Torque Wrench

[Rob S]

This one looks good :?:

http://sheldonbrown.com/tork-grip.html

 

[giant man]

Torgue wrenches vary greatly in accurassey. Practical Classics did a test on the smaller ones, what they found was that a lot where accurate in the mid range, but few where accurate in the lower ranges, which is where you will need it for the bike bits which are critical to easily stripped threads!

I agree that it is beneficial to develope a 'feel' for tightening up the variuos parts of bikes. Relying on an innacurate torque wrench (perhaps one from argos or somewhere similar) to tighten up a 5mm bolt into an alloy thread could well mean a stripped threa while waiting for that click. A skilled mechanic should have a feel for just tight enough and a bit more to lock.

Torque wrenches are very critical in automotice engine building and such like, where you are mating large flat faces together under a lot of pressure and subject to warping, such as alloy cylinder heads.

I use torque wrenches for vehicles regualarly, have never used one on my bike.

That's fair enough but not all of us are 'skilled mechanics' are we? :?:

 

[simon]

Having used torque wrenches on many cars before I would really question whether you need one for your bike - the best advice I have heard is to use normal allen keys - there length is designed to limit the torque you can apply with your fingers - hence a 4mm allen is small and its pretty obvious given a little practice whats a sensible maximum to apply. At the other end of the scale with bottom bracket bolts you might torque it up to the suggested tightness and find that this isn't enough! There is a rule of thumb for the torque of a bolt given its size

Lastly - for a bike you need a small (read expensive) torque wrench - automotive ones are useless for a bike (IMHO). FWIW I think these are a gimmick. If you are worried about stripping a bolt then you shouldn't touch it in the first place - I doubt a wrench will save you.

 

[Monty Dog]

I agree to some extent for the need for them - having myself spent years assembling machined parts and having a fairly well calibrated wrist. However, given the cost of a basic wrench against replacing a pair of carbon bars or a stem due to crushing / stripped threads, then the cost is probably worth it in the long run. However, I wouldn't recommend using basic allen keys either - not unless they're a reputable make with machined ends, rather than the cheap ones that often appear to be made from plasticene. Get a quality set of hex-bits, you are far less likely to 'round' the heads too. In particular, 4-bolt stem faceplates on carbon bars are fairly critical in terms of getting even tension - particularly with 4mm screws which are inclined to snap if overloaded