decent torque wrench

david37

12 months into my latest park tool torque wrench and the digits on the dial have worn off. I'm going to buy a wera 2.5 to 25nm one that doesnt rely on digits on the dial.

Has anyone else bought one or are there other alternatives that last a decent amount of time. I use it daily so must be robust. Cost up to £150 pref no more.

whyamihere

No experience yet, but I'm thinking of buying the same one, all my Wera stuff is excellent quality for the price.

david37

whyamihere said:

No experience yet, but I'm thinking of buying the same one, all my Wera stuff is excellent quality for the price.

Yep i love it, the hex plus is excellent.

webboo

I’ve got one of those lifeline ones from Wiggle, it cost 30 quid. It’s fine for bike stuff. I guess if you think bike stuff needs tools that you might use to put the space shuttle together, you might need to spend more.

david37

webboo said:

I’ve got one of those lifeline ones from Wiggle, it cost 30 quid. It’s fine for bike stuff. I guess if you think bike stuff needs tools that you might use to put the space shuttle together, you might need to spend more.

hahah theres the truth, I run a repair business, im very keen not to damage any threads so prepared to spend a bit more

craigus89

Most torque wrenches within this low range aren’t even that accurate. You need to be a proper muppet to overtighten stuff at this tightness range. I’ve been building and repairing carbon stuff for years and never had a problem without one.

david37

craigus89 said:

Most torque wrenches within this low range aren’t even that accurate. You need to be a proper muppet to overtighten stuff at this tightness range. I’ve been building and repairing carbon stuff for years and never had a problem without one.

I use a calibrated one for low torque, I cant tell .3 - .5 nm other than its surprisingly light. I'd rather not replace brake levers because id damaged the super soft threads or fastner. They're not made of carbon, I think they may be made of cheese.

For the higher torques I'd largely agree except of course it is expected and not unreasonably by customers that where torque values are given they are followed. Even though of course the range of appropriate torque is broader than that stamped.

for some things such as disc or cassette lockrings i dont bother, after all the torque range 30 - 50nm is a massive range.

edward.s

I have the Wera A5 2.5-25nm one and I really rate it. Easy to set and just feels like a quality product. I have one of their 'pistol grip' 3-8.8nm 7400 series torque screwdrivers which is also excellent.

All this 'my fingers are a torque wrench' is fine until you destroy something delicate. For me its just not worth the risk. I learnt this the hard way pulling threads out of an aluminium head on and old VW. helicoiling that was one of the most awkward bloody jobs I've had to do.

david37

edward.s said:

I have the Wera A5 2.5-25nm one and I really rate it. Easy to set and just feels like a quality product. I have one of their 'pistol grip' 3-8.8nm 7400 series torque screwdrivers which is also excellent.

All this 'my fingers are a torque wrench' is fine until you destroy something delicate. For me its just not worth the risk. I learnt this the hard way pulling threads out of an aluminium head on and old VW. helicoiling that was one of the most awkward bloody jobs I've had to do.

I bet youre not the first person to ever do that.

Charlie_Croker

david37 said:

edward.s said:

I have the Wera A5 2.5-25nm one and I really rate it. Easy to set and just feels like a quality product. I have one of their 'pistol grip' 3-8.8nm 7400 series torque screwdrivers which is also excellent.

All this 'my fingers are a torque wrench' is fine until you destroy something delicate. For me its just not worth the risk. I learnt this the hard way pulling threads out of an aluminium head on and old VW. helicoiling that was one of the most awkward bloody jobs I've had to do.

I bet youre not the first person to ever do that.

or the last...

def_defyr

I have a decent set from BBB, think it was 79 euros? Anyway, think it's a good middle ground between low-end and mechanics' grade. I use it for all sorts of home ratcheting because the handle is more comfortable than a socket wrench. It's especially good for assembling Ikea furniture....

edward.s

david37 said:

I bet youre not the first person to ever do that.

Do it up until it snaps then back off half a turn

The mechanical fuel pump threads on those engines were notoriously fragile and lower torque than you would expect.

I guess the upside is I learned how to helicoil things which has proved pretty useful over the subsequent 30 years for me and my friends

david37

edward.s said:

david37 said:

I bet youre not the first person to ever do that.

Do it up until it snaps then back off half a turn

The mechanical fuel pump threads on those engines were notoriously fragile and lower torque than you would expect.

I guess the upside is I learned how to helicoil things which has proved pretty useful over the subsequent 30 years for me and my friends

Thank the lord for helicoil

pinno

Helicoil? Eeek - overtightening.

Teng tools calibrated Torque wrench.

https://www.tengtools.com/r/gb/en/Torque-Equipment/5-25Nm-Torque-Wrench-1492AG-E

Although, all torque wrenches will be prone to temperature.

The only thing I torque on my bike is the chainset - Campag to between the recommended 46-52NM. the rest I do by feel and I can safely say that I have never snapped or threaded a bike bolt.
I have 3 torque wrenches which cover 5 nm to 180 nm. I have found that at the extremes of the wrenches supposed range, their accuracy is questionable so my 3 wrenches cover 80% of each range. If you see what I mean.