How much hand force on 6inch hex for 12Nm

dombat

My crank arms are creaking (Shimano hollow 2). It says 12Nm to do them up.

How much "hand force" do I need to apply to a 6inch hex key?

I dont have a suitable torque wrench!

topdude

I find that using a 4" allen key by hand and doing it up almost as tight as possible gives approx 5Nm.
So i would suggest a 6" key at max hand pressure would be somewhere around 10 / 12Nm.
It is however a "feel" thing and everyone will be different. I doubt you could substantially overtighten it by hand.
Best to remove the crank arm and regrease the splines, tighten up and recheck occasionally.

thistle_

6 inches is 0.152 m

12 Nm / 0.152 m = 78.9 N

78.9 N / 9.81 = 8 kg approx on the end of the allen key (i.e. not a lot)

nicklouse

dombat wrote:

My crank arms are creaking (Shimano hollow 2). It says 12Nm to do them up.

How much "hand force" do I need to apply to a 6inch hex key?

I dont have a suitable torque wrench!

more likely to be not quite enough preload or the bearings are on their way out.