LOOSE WHEELS
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With regards to your legal news story on the operator who was fined £660 for "wheel danger" { CM25-31 March), it states that the remaining seven nuts were so tight that they had to be burned off. I have been in the heavy and passenger transport repair industry for over 20 years and I have come across quite a few cases involving loose wheel nuts.
When a wheel becomes loose at its fixing, deterioration begins at a dramatic rate. I had two cases where the wheels had not actually detached but were run loose: both involved a rear-axle/twin-wheel configuration; both had broken studs but the remaining nuts were so tight they could not be moved in either direction and had to be cut off.
If a driver or mechanic goes round and checks the security of wheel nuts with a socket and bar and finds them to be tight, it could be that the nuts are bound to the stud threads but the wheels could still be loose, therefore a good visual check as well as a physical check is essential. Usually there are pod visual signs of a loose wheel, and drivers should be aware of what to look for. Name and address supplied.