Are all torque wrenches created equal?

PaulB-2006 T4R

PaulB-2006 T4R

New member
I am looking for a good troque wrench. I am not a mechanic, just a weekend warrior thus I would prefer to not spend a lot of money. What brands do you all have and why? Do torque wrenches deteriorate over time? I have seen several wrenches in online pawn shops.

I welcome your opinions, thank you.
 
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For lug nuts and general repair, the craftsman torque wrenches are plenty good. If you plan on doing engine work (head gaskets, cam/crank bearings) or things that have very specific torque yields I use my Snap-on Digital wrench. Mines a little older but the new ones also have torque angel meters built in.

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I would say that they are not created equally. Most wrenches will have a tolerance marked on them indicating how accurate they are within certain torque ranges. There are also different styles like the ones with a beam pointer, the ones with an internal spring, and I'm sure there are other mechanisms. I bought the Craftsman Microtork torque wrenches, 3/8" and 1/2" drive, about eight years ago... I think that they were about $69 and $89 back then. The guy at Sears told me to always set them back to zero when I'm done with them to take tension off of the internal spring mechanism. So far, they seem to be as good as new, but I do want to have them calibrated soon or maybe just compare them to a neighbor's expensive new Snap-On wrenches.

Good luck!
~Doozi
 
I'm inclined to agree with Awz. For very precise things a really 'top-notch' t-wrench is in order. For most things that require a t-wrench evenness is almost more important than accuracy to the last 3lb-ft of torque. For tires, driveshaft torque etc even a simple beam type wrench is fine IMHO.
 
If you need something inexpensive or one that you want to carry in the truck to use in a pinch, Harbor Freight has some good 3/8 and 1/2 drive wrenches. Sometimes you can get them for as little as $10. The torque specs checked out good, and compared well with my friends snap-on and craftsman tools.

Again, I don't think I'd use these if I had to do an engine rebuild - but I'm never going to do that anyway. But for the periodic lug nut check and drive shaft torque they do the trick.

Torque Wrench, ½

3/8" Drive Click Stop Torque Wrench
 
For most automotive torque requirements a click type is accurate enough. There are some auto repairs that require also measuring torque angle. This type of torque wrench is usually digital and is more accurate. The most accurate type of torque wrench is the dial type.

Note: When not using a click type torque wrench it's best to put a little tension on the internal spring. Leave it set a little more than 0.

Koz
 
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