Torque wrench suggestions

I need to get a torque wrench. Can annyone recommend a good one for ~$100? Do you set them to the desired ft/lb and then they break tension when they get to they pre-set torque?

 

craftsman should be a decent one. i got lucky acouple years ago and scored a snap on 1/2" drive wrench. guy traded it in on a new one, i bought it for $100 and the snap on guy did a rebuild on it for free... plus he calibrates it whenever i ask for free... can't beat that!

 

My craftsman torque wrench has provided me with years of service. Only issue is I think it only goes up to 100 ft/lbs but I rarely have anything I need to torque that exceeds that.

 

I bought a husky at Home depot for like $60. Works well.
Only does 100FtLbs.

 

Is there an optimal length on these? I have seen some that look sorta short for torquing down lug nuts. The ft/lbs for lugs is ~80lbs????

 

i hvae the craftsman digital.. its amazing. AND since its a craftsman, if it breaks it will be replaced. Even though theyre a bit more expensive, i believe craftsman is the way to go for quality and warranty.

(Ive brought a 1/2 inch wrench in broken, said "I used it as a hammer and it broke" and they gave me a new one...)

 

Thanks, I am going to SEars online now to research....

 

Wow, the SEARS electronic is pricey at $260.......ouch. I have a hard time thinking its $150 better than the click type at $105??

 

search ebay. I just got a nearly new, 200 ft lb 1/2" snap on torque wrench for $92 shipped. And since its snap on, its warrentied for life and as stated before, the snap on guy will calibrate it when ever I need it. I prefer the long style also, you can get more torque on what ever your working on also.

 

Yep, looking at Ebay as you wrote this! Thanks! Would you recommend 1/2" ver 3/8". I suspect so as I will be using mine primarily for lug nuts.

 

thats all I wanted one really. i got 1/2" for lug nuts. i dont think 3/8'' goes up that high. I remember I had an old craftsman one, and it went to like 90lbs. Not enough for lug nuts.

 

We have Craftsman 1/2" and 3/8 torque wrenches. They've never failed us.

Just a tip - don't forget to put the torque wrenches back to ZERO when you're finished. This helps prolong the life of the mechanism.

 

Thanks! I am going to bid on a SEARS wrench on Ebay today.....

 

I usually dont do the bidding thing, i dont have the patience im all about the buy it now option

 

I snipe. I bid with 2 seconds left, and I NEVER LOSE. I HATE and LOATH stores. I would rather you cut both hands off than go to a mall. The ONLY stores I frequent are Lowes, HD, and hardware stores. The rest are totally USELESS.

 

Got it refurbished. OoO yah

 

i got a half inch drive "great neck" torque wrench at autozone for about $25 or so........and it works great...........torques the same as a more expensive one i got a napa a few years ago.

 

x2

Also, don't loan it out to anyone! Even family! I loaned my $150 wrench to my bro-in-law and now I have to replace it. Damn gorilla.

 

Just found this on Car Talk.....Click and Clack's take on used torque wrenches:
Dear Tom and Ray:

My father taught me a lot about cars by having me do the work while he "supervised." I don't remember how old I was, maybe 8 or 10, but I was young enough that I had to stand on a crate to reach over the hood to the engine. The lesson of the day was how to change spark plugs in the old family Chevy. I was determined to show my dad how "big and strong" I was, so I cranked on the plug probably more than he thought I could at my young age. As he was standing there smoking his pipe and watching, I snapped that baby off in the block. He never yelled, just kept looking at the engine, and finally said, "Run in and tell your mother we'll be a little late for dinner." That started the next lesson, on how to use a torque wrench (he spared me the task of extracting the old plug and fixing what I had done). I am now 53 years old, my dad is long gone, and I still have the torque wrenches of my dad's that I made sure I got when he passed. They have been treated with respect, and are both the "bar" type and the "clicking" adjustable type. Can I still trust them? Is there any way to check or calibrate them? I still get emotional every time I use them, remembering my dad and the many automotive lessons he taught me. But I know he would be upset to learn that I was using a tool that was no longer fit for the job. Thanks for any advice you can offer. -- Jim

TOM: Your dad sounds like a wonderful, patient man, Jim. My dad was like that, too -- until my brother came along.

RAY: You have two different types of torque wrenches, Jim. The old "bar and pointer" type were never extremely accurate. But the good news is that they almost never went out of calibration from where they started. And they're good enough for most automotive work. So I think you can continue to use those for things like spark plugs and wheel nuts.

TOM: Right. If you were writing to us about working on your Exelon pressurized water nuclear reactor, we might be concerned. But your bar-and-pointer-style torque wrenches probably are still fine.

RAY: The "click" type are more accurate, but they can go out of calibration over time. Those should be recalibrated if you're doing any kind of precise work.

TOM: If you go online and search on Google for "torque wrench calibration," you'll find a number of labs that you can send your wrenches to. They'll recalibrate them and send them back to you.

RAY: There are even some that will come to your house or place of business and do the calibration on the spot. And since your wrenches are irreplaceable and have great sentimental value, you might want to do that, rather than take the chance of having them get lost in transit somewhere.

TOM: You also can ask at a good local auto-parts store. They may have somebody nearby whom they recommend. Then you can stand over him, and make sure he doesn't mess with Dad's torque wrenches. Good luck, Jim.