Loose Studs :( - Tips?

[CCCT]

Thanks for the help guys! Much appreciated. Complete blizzard here right now and want to take it for a quick rip, but will have to tomorrow I suppose. haha.

 

[MrSled]

Thanks for the help guys! Much appreciated. Complete blizzard here right now and want to take it for a quick rip, but will have to tomorrow I suppose. haha.

Take it for a rip... just dont go putting on 100 miles or more till you get that taken care of.

 

[twyztid]

I have had the exact thing happen on my 06GT. I believe whoever installed the studs originally didn't tighten them enough and over time they start to wiggle wearing out the backer and the bottom of the nut. It is impossible to just tighten them because of the galvanic corrosion between the stainless steel studs and the aluminum nuts. Your studs also appear to be stainless.

I have had to cut the nut with a die grinder which also damages the stud. Replace the stud/nut, and either replaced the backer or put a steel flat washer on the backer before putting the nut on the stud. You need a flat surface for the new nut to seat against.

I don't think this is as bad of a problem as far as the nuts being stuck with steel nuts on stainless studs or aluminum nuts on steel studs.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

 

[CCCT]

Status - Nut splitter - worked on a handful then broke..lol. Said screw it and picked up a new angle grinder and a shi+load of cutoff blades which were on sale cheap then went to town. WAY easier. Zipped all the loose ones off and thats that. If the sled treats me well this winter, I'll be replacing the track before next season and will go from there. Anyways, thanks for all the tips. 4 1/2" grinder is DEFINITELY the way to go

 

[yamadoo]

Why not cut off the loose studs push out leaving thie backer and replace with new stud and nut on the prior hole. Did I misss something wrong with the backers?

 

[CCCT]

Why not cut off the loose studs push out leaving thie backer and replace with new stud and nut on the prior hole. Did I misss something wrong with the backers?

thought about that but plan on replacing track etc in the near future and just wanted to get the sled rideable for this season. Got a lot going on so wanted to go the easy route for a change.

 

[yamadoo]

On eBay I think you can buy 24 studs with nuts and your done nothing to worry about this or next year

 

[CCCT]

Meant to also mention I dont want or need studs anyways. Bought the sled last Jan, and it already had them. New track I plan to not stud if I can get away with it. Im in a subdivision and zipping the kids out from the garage for quick zips here and there are its taking a toll on my garage floor and driveway. Also will be doing just trail riding this year. Know what I mean? Anyways, the holes are still there so if I need to I can simply add the 20-30 I removed.

 

[snowfever27]

I had the same problem on a used track I got off eBay. I ended up pulling all the studs and just running the track. It was fine. I had to use a torch and an impact screw gun to back them out. I also broke the nut splitter I bought. If there’s any wear on the backers, throw them away. It’s not worth running them. I saved the studs that hadn’t stripped the hex on the base. Ended up using them in one of my friends older sleds.

 

[viper strike]

Meant to also mention I dont want or need studs anyways. Bought the sled last Jan, and it already had them. New track I plan to not stud if I can get away with it. Im in a subdivision and zipping the kids out from the garage for quick zips here and there are its taking a toll on my garage floor and driveway. Also will be doing just trail riding this year. Know what I mean? Anyways, the holes are still there so if I need to I can simply add the 20-30 I removed.

I would get a hand held little propane or map gas torch. Only heat the nuts, be careful not to heat the track. They should spin tight or loosen to replace them bad nuts. Worked everytime for me. Deep creep a seafoam product also works wonders with steel and aluminum corrosion. It's the best penetration oil on the market.

 

[terez]

The tall aluminum nuts used on most 1.25 suitable track studs strip very easily.
They are often stripped when originally installed when overtightened....these nuts work very well and are light but need to be carefully torqued....overtightening will strip em ....usually isn't apparent to the hamfisted installer ....but once stripped they begin to wiggle with use and get loose...and they are stripped so can't be tightened or removed.
Only fix is to grind or bust them off...very tedious.
Left as is they will tear out and or otherwise fail.

Also a common problem with 1.25 and longer lugged studded tracks....the studs bend slightly in the direction of traction....happens right away and then they settle in that way.
Again the aluminum nuts immediately strip when trying to either tighten or remove as the stub body is bent.
This especially common on bigger HP sleds worse when using too few studs but still happens with the right amount....nature of the beast with aluminum nuts. They are great for support and light weight but the aluminum threads are pretty fragile.
I started to see this as soon as I started using aluminum nuts. I am pretty anal about things and always revisit the stud torque after very careful install and ride for a few hundred miles for a check/tighten where nec......upon trying to tighten most of the aluminum nuts would strip right away. I initially thought product quality was an issue but realized the slight bending of the studs in the direction of traction was the issue.
This was never an issue with steel nuts as they are strong enough to overcome the slight bend a stud takes.
YES I use the right amount of studs for the power....its not that.
Double backers do help and or eliminate this issue but I am not a huge fan of them as they limit stud location, force a certain number of studs...often too many as well as often have cracking issues.

Your track looks on life support...so are the studs/backers.
If you want a low buck approach to limp to a new track the tedious process of grinding/breaking the nuts off and removing the studs is the best bet...pain and time but free.
Leaving them as is is a choice...risking a tearout or worse tho and poss resulting big $$ damage.