Success!

When I told my friend and co-worker RL Helms about the trouble I was having with the tire on the Casita he volunteered to meet me at my mother-in-law's place with his welding equipment. If we couldn't coax that damned lug nut off, by Vulcan RL would melt it off!

When he got there we unloaded his welding torch, set up the safety water hose, and RL immediately began trying a few tricks to get that lug nut off. Just to make sure, he tried bashing it off as I'd already done. Then he tried reshaping it and using a socket wrench. Then melting the nut and shaving it off with a cold chisel. None of this work.

So.

He finally realized that he'd have to cut through the lug stud to get the tire off. Firing up the welding torch to high power he succeeded in slicing the hardened steel free of the brake drum, enabling us to remove the rim and tire. Then he disassembled the drum so that we could install a new lug stud that I'd purchased before heading over. That was simple enough and in a few minutes everything was reassembled.

Now I can haul the rim and old tire off to a tire shop to get new tires.

Huzzah!

RL fires up the welding torch.

Pausing between tries of alternately heating and trying to remove the old lug nut.

The torch firing away at the lug stud.

The tire free with new stud installed. I foresee primer and new coats of paint on the rim.

Slag: all that remains of the lug nut and old stud.

And another great shot of our Moon. Just as Carole and I were leaving her mom's.