Need a good torque wrench

[blue_xii]

I'm looking into getting a torque wrench and I have no idea about the differences between makes/types. Looking for a good quality tool. Also, any tips on wrench maintenance would be appreciated.

From the looks of it I'm looking for a 3/8" wrench. Also, was quickly looking up home depot, canadian tire and Parts source and found they are priced at about $90 a piece. Looked up Mac Tools and the torque wrenches there were in the price range of $240 - $360 US. Informed help on these and any other manufacturers available in Canada would be greatly appreciated. I only plan to buy this tool once and so I want to make sure to get a good one.

Thanks for any advice on the wrenches in advance.

[jollyeskimo]

I've got one for 15+ years (I think it's a Williams autotorque), and it's damned near indestructible. I think they're made in the UK iirc.

[overboost]

I"ve bought a Precision Instruments torque wrench (same as the one sold by Tire Rack) and it's a great tool. I've compared it to the CDN Tire tools and the craftsmanship on the Precision Instruments is muchhhh better. It's a good brand that you might want to consider if you do not want to pay for a Snap On or Mac. I paid $130USD for mine.


I'm looking into getting a torque wrench and I have no idea about the differences between makes/types. Looking for a good quality tool. Also, any tips on wrench maintenance would be appreciated.

From the looks of it I'm looking for a 3/8" wrench. Also, was quickly looking up home depot, canadian tire and Parts source and found they are priced at about $90 a piece. Looked up Mac Tools and the torque wrenches there were in the price range of $240 - $360 US. Informed help on these and any other manufacturers available in Canada would be greatly appreciated. I only plan to buy this tool once and so I want to make sure to get a good one.

Thanks for any advice on the wrenches in advance.

[sunnybwoy]

You may only buy it once, but you got to remember that it needs to be recalibrated every few years, also, remember when u store it to set the spec's to 0ft/lbs.

[myapple]

Every 2-3 months or so, cdn tire has their 3/8" torque wrench on sale for $60.

[Div]

Princess Auto also has these on sale every so often. Keep an eye out on their site.

[lumlum1013]

If you want the good stuff, go w/ "snap-on"....
they produce some nice torque wrench...

but if you j/ wanna use it for minor tune up like
replacin' sparkplugs, roatate wheels, j/ go w/ CT's torque wrenches,
since they come in lifetime warranty~

j/ remember to set the torque back to 0lb/ft after using,

[corrupt123]

Definitly remember to set it to 0 when you're not using it.

as for quality, the price makes a difference. although,. as stated, if you're just using it here and there, you can go with something like canadiantire quality. Make sure you get some spec sheets too, dont just make up torque ratings that sound good.

furthermore, get a ft-lbs torue wrench. I won a nice snap-on torque wrench, but the damn thing is in newton-meters so it's practically useless to me. (obviously i could do the conversions or get the N-M spec sheets but you know what I mean)

[sunnybwoy]

Just incase no one mentioned it, set the wrench to 0Ft/lbs when ur not using it :D

[DJ_Peanuts22]

buy a Craftsman, its like a cheap Snap-On

[enko]

FYI I don't think CT has lifetime warranty on torque wrenches, and if they do it doesn't cover the adjustments.

My friend is an auto-mech and gets it calibrated every 8-12 months. The engine builders get it done every 6 months usually.

[cliff]

FYI I don't think CT has lifetime warranty on torque wrenches, and if they do it doesn't cover the adjustments.

They do and they don't. No warranty on calibration (adjustments), but if you actually break the tool then they will give you a new one (that is properly calibrated).

[Geil]

I am looking too and for the same price you can get a husky one at home depot

[actng]

depends on what you plan on using the torque wrench for.
1/2" drive is usually what you want for automotive applications.
the 3/8" drive available from canadian tire is virtually useless because the torque specs are limited because it's rated in lb-inches.

i bought the 1/2" drive from CanTire to switch wheels from summer to winter to summer. Set my torque wrench at 88 lb-ft of torque.

Waited for the sale to get the torque wrench for about $50 to $60 - don't remember exactly what I paid for it.

It's a good price for a simple wheel swap application. You'll have to buy the right one for what you intend to use it for.

[Div]

It's a good price for a simple wheel swap application. You'll have to buy the right one for what you intend to use it for.
Thanks for the tip. I need one for swapping wheels as well so I guess 1/2" is what I should keep an eye out for.

A couple of folks mentioned getting it re-calibrated - where can one get this done?

[actng]

A couple of folks mentioned getting it re-calibrated - where can one get this done?

I personally am not concerned with getting it recalibrated. I'm only using it to tighten the lug nuts on my car wheels so even if it's off by 5 lb-ft (which is already a lot), it won't matter that much.

So it really depends on what you intend to use it for. If you need extreme precision and accuracy, you should spend the big bucks and get the expensive ones (up to thousands of dollars). When you're spending thousands of dollars on a torque wrench, spending a few tens or a hundred something to recalibrate it every year makes sense.

but when you spend $60 on a torque wrench from canadian tire... you might be better off buying a new one every year if you're really concerned with accuracy. and even then, they come new in box with a variance of about 2 lb-ft.

[enko]

I personally am not concerned with getting it recalibrated. I'm only using it to tighten the lug nuts on my car wheels so even if it's off by 5 lb-ft (which is already a lot), it won't matter that much.

So it really depends on what you intend to use it for. If you need extreme precision and accuracy, you should spend the big bucks and get the expensive ones (up to thousands of dollars). When you're spending thousands of dollars on a torque wrench, spending a few tens or a hundred something to recalibrate it every year makes sense.

but when you spend $60 on a torque wrench from canadian tire... you might be better off buying a new one every year if you're really concerned with accuracy. and even then, they come new in box with a variance of about 2 lb-ft.

+1.

I talked to my friend, he said for my wrench (Princess Auto :)) it's not worth getting recalibrated really. He has a snapon wrench that is in the high hundreds of dollars.

The variance is usually 5% of the maximum torque rating, so on a 25-100lb/ft wrench it can be off up to 5lb/ft from the start. Say it's 5lb/ft over, and it loses calibration the same way, you could hit 10lb/ft which is fine for wheels, but bad for other things.

I read about these way back, the BEST torque wrenches for a shadetree mechanic? The old school ones with the plastic pointer at the bottom and you have to read it. They NEVER go out of calibration. And if they did, you bend the pointer back to 0 when there is no torque on it :) The only thing that will beat this is a pro torque wrench that is calibrated a few times a year.