Torquing wheel bolts on tractors, combines or sprayers with deep-offset wheels is a two-man job: one man to operate the 3/4" or 1"-drive torque wrench to 700 or more lb/ft of torque, and another guy to hold the head of the wrench and keep the socket extension aligned with the bolt. Here’s how to build a torquing stand that allows one man to easily do the job.
Take a used disk blade, turn it so its concave side is facing down, then weld perpendicular to the center of its top side a 2" by 2" square metal tube ‘6 long. Starting 2 feet off the ground, weld perpendicular to one face of the 2 x 2 tube a 2" long piece of 3/4" re-bar or bar stock . Measure and weld additional pegs every 2" up the tube to at least a height of 5 feet. The result is a 6' tall stand with a peg sticking out every 2".
Place the stand beside the tire to be torqued, rest the extension bar of the torque wrench on the peg that matches the height of whichever bolt you need to torque, and one man can easily torque all the bolts by himself. For a custom touch, weld or bend the pegs at a slight uphill angle so the extension bar of the torque wrench is cradled in the angle between the square tube and the base of each peg. It’s also useful to trim one edge of the disk blade so it’s straight, to allow the stand to fit more closely to the tire despite sidewall “bulge.”
If you’re having trouble visualizing my description, think back to the adjustable uprights that held the high-jump and pole vault bars in high school, and you’ll have a pretty good visual of what I’m trying to describe. Tough to describe, simple to build, but a definite help this time of year when you’re moving wheels around.
