Lets Discuss Torque Wrenches

Aaron SEIA

Well-known Member
Needing in/lb and ft/lb torque wrenches for an engine build. Are the cheap ones any good? Beam vs micrometer? Dad had a Craftsman micrometer one that seemed to work ok until the handle fell apart. A quick search on eBay shows a set of Pittsburgh 1/4, 3/8, and 1/2 torque wrenches for around $60. Looks like I could go cheap for around $30 or so for a micrometer one and cheaper yet for a beam one.
AaronSEIA
 
Over the years I have learned to depend on the beam type well over the clicker type. Got a new clicker type and was building an engine and thing did not feel right to me. Found that the clicker was off by 50% and will NEVER depend on one again
 
Perhaps it is because I started out with a beam type years ago, before the clicker type was even developed, but I am partial to the beam type. I still have the first one I bought close to 50 years ago. It is a Craftsman, but it was made by the P A Sturtevant Co. as you can see a "ghost" of their logo stamped on it.
It is wise to have both 3/8 and 1/2 drive, the 1/2 drives don't work too well sometimes on the low numbers. ie. 10lbs or so. Don't ask me how I know.
 
If your going CHEAP then go with a beam type. A good Click type will cost you good money. The cheap ones are just that CHEAP junk.

I use MAC click type torque wrenches. I have them checked every year.
 
For cheap and accurate, look at this little device. It gives all the ease of use of a "clicker" torque wrench and the reliability of a beam wrench.
It allows you to program in the desired torque setting and gives an audible beep + a digital torque readout. I tried the thing against my other torque wrenches and the internal electronic load cell seems to be very accurate, no matter how many times you repeat the action.

It also uses any combination of ratchet, breaker bar etc to drive the thing in a difficult place.
As to the cheap part, I believe the gadget is on sale right now for $30
Torque adapter.
 
Let"s not discuss torque wrenches. The whole idea just torks me to no end! Seriously, I bought a Craftsman beam wrench in the late 60s. Still use it for old tractors..kids use it on their trucks..certainly good enough for where anything close is good enough. Hey, after 70 years, those tractors are still holding together! Dad overhauled WCs multiple times with no torque wrench....he never had even a complete socket wrench set! When I put an 855 Cummins in a Case 2470 4WD, I bought a Mac or Snap-On clicker, don"t remember which, but it was spendy. So was the Cummins! But since I needed something in the upper hundreds range, it had to be good.
 
If you want cheap get a beam torque wrench.

The only thing a click torque wrench has over the beam type is you can use them in tight locations; when straining on a wrench at a high torque it is easier to listen for a click than to look at a shaking gauge; and a thing called parallax distortion. That is just a sophisticated way of saying you need to look at the dial on a beam wrench straight on. Any angle off to the side will give you a false reading.

Remember that a torque wrench is only good between 20% and 100% of maximum setting. In other words if the maximum setting on your wrench is 100 ft lbs; it is only accurate between 20 and 100 ft lbs. I try to use a wrench size where I can stay in the 30 to 90 percent range.
 
How much does it take to get into a decent clicker wrench? I'm putting head gaskets in my mini van and I very much doubt there is room to accurately read a beam wrench at the odd angles I'll be at trying to tighten the head bolts. Are the Kobalt or Craftsman wrenches any better than the dirt cheap Harbor Freight type ones? I've seen the torque attachments, but think in the space I have, there isn't going to be room for them.
AaronSEIA
 
One advantage of the beam type is they should not need to be
calibrated unless something catastrophic happens.
All others need to be calibrated periodically by a laboratory
equipped to do it.
 
The other day a guy at work was torquing electrical connections . I noticed [as he did] it would never click. I put the extension in a pipe vice and pulled very hard on 25 ft lbs - no click. I went to my car and got a beam old Craftsman all greasy from a garage sale . The foreman just about choked when he saw him using it and even more when I told him it was more accurate than his clicker even if it wasn't broken. I find that for Inch Lbs spec on something like a 1/4-28 it is better just to feel how tight it gets. Im thinkin' Pittsburgh tools are China made.Like a Harbor Freight brand.
 
(quoted from post at 14:08:43 10/06/13) One advantage of the beam type is they should not need to be
calibrated unless something catastrophic happens.
All others need to be calibrated periodically by a laboratory
equipped to do it.

+1. I work in Engineering/Test and Measurement. Even the very best clickers need to be checked yearly and they should not be stored under spring tension either. Cheap ones are usually not even close to accurate even when brand new.

Unless you are willing to continually spend the money each and every year to have the clicker type checked yearly then go beam type. No wear parts like springs or clicker mechanisms to wear, stick, weaken, rust up, corrode in a beam type so they essentially remain accurate forever barring misuse or abuse. Of course, in laboratory use these still have to be checked yearly too, but for a homeowner not required.
 
I was surprised to find I couldn't torque left-hand thread ring gear bolts with a Craftsman clicker because it would only ratchet in one direction.
 
I will tell it like it is , IF your going to get one or two then spend the bucks on a good one . I have had my Snap on since 68 and my Mac inch pound since 69 . They get sent in and checked every so often . The snap on broke her last year and the Snap OFF tool guy said he did not think that they could fix it , but he sent it in anyway and a week later it was back fixed and re cal. Yep it cost a hundred and fifty bucks back then and it is still as good as new . Myself i can not afford cheap tools .
 
I use my beam style to check my click type wrenches. I clamp the beam handle in a vice and use an adapter to connect the wrenches together. It only takes a minute or two to check the whole range of the click wrench.
 
Like anything else, you get what you pay for. I
have/had the HF brand Pittsburgh Torque Wrenches.
Have no problem with them. However, don't use
them for engine work either. Sears sells a decent
torque wrench. Check the sales, or when they put
the displays in the aisle. After paying $29 for a
Craftsman Torque Wrench, I sold the Harbor Freight
one I had.

At work, I have a Snap-on 40 to 250 ft lb torque
wrench I bought in early 1980's when working in
garages. In 2012 had it checked and it's still
good. I also have other Snap-on in and ft lb
torque wrenches and a electronic tech-angle (nice)
that will measure in in lb, ft lb, and nm.

If your torquing lugnuts, assemblies, drivetrains,
etc, then a cheaper torque wrench should work just
fine. But for engine rebuilds, hydro
pumps/motors, setting backlash, etc. spend a few
more dollars and get a little better tool. Not
saying you should buy any specific brand, just
something better than a hardware or discount tool
store's brand.

For what it's worth, your tool, you make the
decision.

later days,
 
I bought a beam type a loooong time ago before clicker type was around, and my body was still flexible. It has served me well, but as I get older, I find I can not get in to position to read the scale. I was at Harbor Freight to get a few cheap items with no moving parts and they had a torque wrench on sale for $10. I bought one and use it mostly for torquing lug nuts but when I check with the beam type, they read the same.
 
Assuming you're dealing with wide open work and can keep an eye on the dial, a beam type will do ya. Do not buy cheap mic torque wrenches, they go way out of calibration after just few uses.
 
I have a craftsman beam style and a 3/8 and 1/2 craftsman electronic load cell torque wrenches. The last 2 are in for repair because they will not boot up. They are great when they work, but every time I reach for 'em, no go. I will not own a clicker.
 

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