| Author | Message | ||
     Johnboy777 |
Recommendations for a New Torque Wrench Need one - never owned one - I'm not a tool guy - just need it for an engine rotation. Probably will use it at the most twice. Thanks. | ||
| Froggy |
How are you installing your axles if you don't have a torque wrench? I got a Gearwrench brand digital with 1/2" drive on Ebay a while back, fantastic unit, easy to program unlike old fashioned models, and it tells you exactly how much torque you are applying and gives a nice beep when you get there. Works in both directions which is perfect for the left hand threaded axles, and it never needs to be re-calibrated so it saves you money in the long run. | ||
| Johnboy777 |
""How are you installing your axles if you don't have a torque wrench? "" I don't understand your question. I don't have one - I need one. Thanks for the heads up, I found this brand on Amazon for $100 - which seems okay. 10 - 100 lbs. Which drive? 1/4, 3/8 or half? Thanks | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
Sears Craftsman are about 1/2 that price. If you have a Harbor Freight nearby they carry torque wrenches. I use the Craftsman and it is 3/8 drive but have a 1/2" adapter for it also. Clicks when you hit the required torque. | ||
| Johnboy777 |
Thanks EG, I have a HF and a Sears nearby. | ||
| Motorbike |
To torque the left hand threaded front axle, I just ran an extension bar through the axle and put a spark plug socket on the end of the extension. (As a side note, I cannot take credit for this ingenious idea, I got it from someone here on BadWeb, maybe Al Lighton?) The hex on the end of my spark plug socket fits the hex inside the front axle perfectly, allowing me to torque with a right hand only torque wrench. I already know the extension may cause a slight inaccuracy in the actual torque but it should be close enough if you use as short of extension as possible to reduce the twist effect between the torque wrench and the socket. If you buy a torque wrench that torques either direction, such s Froggy's, well, that's even better. | ||
| Buewulf |
Got one at wally world (Stanley brand maybe?) several years ago for $25 ~ $30. Clicker model good to 200 ft-lbs. Nothing has fallen apart since I started using it, so it must work well enough. | ||
| Hughlysses |
To torque the left hand threaded front axle, I just ran an extension bar through the axle and put a spark plug socket on the end of the extension. Brilliant! (whoever thought of it) I bought a cheap beam-type torque wrench at Tractor Supply for ~$10 just for doing the front axle. It never occurred to me I could use my clicker type wrench this way. | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
Craftsman torques both directions. | ||
| Reepicheep |
I use two of them, a 1/2" drive for the bigger foot pound stuff, and a 3/8" inch pound unit. Neither great, but neither harbor freight either. Both are clicker types, and click both directions, and serve me well. | ||
| Timberwolf |
If you get a clicker wrench be sure to practice with it on something non-critical. First time I used one I was expecting the "click" to be much more noticeable and ended up way over the desired torque, but got lucky and didn't damage anything. | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
Another thing about spring type torque wrenches. Alway dial them back down before putting away so that you don't weaken the spring. Read that online. | ||
| Johnboy777 |
Found one at Northern Tool - I really like that outfit - bought some stuff from them over the years. Found this one for $40 ...Customer Product Rating...4.8/5 with 28 reviews http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200 263474_200263474  | ||
| Motorbike |
Does it torque both directions? I too bought a Craftsman beam type torque wrench to do the left handed axle but returned it when I read about a way to do it from the other side with my Snap-On click type wrench, which only torques in one direction. | ||
| Johnboy777 |
Quick look at the TORQUE SPECS for an engine rotation, and it appears I'll need one that goes to 150 lbs. Muffler Strap fasteners (front) 108-120 in lbs Foot Peg mount fasteners 108-132 in lbs . | ||
| Hughlysses |
John- Are you mixing up inch-pounds and foot-pounds? Don't make that mistake when buying or using your torque wrench or you will be sorry. | ||
| Motorbike |
The two torque specs you listed are in inch lbs. Your new wrench torques up to 80 foot lbs. That is WAY more than enough. 1 foot lb = 12 inch lbs. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong but that's how I have been calculating torque values for many years. 120 inch lbs. = 10 foot lbs. 132 inch lbs. = 11 foot lbs. | ||
| Reepicheep |
The crank nut is the killer. That's, what, 150 foot pounds or something now? | ||
| Motorbike |
That sounds about right. I hope I never have to experience torquing that nut. Not because it's hard to do, I just don't want to be that far into my engine. | ||
| Johnboy777 |
Having another look, Front Isolator Bolt @ 49-54 ft lbs, seems to be the highest. Thanks for the clarification - looks like you saved my ass on that one. . | ||
| Bike_pilot |
For occasional use, I like the bendy-bar style torque wrenches. You can see the torque value increase slowly as you apply pressure and there's really nothing to go wrong with them. Maybe I'm just a skeptic, but I worry about the reliability/accuracy of the click-type, inexpensive torque wrenches. I used snap-on click-type wrenches for years when wrenching full time and liked them quite a lot, but they are probably too expensive for occasional home use. | ||
| Buewulf |
Crank nut is 240 ~ 260 ft-lbs. | ||
| Hughlysses |
Crank nut is 240 ~ 260 ft-lbs. For 2003-2007 XB's; I don't believe it's nearly that high for the 2008-up bikes that use a crankshaft bolt instead of a nut. A torque wrench that goes that high is NOT cheap (think well over $200). Easiest thing to do is get one as a loaner tool from your local auto parts chain. My 1/2 inch drive torque wrench only goes up to 150 ft-lbs or so. When I changed the stator on my S3 a few years back (torque requirement ~210 ft-lbs) I looked into buying one and quickly gave up. Autozone loaned me a 250 ft-lb rated one for free that did the job. | ||
| Reepicheep |
Pfft. XB guys. In the tuber days, we would have that thing off more often then we would be changing oil! And we walked both ways to work uphill in the snow also.  Once it is above 100 foot pounds or so, just use the "fat ass" method. Weigh your fat ass, calculate how far out your 2 foot breaker bar you have to stand to achieve the desired foot pounds, and stand there. No bouncing. I'm not standing nearly as far out that bar these days as I did as a younger man...  | ||
| Rdkingryder |
Yep, been using the spark plug socket for awhile myself. http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=32 9135 | ||
| Bluzm2 |
The Craftsman torque wrenches are on sale now for about $60.00. The Harbor Freight units (made in China) do not stay calibrated for long. A neighbor bought one, after one year we checked it against a couple of mine, it was weak on the low end and to strong on the top. The middle was also low. You can't calibrate out of that one as the internal spring is shot. Spend the extra $$ on a decent one. I check mine about once a year using weights. Very accurate. | ||
| Rdkingryder |
The big trick to longevity in a torque wrench is to always put it away with the spring unloaded. Kind of like an automatic weapon. If you must have one loaded, only load it partially so it doesn't ruin the spring.  | ||
| Froggy |
Hmm, my wrench doesn't have any of those issues, I press the power button when I'm done, and stick it back in the box | ||
| Crusty |
On one job that I had, building very trick medical devices, every fastener had to be torqued, and the torque wrenches had to be calibrated on a semi-annual basis. We had Clickers from an assortment of manufacturers such as Armstrong, Craftsman, CDI (Snap-On),Torqmeter, and a number of "Specialty" brands. The Craftsman was the most consistently accurate of all. I used that wrench every day for 3-1/2 years, and it was still working well when that job ended. It wasn't the prettiest, nor did it have the big name and price, but it was always within calibration. It impressed me. | ||
| Hughlysses |
Just out of curiosity, as a home mechanic, is there likely to be any place locally I could get a torque wrench calibrated? | ||
| Buewulf |
Hughlysses, Powerbuilt Digital Torque Adapter. Works pretty well and doesn't cost much more than a shop would charge you to calibrate your wrenches. Bought one for my brother a few years ago as a gift, and it was about $40 or $50 at the time. I think I got it on Amazon. A big plus is that it is fairly small and can be used as a torque wrench itself (with a .5" ratchet), so it makes a good take-along for a long, abusive trip when you may potentially need to make repairs that require proper torquing. | ||
| Pkforbes87 |
"I use the Craftsman and it is 3/8 drive but have a 1/2" adapter for it also. Clicks when you hit the required torque." I have the same thing. Sears will recalibrate them for $20 IIRC. I've never had mine done.. only had it for a couple years and I'm very careful not to leave tension on it, I don't beat around on it or expose it to extreme heat. Works like a champ. Torques both directions and I'd rather hear a click than a beep. (and would rather not rely on batteries) |
