in bed compressor

[JEEP+MUD=FUN]

My buddy has an air compressor and air tools in his YJ, he says he loves it for when sh*t hits the fan on the trail. I read somewhere on here never use air tools of the lug nuts, is that the only thing that shouldn't be touched with air tools, or should I just forget the idea of having a portable workshop?

[comanche13]

why can't you touch lug nuts with air tools? i worked at a tire shop and that's all we used just don't over torque them. id use a air tool on anything i could get one on makes life easy. just make sure when putting stuff on you make sure its not cross threaded and maybe turn the power down.

[dasbulliwagen]

NEVER US AIR TOOLS ON LUG NUTS?????? What in the world? This guy has obviously never been in a production auto repair shop. Ive never had an issue, but I follow a few simple rules.

 

1. Never start lug nuts using an air gun...always start them by hand.

2. Never tighten lug nuts onto the hub with an air gun unless you use a torque stick that has been calibrated to your gun and shop air pressure.

3.ALWAYS use the correct size socket to avoid rounding the nuts or their flimsy caps... that also goes towards using thin wall sockets when needed to avoid damaging custom wheels.

 

It can be with no problem if youre careful and know what youre doing.

[possum]

Always torque lug nuts by hand after installing them with an air gun. Even places like Discount use a torque wrench after tightening lug nuts with an air gun.

[DJM/78]

Ahhh , the torque wrench , used them so much I've busted a couple over the years . Not only do the air wrenches EF up your wheels , they snap and cross thread lugs easy and every time they chip up my brand new lugs .. :fs1: Only takes a month or two for them to start rusting to sh@t .

 

Its OK though , they just keep having to buy me new lugs every time I have tires mounted or swapped .

Them guys see me coming from a mile away now , they know if they EF something up , I'll make them pay ... :fs2:

They probably hate my @ss by now . :yes:

[jimoshel]

:agree: To last four posts. Can't beat a impact wrench for usefullness. Especially removing stubborn nuts. They get their bad rap from the idiots who ,when using one, holds the trigger down until the nut quits turning, or snaps off.

[JEEP+MUD=FUN]

Yeah i get the point with not over tightening them, I must have miss read the other post.

[Pete M]

I love having my Co2 tank on the trails. :D

[DJM/78]

Don't get me wrong , I am putting one in because of an Air locker I'll be installing in the future and the uses for other things will be

great to have out in the middle of nowhere . Tools like an air chisel and socket set would be a great asset out in the field .

Not that I would ever use them that much but that Boy Scout modo doesn't hurt moral when I leave for the sticks .

[Pete M]

I wish I had a photo of the expressions on the guys' faces when I calmly walked over with a floor jack, co2 tank and impact wrench to help out with the blown tire. :D

 

[wyk]

How much air are you going to put in the bed? I have seen very few on board air set ups that could supply enough air to run an impact wrench for any real length of time. I had a monster set up in Ireland on a Scania and a MerCedes Semi Tuck heavy recovery vehicle that had some pneumatic tools for some of the truck apparatus and recovery tools(like jaws etc.) that certainly would not have fit in the bed of my Comanche ;) How long can you run those CO2 set ups?

 

Here's a similarly set up vehicle:

 

[Pete M]

I've never had a co2 tank run out during a weekend (I wanna say it's a 10 lb tank?). That includes numerous tire rotations (travel tires off, wheelin' tires on, then back again), airing up a couple times, other peoples' repairs, etc. You just have to keep in mind that the amount is still finite. I use a breaker bar for both starting and finishing the lugs (where I'd be wasting the most air) and use the impact to mostly make it all go much faster. :cheers:

 

I do have a cheapie 12volt air compressor as a backup for airing up the tires. :thumbsup: