Has anyone tinkered with the log bolts on a stock JK??
meaning, swapped to a longer lug bolts (to allow a hubcentric spacer) inorder to space the wheels out wider??


I dont like the idea of spidertrax spacers, the axle is bolted to a spacer then the spacer is bolted to a wheel. just not my preferred route.

are the lug bolts like typical ones u can hammer out from the thread end and install a longer one?
I can machine a hubcentric spacer, just need to know if any has swapped the lug bolts

thanks for any feedback

 

I'm no rocket scientist, but the spidertrax way of doing things seems safer

 

Probably not what you want to hear, but buy the right wheels and you won't need to use spacers!

 

Spidertrax are definitely safer than non studded spacers. But don't believe me. Google it for yourself.

 

personally i trust the spacers with studs more than i would elongated studs, and that is why i have spidertrax spacers.
eventually i will get new wheels.

 

thanks, i gues next question is,

has anyone removed the lug bolts and swapped to a slightly longer one???
im only looking to space it out about .5 to .75" . i like the rubicon wheels with MTR's.

thanks

 

I havent heard of anyone doing it, unless one slipped by me somewhere, i'm pretty sure your the first one to ask.

I happen to love my stock Sahara rims, (same as the Rubi's, just painted instead of machined face) that's why i went with the spacers and kept them. I'll eventually replace them, but not for a long time to come.

How wide of a tire are you considering? I am running 33x12.5's and the 1.5" spacers, i think 1.25 would be ok, but any less and I am pretty sure i'd get some rubbing.

 

I'm running spidertrax spacers and believe they are engineered very well and I can't understand your conern over using a proven product vs manufacturing your own whilst extending the axle studs....I'm not trying to knock your fabrication abilities, but I think if you rationalize this a bit your idea will make your lug studs a hell of a lot weaker by virtue of leverage...I'm no physicist or engineer, but it seems reasonable to me that if your simply to increase the length of the stud without increasing it's width your going to make that stud a LOT weaker...take a two inch long 3/8" piece of wooden dowel for example and try to break it with your hands, tough hey, now take a four inch long piece of the same diameter and try to break it, a lot easier no? Again, I'm no engineer but it seems to make sense to me. At least with the spidertrax yes they bolt to the stock studs nice and strong, THEN they provide another set of studs with which to bolt your rims to...makes more sense to me...anyways, let me know what you think

 

just to add to my theory with the spidertrax spacers your ending up with 10 lugs holding everything to the axle versus 5 which are expected to do the same thing...just seems more logical to me than expecting 5 to do the work of 10

 

I havent done the math and some of it would be over my head anyways, but I agee wit the spacer design being stronger and shorter bolts being less susceptable to bending, though i think shear would be the real weak point. Not so sure about twice the stud strength as there will still be only 5 holding the wheel/spacer to the axle or axle/spacer to the wheel, but i understand the reasoning there

overall, IMHO the spacers are plenty strong enough, mine have never even begun to loosen up after the original install & I wouldnt let my kids ride in there if I wasnt 110% confident in them.


add all the time you need to remove the wheel, yank the brakes apart, press out the original studs, buy new studs, buy billet stock, cut it, mount and turn it on a lathe... 4 times... have it coated or anodized to prevent corrosion... is it that much cheaper than the roughly 200 bucks to just buy a proven product?

i am all for doing it yourself, if you have the equipment time & ability that's great, but for me, this is something that i couldnt accomplish at 3x the cost of the manufactured product.