message from your neighborhood tool snob

just a friendly reminder to everyone that going cheap on torque wrenches can be costly in the long run.  There have been a couple posts here about the cheap ones with the pointer.  If you are getting a torque wrench, spend the money and get some like dgyver has at the very least.  

Your torque wrench should also come with a certificate of calibration verifying that it does, in fact, give you accurately torqued bolts

remember Inch Pounds are different and many of the 3/8" or 1/2" drive torque wrenches can only go so low.  Make sure you buy the range you'll use the most if you are only buying one

QUESTION:  How low DO the Craftsman "clickers" go?  When I bought my torsion-beam version I went into the store intending to get a clicker, but a few (admittedly imprecise) tests in the tool aisle told me that they wouldn't click down at the low end of the torque range required by the fasteners on the GS.  (I brought along a list of torque settings gleaned from my repair manuals.)

Can anyone that has real-world experience with a currently purchase-able model give some feedback on this aspect of it?

As far as the torsion-beam versions (pictured on the first page of this thread) go, the 3/8" model will handle the entire range of printed torque values that I have come across.  For some of the higher ones you may wish you had the longer 1/2" jobbie....

PS - I don't mean to leave non-Craftsman torque wrenches out of the discussion.  I just don't have any experience with them.  But the NICE ones cost a pretty penny, don't they?  And so far (on the GS anyway) I haven't felt the need for super precision yet.

Quote from: RoadstergalTorque wrench is on my B-day wish list.

Can I borrow it?  

The butter bolts (aluminum fasteners) on the GS are probably mostly inch pounds.  6mm major diameter threads are NOT strong, especially if they are aluminum.  If you don't have a good feel with your 1/4" drive ratchet or tiny wrenches, a small torque wrench will be extremely valuable.  

Think about how many people break their oil studs or whatever ham-fisting it.  I just had to extract the clamping bolt for my clutch lever because the thing just broke when I went to loosen it.  Just twisted right off.  I had probably made it too tight without breaking the thing

I worked my Camaro for a long time and worked in a couple shops around here so I have Mac torque wrenches.  I have the 1/4" drive one with inch-pounds, and the 3/8" and 1/2" drive ones for ft-lb's.  Converting to inch-pounds is a matter of converting feet to inches, easy stuff as long as you do it in the right direction

If you want a torque wrench that will last a long time, check out the Mac stuff, Stahlwille (excellent brand), or any of the professional lines of tools.  I actually like my buddy's Stahlwille's (think Shtall-villey) because you can change the torque settings with a slider instead of the standard ring and collar.

I used my torque wrenches a lot on the car, head bolts, intake manifold bolts, oil pan bolts, exhaust manifold/header bolts, wheels, et cetera.  The bike has all kinds of stuff, triple clamps, all the tiny 6mm bolts, wheel nuts, oil filter, valve cover, handlebar clamps, sprockets, and so-on

I bet a lot of those low torques you brought along are converted from N-m and are actually supposed to be in inch-pounds.  You'll be hard pressed to find a torque wrench that goes below 20-25 foot pounds.  That's where the inch pounders come in.  Hope this helps