How important is a great torque wrench versus an average one?

[Sukhoi]

I really should get a torque wrench as I'm not living at home anymore and I won't have access to my dad's. This week I can supposedly get 50% off on Snap-On tools. A Craftsman clicker wrench is $75, while a Snap-On is going to cost me $107 for a 3/8" 100 ft-lb wrench. Is this the sort of thing I want to spend the extra money because it's going to last me until I die?

And is 3/8" 100 ft-lb going to be a large enough wrench for general automotive use? I could go to a 1/2" 250 ft-lb for not much more money. Difference is the 3/8" wrench goes down to 20 ft-lb, while the 1/2" wrench goes down to 50 ft-lb.

 

[radioouman]

Depends on how precise you want your measurements to be.
It is better to have a properly calibrated cheap one than an expensive one that is not calibrated.

I feel that a cheap torque wrench is better than no torque wrench at all. So mine are cheap.

EDIT: You'll need a 1/2" torque wrench for things like hub nuts, and you'll need a 1/4" for in-lbs torque specs. Then you'll need a 3/8" for everything in between. Just plan to get all of them.

 

[Maximus96]

i bought a craftsman digitork(sp) for about 100 that goes up to 250 ftlb.

 

[BatmanNate]

The 3/8 drive one will probably be fine for everything besides crankbolts and maybe some suspension parts. I've had the craftsman 3/8's one forever and it's done fine by me. You'll use it a lot more than the big one anyway, since there's so much stuff that's 20-30 ft-lb on most motors.

 

[lokiju]

Last you until you die?

Craftsman is lifetime warranty!

So is Home Depots Husky line

 

[Demon-Xanth]

I'd definately go for a 1/2" w/ atleast 150LBft. My lug nuts are spec'ed to between 75 and 120LBs. As far as Craftsman vs. Snapon, if you're building engines, I'd say go for the Snapon, otherwise, Craftsman is fine.

 

[GuitarDaddy]

For general wrenching the craftsman will be fine. Now if your going to work on race car motors or highend imports you probably want the Snapon digital model to be more precise

 

[Heisenberg]

Yeah, for most things you'll need the 3/8". I've had a Craftsman one for a while now, and it seems to work pretty well. Snap-on is really meant for pros anyway.

 

[Maximus96]

Originally posted by: lokiju
Last you until you die?

Craftsman is lifetime warranty!

So is Home Depots Husky line

not so with the torque wrenches, its 90 days i believe. i actually am thinking of buying a 3/8" one for the lower torque values.

 

[Demon-Xanth]

Craftsman torque wrenches ARE NOT lifetime warrented. With Craftsman, if it has plastic, it's a 1 year warrentee tops.

 

[Sukhoi]

Alrighty, I'll just stick Craftsman then. I'm not planning on any extreme car work.

 

[Armitage]

Is it possible to get a torque wrench calibrated? I picked one up at an auction a few weeks ago - looks decent, but who knows??

 

[fitzov]

how often do you use it? If you were a mechanic I'd say you should go with the Snap-on, but otherwise you can save a couple of hundred dollars for something that is accurate enough.

 

[Electric Amish]

I have a 3/8" torque wrench and use a 3/8-1/2" converter for my lug nuts. Obviously this is not a good idea for high-torque situations, but it's fine for my 60lb lug nuts.

 

[Electric Amish]

Originally posted by: Armitage
Is it possible to get a torque wrench calibrated? I picked one up at an auction a few weeks ago - looks decent, but who knows??

Yes it is. You just need to find a local place that performs calibrations.

 

[Ausm]

Not heavy use=craftsman

Heavy use an accuracy= Snap-on


Ausm

 

[Armitage]

Originally posted by: Electric Amish

Originally posted by: Armitage
Is it possible to get a torque wrench calibrated? I picked one up at an auction a few weeks ago - looks decent, but who knows??

Yes it is. You just need to find a local place that performs calibrations.

So - what would I look under in the yellow pages?

 

[Pikachu]

My ancient 100 ft. lb., 1/2" drive Craftsman sits in a drawer, never used for decades. I trust my "feel" as much, or more, than that thing. If you really want one, and can obtain Snap-on for only 25% more than the Craftsman, I'd do that.

Is it possible to get a torque wrench calibrated?

Costs as much as the gage. Check yours against a couple others and see if it reads the same. I think the damn things are a waste of time.

 

[Sukhoi]

Originally posted by: Pikachu
My ancient 100 ft. lb., 1/2" drive Craftsman sits in a drawer, never used for decades. I trust my "feel" as much, or more, than that thing. If you really want one, and can obtain Snap-on for only 25% more than the Craftsman, I'd do that.

Is it possible to get a torque wrench calibrated?

Costs as much as the gage. Check yours against a couple others and see if it reads the same. I think the damn things are a waste of time.

You do know that people's relationship of size and force is not consistant at all, right? People tend to way over-tighten small connectors and way under-tighten large connectors.

 

[Armitage]

Originally posted by: Sukhoi

Originally posted by: Pikachu
My ancient 100 ft. lb., 1/2" drive Craftsman sits in a drawer, never used for decades. I trust my "feel" as much, or more, than that thing. If you really want one, and can obtain Snap-on for only 25% more than the Craftsman, I'd do that.

Is it possible to get a torque wrench calibrated?

Costs as much as the gage. Check yours against a couple others and see if it reads the same. I think the damn things are a waste of time.

You do know that people's relationship of size and force is not consistant at all, right? Prople tend to way over-tighten small connectors and way under-tighten large connectors.

That and accounting for materials - anything going into aluminum gets the torque wrench for me.

 

[Pikachu]

By that reasoning, a torque wrench would have to be custom designed for each user!

Once you use a torque wrench, you "get the feel" for how much force is required to reach a certain point. Whether you're a gorilla, or a limp wristed girlie man, you can get that "feel". Once you've tightened enough fasteners, in a variety of materials, you just know what's right. I won't even mention the difference a lubricant makes in the equation!