Any deals for torque wrenches?

Harbor freight just came out with their "premium" line of tools and its neck to neck with Snapon's torque wrench.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ck_O5U1Tyz8

 

Google "Teng Tools" if you want something of a little better quality than HB.

 

I feel like we should havr a weekly merv segment where he answers our questions

 

I broke my Craftsman 1/2 torque wrench ratcheting mechanism on my U-Bolts during my suspension install (click type, not beam, obv.) and it would only catch at one point in the rotation. I limped it through the install and picked up that exact HF torque wrench for my snow tire changeover. I had read some positive reviews about it in regards to accuracy versus the big names, but take that with a grain of salt.

Anywho, I really dislike the locking mechanism. I found when I was torquing my lugnuts I would be spinning the handle while trying to tighten and it would change my dialed in torque value. It happened more than once. In addition, the detent ball on mine failed so the socket falls off. I ended up grabbing another Craftsman one to have on hand. Again, I know it's not the best in the world, but I'm not building a motor here, at best I'm doing suspension install work and everything I touched with my original Craftsman wrench clicked with both the HF and new Craftsman wrench. Granted, I know that could simply mean the fasteners are too tight, but it also means nothing is coming loose on me, either.

That being said, I really dislike the locking mechanism for the HF piece and worth avoiding for that reason alone.

 

Fasteners that are too tight are just as bad as loose ones. Too tight means you've stretched the bolt and/or stressed whatever the bolt is holding. A stretched bolt can shear easily. Most things on our trucks though are fine just being snug and don't need a special torque value.

 

Sure, but I'd find it hard to believe the stretch threshold of those bolts are within the error margin of these wrenches. Honestly, it's likely the same the other way, as well.

I don't disagree that for certain items precise torque is required, but like you said, most bolts aren't that way. For completeness I'll set my wrench to whatever the FSM reads and go from there.

 

I appreciate that vote of confidence, Shark. I can't pretend to be inherently brilliant about cars or anything I repair but I do strive to accumulate knowledge from a vast variety of sources rather than making assumptions. With help from a film student, I have only made a few videos, but you can rest assured they are the result of many hours and in fact sometimes days worth of researching the best tips, tricks and methods the world has to offer. One thing's for sure, projects don't always go smoothly, and that's the harsh reality I try to share with folks because lets face it DIY repairs aren't always a walk through flowers.

Thanks to all for letting me be part of this forum.