It's cheap and looks nice... Sears wants 60 dollars to calibrate my craftsman!

http://www.tirerack.com/accessories/tools/tw605.jsp

 

I say take your craftsman back to sears and call it "broken" Exchange it for a new calibrated one. Home depot does that for me about once a year.

 

Looks good....

 

Craftsmen Torque Wrenches do not have a lifetime warranty, or even a one year warranty. Except for the one with the bar that points to the torque number..

 

Sears wont do that. (unless you find a new employee who doesnt know otherwise).
I had a craftsman torque wrench that had the markings way off, and they basically told me to pound sand. They only guarantee the ratchet head of the wrench. bunch of crap.
so i went back and found a new worker and traded it in anyways.

at least thats how it is here in CO.

 

I think Craftsman's warranty on torque wrenches is 90 days.

So where does one get a torque wrench calibrated, how often should it be done, and how much does it cost?

 

craftsman torque wrench has a 90 day warranty. and they always break.
i use snap on. nice guy in a truck calibrates mine when i need it

 

But Snap-On tq wrenches are $$$ instead of $, like the Craftsman

 

My craftsman is about 7 years old and Craftsman charges a base rate of 60 dollars for any repair or recalibration for the first hour. I could buy a new craftsman, but I really don't want to consider these things as wear items and replace them every few years.

I suppose I could try to find a tool repair shop to do the calibration, but I really don't have the time to pull out the yellow pages and cold call around for a shop that will do it.

I believe snap on's are 200 dollars vs. 60 for craftsman. If the snap on lasts lifetime with free calibration, that sounds like a bargain to me compared to the craftsman.

Too bad I don't have 200 to drop on a torque wrench!

 

how much are the snap-ons?

 

Oh man... now this is a torque wrench! And it looks like it's more durable too:

http://buy.snapon.com/catalog/search...tno=TECH2FR100

 

I also use HomeDepot special torque wrench. I think Husky carries lifetime warranty.

 

$294.95 daaaamn

 

you should be able to find the same tirerack one at an autozone or a pepboys for a little less than that. I've got the same one. Got it at autozone for like $25.

s

 

you know what tho, just by using my snap on i can see how ultra cheap the craftsman is.
Just the same, i got mine off ebay

 

You often get what you payfor, regarding tools.(and almost everything else, haha)

I have a craftsman, but when it checks out i'm getting a snap-on. Pricy, but worth it, if you ask me.

Quality=Pricey

 

there is the craftsman service center down wake forest road near the pepsi plant. its on sixforks, thats what the guys from craftsman told me. im sure i need to get mine calibrated.

 

True, for what you do, you need it. For what I do (basically torquing lug nuts), I can't justify the price.

Just sayin'

 

And to "calibrate" that one all you have to do is bend the pointer to 0 when you aren't torquing anything

 

You guys are scaring me about Craftsmen Tq Wrenches going bad. But then again I did pick it up with gift certificates, so no big loss . I really like it so far and don't have any problems. I also learned from a tool guy at school that as long as you keep it on the lowest ft/lbs of tq when not in use, the odds of having to recalibrate it are less if at all. Seems logical.

 

...my only question is at what point is the average H-T'er going to know his or her torque wrench has "gone bad"... or "out of calibration?

 

the snapon tech wrench is sweet.. it beeps and vibrates when you hit the correct tourque

 

I guess I had a new employee... I had one of those $60 wrenches and it broke after a year... I traded it in for full value for one of the $100 wrenches no question asked.

 

i got similar one from local auto-part store, its good enough to re-torque lugs, so far about a year, debating whether to get another one for $20 or re-calibrate..

now heres the question... i also have 3/4 crafstman that goes 5-80ft./lbs. - but i don't use it much - i keep it at 14 or 16ft./lbs. - the same way i purchased it - do i still have to re-calibrate it? - even if i dont use it much?


[Modified by vtec.dc2, 11:48 PM 2/19/2003]

 

Here's a good tech sheet from SAE. They say you need to recalibrate every year, but for the $25 shipping and calibration, you could buy a new $25 Autozone special every year. I also heard that Snap-On warranty is only for a year, while the Husky is lifetime.

http://www.sts.sae.org/servicetech/j...tidbits-04.pdf