so they discontinued that.

[Knockenwelle]

I was given a set of studs and nuts from a buddy who used to have an E30. I don't know the make, but they had rolled threads, and looked OK. I installed them on one front hub with red loctite, let it sit overnight, and put the wheel on using the supplied matching nuts. They did nothing but stretch (.200"!!) and wouldn't even achieve 80 ft-lbs with a known-good torque wrench. I ripped those bitches out of there and I'm using stock-replacement lug bolts to this day. I've never had a problem with them, and never had one loosen up. Sure, they're kinda difficult to get lined up at first, but so what? I guess it's a different story with a big spacer...