<VV> Re: Rusted hub

[mr. Gary Segal]

The trick here is to overcome the static friction between the wheel and the
hub, so gentle force application will probably not work.  Sudden impact is
your friend.

My standard technique for breaking loose a rusted wheel is to jack up the
car and suppor it with a stamd.  Then, once the lug nuts are off, I use a
swift kick to the outer edge of the tire on alternating sides until it
breaks loose.  A little penetrating spray where the wheel mees the hub will
not hurt.

Sadly, there have been occasions where I have had to resort to my sledge,
but if you hit the wheel with the hammer, it will likely be damaged.  If
your tire is flat, you likely won't get enough leverage smacking on the
rubber.

Another marginal technique is to break the lug nuts loos about 1/4 inch and
try driving the car a few feet back and forth in each direction.

In the very worst cases, I have used heat around the hub, but heat makes me
very aprehensive since it can impact the tempering on the wheel.

Good luck,

Gary

PS - no warranties expressed or implied on these techniques - hopefully
someone else has a better idea, but one of these will work.