Do you use a torque wrench?

pitesy

pitesy

Member
As above, do you use a torque wrench to tighten everything to factory specification, or tighten them just approximately (for example bigger torque = longer breaker bar)?
Is it worth it, to buy torque wrenches, or tighten everything by feel?

Sorry if this was a stupid question for some of you, but I just started to do stuff with my car, and I'd like to gather some information. :)

Cheers
Pitesy
 
As a tyre fitter by trade I use a torque wrench for eveything. Over torqueing things can be just as bad as leaving things loose
 
only thing i ever use torque wrench for is engine components (internals) and flywheel bolts. cant think of anything else
 
Yep as Jack said only ever used for engine stuff.

Everything else i judge how tight to do it by how hard it was to undo
 
I use a torque wrench on almost everything. As said above, over-tightening can be as bad, if not worse than leaving things loose. Was speaking to a lass earlier today who took one of her cars to get brakes changed, fitter used an impact gun to put wheels back on, majorly over-tightened them and while driving the now stretched studs snapped and the wheel came off while driving.

Bit of an extreme case, but it does happen and manufacturers have torque specs for good reason, not just because they got bored and decided to pick numbers out of a hat for different components.
 
If i have a torque wrench to had i will use it always, I'm sad and i know 90% of torque settings off the top of my head for nissan/toyota/subaru lol, so why not use it, but there is allot to be said for having the feel for tightening stuff up, it takes a while to learn but i could get it really close if i have too, so many people over tighten stuff and it will end up snapping.
 
Thank you for the answers!
I guess I won't buy a torque wrench for now.. I'll try to learn to how to feel it. How hard it was to undo the bolts will be a nice comparison too, as Milez said.
I don't want to mess with engine internals now.. :)

Thank you again! It helped a lot!
 
not really as most of the things i tighten up with a small bar you couldnt over tighten if you tried.

that includes wheels.

just dont murder it with a 3ft bar and it will be fine.
 
When I bought my first torque wrench I was astonished at how few force was needed to get the wheels tightent to spec - and I'm not a very muscular type.

Sure they are not cheap but treated well they last very long (my halfords one is still fine and within tolerances after 8 years).
 
pitesy said:
Thank you for the answers!
I guess I won't buy a torque wrench for now.. I'll try to learn to how to feel it. How hard it was to undo the bolts will be a nice comparison too, as Milez said.
I don't want to mess with engine internals now.. :)

Thank you again! It helped a lot!
Click to expand...

Buy and use a torque wrench as thats how you will learn to feel, like the bandit i was very surprised how little torque (feel wise) was needed for things like wheel nuts, suspension components, diff covers, not crown wheels though:wack:

I was also surprised by how big a difference in feel there is between a ratchet and breaker bar. Buy one, use one, learn some. My 2 amtrak torque wrenches siezed/ lost the clickyness so I bought this:
Sealey STW290 Digital 1/2" Drive Torque Wrench Adaptor | eBay UK
Good little compact gadget to keep in the toolbox, likes to munch through batteries though:nod:
 
depends, on all new bolts and threads then a torque wrench should be used,

on a car where rust, corrosion, oxidation has occurred not only to the threads but also to the bolt/nut material then feel is quite important, however generally if i take a bolt out and its rusty as hell, its gets replaced. It gets difficult with captive nuts where replacement is difficult and cleaning is impossible.

think of it this way when tightening a bolt, "if this is going to come loose when/if im doing 150mph, will it matter to my safety"

this usually prompts you to either replace and torque correctly or do it by feel :)
 
immy21 said:
Buy and use a torque wrench as thats how you will learn to feel, like the bandit i was very surprised how little torque (feel wise) was needed for things like wheel nuts, suspension components, diff covers, not crown wheels though:wack:

I was also surprised by how big a difference in feel there is between a ratchet and breaker bar. Buy one, use one, learn some. My 2 amtrak torque wrenches siezed/ lost the clickyness so I bought this:
Sealey STW290 Digital 1/2" Drive Torque Wrench Adaptor | eBay UK
Good little compact gadget to keep in the toolbox, likes to munch through batteries though:nod:
Click to expand...
I've never seen this one before.. And it isn't expensive either. I guess I'll buy one, looks really compact, really. Did this work well for you? Or anyone tried this before?
It is very cheap compared to "normal" torque wrenches...

And yes, safety is first! I liked the way how 59bhp wrote the way if thinking. :)

Thank you for the comments! Seeing them makes me think that I should invest in a torque wrench.
 
Last edited:
I have 2, for lower and higher range and use it for all the stuff I have the factory settings on my laptop. Engine all the time, suspension if possible, wheel nuts for sure but not for the other stuff...
 
pitesy said:
I've never seen this one before.. And it isn't expensive either. I guess I'll buy one, looks really compact, really. Did this work well for you? Or anyone tried this before?
It is very cheap compared to "normal" torque wrenches...

And yes, safety is first! I liked the way how 59bhp wrote the way if thinking. :)

Thank you for the comments! Seeing them makes me think that I should invest in a torque wrench.
Click to expand...

Yep, worked very well for me, rebuilt my chassis with this including diff internals (diff a few times). Only problem I have is its on NM and I cant fiqure out how to change it back to ft/b, lost the intructions, but thats fookwit userfail, not device fail:wack: Let me know how to change it when you get yours:wack::wack:
Im not expecting it to last forever but so far its torqued all my suspension arms (30 odd nuts and bolts, 80nm ish), hub nuts (something silly like 200nm), diff caps, All the diff crown bolts (150ish nm), suspension topmounts (50nm ish) etc etc etc, point being iv used its full torque range on millions of bolts from min (40nm ish) all the way through to its max around (200nm ish) and its not broke, since its small you can plug it up to 1/2" extensions, uv joints, breaker bars, anything really but dont attach it to a impact gun:no: It will still read below 40nm, handy for fitting stuff like knock sensors but just cant set it to give a audible beep below 40ish, no big deal.
Buy some spare batteries and dump them in your toolbox, annoying when it goes flat just when you need it:mad:Get it from somewere that provides a usable warrenty just incase and buy one:nod:
 
Last edited:
lol until now i really never used a torque wrench:D
ok i didn't play on my internals, but i never had a problem with locklite and tight bolts on my flywheel^^

that lil Drive Torque Wrench Adaptor posted above looks awesome i think i'll buy it^^
gotta start to do things right and not just that it works^^
 
If it works that well, it definietly is a bargain. Thank you for showing me this adapter! I'll order one soon.
Oh, and the change to ft/lb:
By the looks, this is the exact same, as the one on your link. Watch the video, he tells how to change it.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_EeQeH5YAcA]YouTube - ‪Powerbuilt Digital Torque Adapter‬‏[/ame]

Thank again guys! The comments were really helpful!
 
Ah! Push the pair or buttons together:wack:
Didnt know proper torque wrenches could be recalibrated, il try and fix my pair :thumbs: back at ya
 
If you do buy a torque wrench make sure u wind it down after use, ive been told by a few people that if left done up it can make it inaccurate. not completely clued up on how it occurs but thought i would just add that :) if its bullshit then ignore me! lol
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top