Torque Wrench

[StagnJag]

Hi All,

Could anyone reccomend a suitable torque wrench for use with the Stag. I think Mine is knackered. Last time I used it was to tighten up the wheel nuts and I sheared off a couple of the studs which suggests that mine is over torquing somewhat :shock:. I don't want to risk using it on some of the more delicate threads, I have a bit of a knack of stripping threads so need all the help I can get!!!

Cheers

Dave

[Oldromola]

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Would there be anything wrong with a bog standard one obtainable from Halfords?

[Cheesy]

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Try this link (although it is a couple of years out of date):

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/product..._wrenches.html

I also seem to remember seeing a review of 3/8" torque wrenches in Practical Classics some time in the last few months.

[Gresley]

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Mine is a fairly cheap Draper one. It seems OK for the amount of work we are likely to give it.

Brian

[stustag]

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I have had a Norbar torque wrench for about 15 years now and it's ace.

http://www.norbar.com/Products/tabid...1/Default.aspx

Stuart

[John]

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You could try my current fave shop

http://www.screwfix.com/prods/18289/Hand-Tools/Spanners-Wrenches/Wrenches/Torque-Wrench

A bargain at £12

[Paul Goldsmith]

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I bought mine based on last year'sPractical Classics group test and they really rated the Halfords own brand as a good compromise between cost, accuracyand quality.

Search www.halfords.com for "Professional Torque Wrench" and this will return the 3 versions they do at £50 a piece.

Iexamined severalof the cheaper ones first and IMO you do get what you pay for, I'm very pleased with the Halfords product (wow - there's a first !).

(If I can find the PC mag concerned I'll scan the test and post the images for all)

[Giles]

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I have had various cheap ones over the years - have now got a Norbar - lovely! - you get what you pay for - I have come to the conclusion that if you are using one it needs to be accurate.

[Paul Goldsmith]

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I found up the PC group test this morning, will scan it and postup tonight.

From memory it covered wrenches from Norbar, Halfords, Draper, Sealey plus others.

Halfords came out top as Best Buy, with its accuracy onpar with Norbar but being significantly cheaper -critisism was made that the Halfords ratchet mechanism although adequate it wasn't as refined as the Norbar.

Theyweren't impressed however with the accuracy of some of the cheaper wrenches on test ...

I agree with you Giles, ifI'm using a torque wrench I need to have confidence in its accuracy - having just had myheads rebuild I want to ensure their re-torqueing at 500 miles is spot on !

[DJT]

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This subject has come up before. I have a Norbar wrench that I have used for many, many years. I have always looked after it: set it back to zero after use, never used it to undo anything oras a hammer :shock:.

As such I believe it to be still fairly accurate, but would like it checked. Any ideas where this could be done?

Dave

[John]

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Do it yourself? Hold the drive in a vice so the handle is horizontal and suspend a weight on the handle from a piece of cord a foot from the centre of the drive and adjust the wrench until it just clicks when you let the weight hang free, then do the maths...


If the weight is, say 20lbs, the wrench should read 20ftlbs.

[StagnJag]

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Hi all,

Just to finish this off, I have gone for the Halfords wrench. I actually splashed out on two to get the full torque range. (6-45 lbf.ft and 40-225lbf.ft). They look the business and come with a callibration cert. which my previous one didn't. Only drawback is that the smaller one has a 3/8" sq drive and all my sockets are 1/2" so an adaptor is next on the shopping list!

Cheers

Dave

[John]

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Can you get 3/8 to 1/2 adapters? I've got a 1/2 to 3/8, but I've never seen one the other way round.

[StagnJag]

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Halfords do one:

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_170741_langId_-1_categoryId_106208

[Paul Goldsmith]

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My apologies Stagnjag that I didn't get to post the PC review earlier as promised, however it appears you're happy with the Halfords option anyway.

For future reference, here's page 1 of the PC torque wrench tests