Torque wrench, how critical

[black'n'yellow]

No, you had no point. You just gave an alternate, imaginary scenario and decided it was fact.

to be fair, you don't actually know why the bar failed - so your 'imaginary scenario' is just as worthless as mine.

 

[Rob3rt]

BTW, I have worked as a fitter and electrician myself, we didn't use torque wrenches (and we weren't shy of putting a 6 ft bar on the end of a wrench either), but then again we were working on heavy machinery with bolts as fat as a babys arm, this is not relevant to the bike since those machines were not made of carbon fibre or heavily machined aluminium with tight tolerances and going to be hurtling along at speed with me or anyone else aloft. Choices are made according to the specific task. I don't go pulling out my torque wrench to assemble flat pack furniture either, but for my bike, yes I will use one.

 

[subaqua]

By the time you gain this experience, you have potentially cost yourself well in excess of the price of a torque wrench in parts you have compromised!

I would learn to do without, if the consequences didn't cost me anything, however, when I am working with hundreds of pounds, maybe even thousands of pounds worth of my own cash, I would much prefer to just use a tool designed for the task.

aaarggh . you wont unless you are a ham fisted gorilla . I often wondered what thew UK would be like when engineering SKILLS died out. i think i might have seen it. programmers all sat with a torque wrench.

i think one of the best ones i have seen with a torque wrench was comebody confusing ft lbs and ft In so even using a torque wrench a spanner mangler will feck it up. feel is a great skill to posses. buy some bolts and have a practice . what we used to do on our apprenticeships practice, practice practice

 

[sddg7tfl]

I repair industrial sewing machines for a living and work with screws smaller than those found in
spectacles and electronics as complicated as those found in modern car engine management systems.

The screws are torqued using the "original MK1 self adjusting mechanics hand" and the electronics with a bloomin big 'ammer!

 

[Zakalwe]

You're my hero subaqua, Your mastery of tightening bolts is unrivalled. All forms of measurement should be immediately eradicated so that we may live our lives in your great image.

 

[Rob3rt]

aaarggh . you wont unless you are a ham fisted gorilla . I often wondered what thew UK would be like when engineering SKILLS died out. i think i might have seen it. programmers all sat with a torque wrench.

i think one of the best ones i have seen with a torque wrench was comebody confusing ft lbs and ft In so even using a torque wrench a spanner mangler will feck it up. feel is a great skill to posses. buy some bolts and have a practice . what we used to do on our apprenticeships practice, practice practice

 

[Zakalwe]

BTW, I have worked as a fitter and electrician myself, we didn't use torque wrenches (and we weren't shy of putting a 6 ft bar on the end of a wrench either), but then again we were working on heavy machinery with bolts as fat as a babys arm, this is not relevant to the bike since those machines were not made of carbon fibre or heavily machined aluminium with tight tolerances and going to be hurtling along at speed with me or anyone else aloft. Choices are made according to the specific task. I don't go pulling out my torque wrench to assemble flat pack furniture either, but for my bike, yes I will use one.

Finally, someone who can talk sense.

 

[black'n'yellow]

Finally, someone whose opinion matches my own.

fixed that for you.

 

[Zakalwe]

I work in inches in what I do for a living. I can spot differences as small as 1/32 of an inch with my naked eye. I still confirm with a measure. Why? Because I'm a professional, and errors will just ruin everything and make more work for myself. I could do it all by experience and judgement, but why? Some sort of ego trip? No thanks, I take pride in what I do.

 

[Zakalwe]

Getting a bit desperate now black'n'decker.

 

[ianrauk]

fixed that for you.

Getting a bit desperate now black'n'decker.

Enough.....give it a rest both of you.

 

[black'n'yellow]

I work in inches in what I do for a living. I can spot differences as small as 1/32 of an inch with my naked eye. I still confirm with a measure. Why? Because I'm a professional, and errors will just ruin everything and make more work for myself. I could do it all by experience and judgement, but why? Some sort of ego trip? No thanks, I take pride in what I do.

Sounds like you need a torque wrench. Personally, I don't - and never have. Amazingly, I've never fcked anything up by not using one. Anyway, the blue-faced one has spoken, so I will leave it there.

 

[mr messy]

Enough.....give it a rest both of you.

Thats you both had a good torqing too!

 

[screenman]

B&Y, it is not just about being tight enough, but how tight.

I teach a trade that only 1 in every 400 who go on a course will master, this work is totally eye to hand co-ordination and I have been doing it for 20+ years. Yet working on bikes I choose to use a torque wrench does that make me inferior to wrong.

I invite you to a competition, you torque 10 bolts by hand and I check each one with a torque wrench. We will put the results up on the forum for all to see.

As for clever mechanics who never use a torque wrench, sue them as they are not doing the job properly..

 

[mr messy]

I build cars for a living and will have a torque wrench in my hand pretty much every day. With experience you get to know how "tight" something should be through repetition. Still the torque wrenchs gets used anyway. The diffference between too loose and things falling apart, and overtightening and stripping threads can be so small. Cost in time and expense of restripping gearboxes etc to helicoil more than justifies use of torque wrenches. Also some componentry has to be "correctly loaded " to function properly.
It is not the be all and end all though, i wouldn't get the torq screwdriver out to attach trim for example. As long as common sense is used torque wrenches do not need to be used for every job. Here's the rub, peoples perception of common sense. Everyones "nip up" will be different.
If you have the experience, comfortable in your own abilities, familiar with how "tight" something should be and dont feel you have to use torque wrench then thats good you have confidence in your own knowledge. If not i would recommend using a torque wrench, takes the guesswork out of it. Can never be too safe. The one caveat would be the afformentioned componentry that has to be torqued. The number of times i've seen wheels hanging off cars with newly diy fitted wheel bearings would frighten the life out you!