Small issue with new wheels

[gtkid]

I had my new racestar wheels put on over the weekend. Unfortunately one of the holes thats used to secure the center cap is cross threaded and makes the alan screw seize up and get stuck so i dont have it in. American muscle wont exchange it because i already drove on it(understandable). All idea/suggestions are greatly appreciated. It does bother me knowing im missing one.
TIA!

 

[BlueDevil]

Drill and Helicoil the wheel. Easy and cheap, and you can use the same size bolt as the rest.

 

[gtkid]

Drill and Helicoil the wheel. Easy and cheap, and you can use the same size bolt as the rest.

Thank you for the replay, Let me elaborate, im not mechanically inclined at all. Sounds like i could possibly make things worse with a drill in my hand. Will look into it more though. Could be the best option

 

[dark steed]

Or you could first try to run a tap in it to re-cut the threads. Just use some cutting fluid and don't force it. Go in a bit and back off, then keep repeating.

 

[gtkid]

Or you could first try to run a tap in it to re-cut the threads. Just use some cutting fluid and don't force it. Go in a bit and back off, then keep repeating.

Oh geez this isnt sounding good to me, i may just give a machine shop a call and have a pro do it and not scratch my new wheel.

 

[gtkid]

Anyone know if the center cap on the particular wheel needs to removed before mounting tires to it?? i would hate to continue to remove these easily cross threaded thingseverytime i need a new tire

 

[oldVOR]

Where are you located?
There might be someone close by that can help.
As far as mechanically goes, this is super easy.

No, you do not have to remove the cap to mount/dismount a tire.

 

[Flusher]

The cap does have to come off to mount the wheel on a tire machine and balancer, but to R&R it from the vehicle.

It looks like the holes (and threads) go all the way through. I would try chasing the threads from the back side. Those fasteners are not under any substantial load. I bet the threads will clean up without issue.

A word of caution: taps are much easier to cross-thread than the bolts. If the tap doesn't start straight, the threads will be completely destroyed.

If you will be R&Ring these in the future, you should start all the bolts in by hand before tightening any with a wrench. That way you can ensure that all the bolts start in straight without binding.

 

[gtkid]

The cap does have to come off to mount the wheel on a tire machine and balancer, but to R&R it from the vehicle.

It looks like the holes (and threads) go all the way through. I would try chasing the threads from the back side. Those fasteners are not under any substantial load. I bet the threads will clean up without issue.

A word of caution: taps are much easier to cross-thread than the bolts. If the tap doesn't start straight, the threads will be completely destroyed.

If you will be R&Ring these in the future, you should start all the bolts in by hand before tightening any with a wrench. That way you can ensure that all the bolts start in straight without binding.

EHH yea the threads to go all the way though. What do you mean chase the threads from the back side??

Yea i will be removing and replacing these when my other mods are finished, il be at the track more. Why would they put such flimsy threads on something thats going to be repeatedly taken on and off?. I bought these wheels under the impression they where for drag racers?!?!

 

[Wes06]

Basically just run a bolt of the same thread from the back

A tap would be better just make sure it starts correctly before continuing through the whole thing

 

[dark steed]

EHH yea the threads to go all the way though. What do you mean chase the threads from the back side??



Yea i will be removing and replacing these when my other mods are finished, il be at the track more. Why would they put such flimsy threads on something thats going to be repeatedly taken on and off?. I bought these wheels under the impression they where for drag racers?!?!

Edit: Treed! And I agree a tap would be much better.

He means to run a longer bolt of the same thread pitch from the backside to to clean up or "chase the threads". The threads on the backside are not hurt, and you may be able to clean them up with a bolt by running it through from that side. I assume those are aluminum wheels, and the screws are steel, thus the problem.

 

[MechE]

EHH yea the threads to go all the way though. What do you mean chase the threads from the back side??

Yea i will be removing and replacing these when my other mods are finished, il be at the track more. Why would they put such flimsy threads on something thats going to be repeatedly taken on and off?. I bought these wheels under the impression they where for drag racers?!?!

The through holes is a good thing. It is likely that when you cross threaded the bolt, you only messed with the threads near the outside. If you take a bolt from one of the other holes and carefully screw it all the way in, from the back, you may be able to re-establish the threads that are damaged. This is called chasing. You can do it with a bolt (if you are lucky) or with a tap if you need to. Just be careful with the tap.

 

[gtkid]

Thank you guys all so much for the replies, i spoke with someone from american muscle and they claim i dont need to remove these caps to mount tires. "Just put it on and leave it"

Its so frustrating because the cross threads are at the very end of it. The screw is pretty close to being flush. Looking at it now im not sure they go all the way through now.


Thinking about just forcing in the last part if i dont have to take it off again

 

[46Tbird]

Thinking about just forcing in the last part if i dont have to take it off again

"Forcing" a steel screw into aluminum threads is generally a bad idea.

You seem to be coming up with all kinds of reasons for not doing this the right way, which is to use a tap.

If the threads go all the way through, it's very simple. Remove the wheel, start the tap from the back, and thread it in by hand until you find the bad thread. Then carefully and slowly work the tap through the threads, moving forward a half turn and backing out a quarter turn as you go. Keep the threads clean. You may want to spray a lubricant in the hole if there is a lot of material but I doubt you'll need to on such a small issue.

If it's a blind hole (meaning the threads don't come out on the back side of the wheel hub) then you can certainly use a tap to fix this, but you will be starting on the outside. You better DAMN SURE have the tap set up straight or else you will be cutting an all new set of threads over the top of your existing threads and ruining the whole thing. If you don't feel comfortable doing this, take the wheel off and drop it at a machine shop. It's a couple of minute fix for someone that knows what they're doing.

I guess I just felt like typing this morning...

 

[Steve@Tasca]

Could also simply cut the threaded portion off the allen screw and glue the head in place in the cap.

Might not be the best solution but it's not like five screws are really needed to keep the caps from falling off.

-Steve

 

[stkjock]

Its so frustrating because the cross threads are at the very end of it. The screw is pretty close to being flush. Looking at it now im not sure they go all the way through now.

get a shorter bolt or cut a few threads off

 

[46Tbird]

Could also simply cut the threaded portion off the allen screw and glue the head in place in the cap.

C'mon. At best it's a nasty surprise for the next guy that balances the wheel.

 

[Steve@Tasca]

C'mon. At best it's a nasty surprise for the next guy that balances the wheel.

There is that, unless the OP pulls the caps before taking it in for tires and or balancing.

-Steve

 

[gtkid]

get a shorter bolt or cut a few threads off

This. Thinking this is the way to go for now.