Torque wrench recommendations

[Jpdkmd]

Any recommendations for torque wrench manufacturers?

[davismills]

No more than I use torque wrenches, I went cheap with a Harbor Freight tools model.
1/2" Torque Wrench

[JoeSR]

Precision Instruments makes quality torque wrenches. I own several.

Precision Instruments: The Finest Torque Wrenches

[R2Home]

Having turned wrenches for a time, I ended up with several Snap-on torque wrenches and they have all served me well. They do tend to be a 'little' pricey though!

[Deny]

I have 2- a Craftsman from Sears.....and.....a Snap-On -that I cherish, because it feels so good in my hand

I traded for both, the Craftsman rides in my Storage Bay, to torque lug nuts.

Harbor Freight should be plenty good enough, but, if you covet tools- watch Craigs List for a bargain on a quality tool.

[zmotorsports]

Maybe you could tell us more what your plans for usage would be.

Personally, all of mine are either Snap-On, MAC or Proto and wouldn't give any of them up but I spin wrenches for a living, I doubt for occassional use you would need anything quite that expensive but a cheap one that is inacurate is a waste of money and won't be consistant either.

There are some "in-betweens" that will work for a wide range of things. Also keep in mind when your torquing fasteners you want to be in the middle 80-ish% of the torque wrench's range. The upper 10% and lower 10% the accuracy drops off. For example if you need to torque something at 20 ft/lbs., you don't want to be using a 20-100 ft/lb range torque wrench as it will not be accurate. A 5-80 ft/lb. or an inch pound torque wrench may be more beneficial at lower specifications.

It is hard to have just one for a wide range of uses so if you could post what your intentions for use would be that would be helpful.

Mike.

[greystroke]

I have several including a 4 foot 700 lb that I use to torque my wheels. I think it is a NEIKO.

[zmotorsports]

Originally Posted by greystroke

I have several including a 4 foot 700 lb that I use to torque my wheels. I think it is a NEIKO.

My 600 ft/lb torque wrench is a Proto. Glad I don't have to pack that thing around the shop daily. Those monsters are heavy aren't they?

Mike.

[chrisc8869]

I bought one from home depot and it broke in 1 year. Sears doesnt have a lifetime warranty. So i went to lowes and bought a kobalt that has the lifetime warranty. It works well. Its fine for what i use it for (rarely). They do need to be calibrated once in a while. I would not go to harbor freight for ANY precision tools. They are fine for some things though. Just my thoughts

Originally Posted by Jpdkmd

Any recommendations for torque wrench manufacturers?

[Skip426]

Originally Posted by chrisc8869

I bought one from home depot and it broke in 1 year. Sears doesnt have a lifetime warranty. So i went to lowes and bought a kobalt that has the lifetime warranty. It works well. Its fine for what i use it for (rarely). They do need to be calibrated once in a while. I would not go to harbor freight for ANY precision tools. They are fine for some things though. Just my thoughts

chrisc8869; Welcome to iRV2.

Your first post I see.

[IC2]

If you are doing lug nuts, any brand beam wrench will do and can easily be recalibrated by the owner. If you are doing precision work, Snap-on has pages of choices but be prepared to spend a bundle. If you need an inch pound version, there are many good choices as well, clickers being pretty universal now. For my usual automotive work, I have a Wright 4478 that, brand new, came from eBay at a ridiculously low price several years ago and has been a perfect tool for my use : http://www.wrighttool.com/pub/default.asp?catalog=0&title2=Torque+Wrenches+%26+T ools&oid={D9BD85B9-FF1F-11D3-8B5D-00A0C942294E} and they aren't inexpensive either at about 200 bucks a copy. My normal inch pound clicker is a Mossberg Arms that was military surplus and it too has been a great tool though my $25 beam version works nicely too for many things.

If you are going to earn your living partially with this tool, then spend the bucks once. Sears and HF aren't pro level these days but will work for the enthusiast but not necessarily have the accuracy you may need

[timetogo]

For $30 on sale total, I bought 1/4", 3/8", and 1/2" drives. They are accurate enough for home projecting and proven by Torque Wrench Testing - Shop Tools - Car Craft Magazine

[BigBlockTank]

I echo what others have said, what is your intent with a torque wrench.


There is absolutely no way I would use a Harbor Freight one on my LS-5 Corvette motor that I'm building right now. I would use it for lug nuts, that's about it. But, I have to have a little tighter restrictions than most mechanics, I work on USAF military aircraft. All of our torque wrenches go in for calibration periodically. It's now become a habit to use proper tools.

[1bigmess]

Lug nuts, suspension parts, brakes, I'd probably be doing OK with a Harbor Freight wrench. I wouldn't build a high-falutin motor with one, but if I could afford to build a high-falutin motor, I could afford a more expensive torque wrench.