ok so its time for me to start looking into buying a torque wrench for my engine build.

I was looking on ebay and i see all sorts of different brands: mac, snap on, craftsman, KD tools, Warren and Brown...etc

Is a snap-on torque wrench worth the extra money or would i just be buying the name. Accuracy is what im really looking for, but im not looking to buy brand new tools because im just not far enough into this engine building thing to wear i need to buy all new stuff.

What brands are you guys using? Would you recommend it? How much did you pay for it?

 

I like the beam type wrenches. They are very simple, with nothing to break or malfunction. Others may be fine, but for some reason I never fully trust them.

 

what do you mean by beam type?

 

He is speaking about Split beam wrenches
Like:
http://cgi.ebay.com/3-8-Drive-...wItem

After much searching and research I decided to buy an Armstrong micrometer style TQ wrench:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Armstrong-...wItem

IMO the most critical bolt is your Rod bolt which should be stretched, so something with at least a 100ft/lb rating is important to hit the tq wrenches "mid" spec as they tend to be a bit off on the outer ranges.

 

yea, the micrometer type wrench is the one i had been looking into.

any other input from people with torque wrenches?

Is the snap-on better than the rest or what?

 

here is the deal. Buying a used torque wrench is fine as long as you have a way to calibrate it. I use the craftsman 1/2" for most of my motor and the other parts I use a micrometer style torque wrench that can read inch pounds. The snap on electronic torque wrench is not worth the extra dough unless you will be using it daily. I believe if I am not mistaking that the snap on recalibrates its self everytime it is returned to 0 torque... I would go with a cheapo before buying a second hand, and I would go with a midline brand such as craftsman before buying a top notch...this is just me though!!

 

thanks, that is pretty good advice.

 

The new Snap-On's might recalibrate, but the old ones don't. I talked to TBone about the two he had for sale, and they were sent off to be calibrated.

 

so there you have it, the craftsman is just as good I guess...

 

I just hear a lot of storys of craftsmans' handles being weak

 

I have the Jessie James snapon wrench.
works great but you have to send it out to get it calibrated(when ever you need to).
i have used the sears twist and guage type.

they all work well, it just your personal preference.
i like the black aluminum one i have. its light and strong enough do what i need

 

the sears ones work good but the plastic collar tends to break. they would be the best decent "bargain" wrench

otherwise CDI or snap-on is your best bet. get the micrometer style, your gonna want 1 1/4" a 3/8" and a 1/2",. look for usefull ranges and dont expect the wrench to be used in the upper or lower 20 percent of its indicated range (ie dont get a 20-160in/lb wrench and try to use it at 20) wrenches are the most accurate in the middle of there range.

as far as maintaining their cal snapons ans CDI have relatively long times before they "recommend" calibrations.

btw we used to calibrate torque wrenches at my work

 

Also keep this in mind. If you ever need to torque something that will need an extention to reach the bolt, try using a deep well socket first. the extention will absorb your torque rating. Just a little fyi

 

Look, many people believe Snap-on is just a name brand and perhaps when it comes to hand tools this is true. But few companies make quality precision tools like snap-on. if I were building my motor I would only trust what i consider to be the best. You buy all these quality parts for your motor yet you're thinking of skimping out on a quality tool for thre build???

(BTW I'm an ASE tech for a little over 7 years now)

 

I have many different types of tools. for instance, I have a snap-on ratchet....I will never again use a craftsman ratchet. Some people say snap-on is 'just a name' ...I will venture to think differently.

Ive used both craftsman and snap-on torque wrenches...and I wouldnt spend the $$ on a snap-on one unless your gonna use it alot. for just a torque here, torque there...not worth it. Now if yor gonnna use it everyday (such as a ratchet), fork out the $$...

 

I have mostly Craftsman stuff and it all seems to do the job great for the money. Haven't had any problems with my half-inch drive TQ wrench yet, and I have built 4 motors with it over the course of a year. I am gonna take it in for an annual check up soon, just to make sure the calibration is still ok.

My dad swears by MAC tools. He has been an ASE tech for the last 35 years (since they started) and a master for the last 17. He says that the only difference between them and Snap-On is just the finish.

One of my buddies just got a SICK Snap-On TQ wrench that gives you the digital reading of your current real-time TQ as you are torquing, plus the last exact TQ reading before you let off to the thousandth of an lb. Pretty crazy, but he paid almost $400 for it. I can't see myself doing that.

 

$400 is cheap for a digital Snap-On.

 

Craftmans torque wrenches are CRAP. I've owned 2 and they both broke at the collar/handle. Now I gotta get another. Gonna try Snap-On next.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Aquafina &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">$400 is cheap for a digital Snap-On.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Then your distributor has been tearing you a new one. Last I checked they go for about $385 retail.

Gearwrench came out with one recently that is also digital. Its far cheaper than mac/snapon or matco. But it actually uses a Matco head so if it ever brakes or when it needs serviced the matco rep can take care of you.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by shad0wslay3r &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> the extention will absorb your torque rating. Just a little fyi</TD></TR></TABLE>


No it won't. The definition of tq is the twisting force exerted on an object. I teach this course to basic aviation mechanics in the beginning of a 9 week course on theory of flight and gas turbine engines etc. The only way a tq wrench becomes inaccurate is when your change the distance of it, AKA using a dog bone or some other form of socket that can extend it either away from the center of the head or bring it closer. As long as you are directly under the head or 90 degrees to either the left or the right of the head, the tq will remain the same regardless of the overall distance from the head to the bolt as the initial twisting will absorb all the slack in an extension prior to the wrench reaching it's desired tq.

 

Hook me up with your guy then, since my guy and the Snap-On website say $1,395.

 

I traded my snap-on digital in for a thumb screw adjustable model and i love it. I've owned a micrometer type and still have one but i like the ease of the thumb screw adjustment. Just pull back the latch, set the torque adjustment and click the latch back, takes a second. I only paid $200 or so for mine off the truck and use it everyday without issue.

 

I use a Husky thumb screw for putting my wheels on and doing suspension stuff.

 

the thumb screw snap-ons ( i have one) are decent but its very difficult to dial in the exact number you want (Compared to a micrometer type). they are consistant but just hard to set, again im basing this off calibration them.

 

Quote, originally posted by shad0wslay3r »
the extention will absorb your torque rating. Just a little fyi


No it won't. The definition of tq is the twisting force exerted on an object. I teach this course to basic aviation mechanics in the beginning of a 9 week course on theory of flight and gas turbine engines etc. The only way a tq wrench becomes inaccurate is when your change the distance of it, AKA using a dog bone or some other form of socket that can extend it either away from the center of the head or bring it closer. As long as you are directly under the head or 90 degrees to either the left or the right of the head, the tq will remain the same regardless of the overall distance from the head to the bolt as the initial twisting will absorb all the slack in an extension prior to the wrench reaching it's desired tq.


Thanks for pointing me in the right direction, my dad always said the extensions will distort your reading