[drexlerkm]

OK, pardon my ignorance..

Will the Park TW2 satisfy all my torquing needs? If it says 3/8", that's just the acceptor, so it will fit other socket allen adaptors? Why would you need a 1/4" or 1/2" drive?

All I'm trying to do is correctly torque down the bolts and bushings on my rear suss linkages.

While I'm at it, I figure I can now correctly torque down cranks and everything else. So will one torque wrench pull duty for the whole bike?

Here's what I'm thinking of getting

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000NVAHMW...e=asn&creative=380341&creativeASIN=B000NVAHMW

AND

http://www.amazon.com/Pro-Grade-13-Piece-Hex-Wrench-Socket/dp/B000GYLGU8/ref=pd_bxgy_sg_img_c

 

[drexlerkm]

Now that I've done a little reading, I'm going with:

TW5

http://www.hucknroll.com/mountainbike/Park-Tool-Ratcheting-Torque-Wrench/PAR0137M.html

Bit set

http://www.hucknroll.com/mountainbike/Park-Tool-Socket-and-Bit-Set-SBS-1/PAR0138M.html

If anyone has any other suggestions, fire away. These items are going on the XMAS list.

 

[KevinB]

Will the Park TW2 satisfy all my torquing needs?

I started out with a Craftsman beam-style wrench that handles a similar torque range. While it can be used for torquing all of the fasteners on your bike, you should know that it won't be very accurate for low torque values. If you are constrained to only have one torque wrench though, that's the one to get.

Later on, I got a 0-60 inch-lb wrench. It works well for things like brake rotor screws and stem bolts, but not so well for brake caliper bolts, many of which need to be torqued just outside the range of the smaller wrench. There are several other fasteners which have the same problem.

More recently, I purchased several dial style torque wrenches. (I found some good deals on ebay.) The 0-150 inch-lb wrench is suitable for quite a few bike fasteners.

If it says 3/8", that's just the acceptor, so it will fit other socket allen adaptors? Why would you need a 1/4" or 1/2" drive?

I almost always need 1/2" drive for bottom bracket tools. I have a set of 1/4" hex bits, but I use those with my 0-60 inch-lb torque wrench. I have a couple of drivers that I use with these bits too. I often use these instead of a dedicated Allen wrench for performing the initial tightening of a fastener.

All I'm trying to do is correctly torque down the bolts and bushings on my rear suss linkages.

Can you tell us the torque values? That 3/8" drive wrench will probably be suitable, but one of my full suspension bikes has a pair of fasteners which are supposed to be torqued to only 33 inch-lb. IMO, it's better to use a lower range torque wrench on such a fastener.

While I'm at it, I figure I can now correctly torque down cranks and everything else.

Yep, the torque wrench you have in mind is great for cranks and bottom brackets.

 

[KevinB]

Now that I've done a little reading, I'm going with:

TW5

http://www.hucknroll.com/mountainbike/Park-Tool-Ratcheting-Torque-Wrench/PAR0137M.html

I'm not fond of "clicker" style wrenches because it can sometimes be hard to feel or hear the click, especially when working with low torque values. That happened to me one time when I was working on a fork. The first click I heard was that of the part breaking. Since that time, I've only used torque wrenches that have some sort of visual indication of the current torque value.

That said, I have no experience with the wrench in question. It might have a loud, positive click that can be easily heard and felt regardless of torque value. If so, it should be fine.

Bit set

http://www.hucknroll.com/mountainbike/Park-Tool-Socket-and-Bit-Set-SBS-1/PAR0138M.html

Those look nice.

 

[drexlerkm]

Thanks for the thoughtful replies, Kevin.

I think what I may do is get the TW1 (1/4" 0-60in/lbs) and TW2 (3/8" 0-600in/lbs) and the Park Tool bit and socket set. That's almost cheaper than the TW5 alone.

Maybe just the TW2... I don't have many sensitive carbon bits that need super precise low torquing.

I think my suspension linkages are around 85in/lbs?

I hope that socket and bit set fits the TW2.

 

[KevinB]

I think what I may do is get the TW1 (1/4" 0-60in/lbs) and TW2 (3/8" 0-600in/lbs) and the Park Tool bit and socket set. That's almost cheaper than the TW5 alone.

Maybe just the TW2... I don't have many sensitive carbon bits that need super precise low torquing.

I think my suspension linkages are around 85in/lbs?

I hope that socket and bit set fits the TW2.

Here's a picture of the Park TW2, taken from Park's web site:

It's kind of hard to see, but it looks to me as though the labeled markings are in increments of 50 inch-lbs, with a single division in between those with labels. If I'm correct, that means it's graduated in 25 inch-lb increments. So, to torque to 85 in-lbs, you'd want go a tad over the mark for 75. Notice though that this is only three graduations in. So, for this wrench, 75 (or 85) is a fairly low torque value. Still, this wrench will allow you to get in the ballpark.

The bit set that you linked earlier is 3/8" drive, so it will work with the Park TM-2.

Lastly, a note about torque units: Torque is computed by multiplying the force applied orthogonal to a lever arm by the length of that lever arm. So, if you're applying 9 lbs of force to a lever arm of 3 inches in length, that would be 9 lbs * 3 inches or 27 lbs * inches, which, by commutativity, is 27 inch * lbs. I usually write something like 27 inch-lbs in my posts here, where the hyphen stands not for subtraction, but for multiplication. It would be better to use a raised dot, but I don't have such a key on my keyboard. It is not correct to specify torque as inch/lb or lb/inch, both of which imply that division is used. I frequently see torque units listed this way. It's not that big a deal because I know what's intended, but it still bugs me every time I see it.

 

[archer]

Most wrenches don't work well for below about 15-20 inch pounds.
Thats most of your small fasteners.
You probably need a small and large wrench as has been mentioned the suspension usually requires the larger torque values.

As far as bit sets go, I prefer Craftsman simply because of the ease of replacement if required.

 

[One Pivot]

theres a lot of misconception about torque wrenches.. especially clickers!

you can get an inch OUNCE clicker torque wrench! if you ever thought you need to torque something to a fraction of an inch pound, you can, and theres a torque wrench to do so accurately, and its a clicker

what typically happens is someone gets something like a craftsman 3/8th 0-100 ft/lbs clicker wrench (a hideously inaccurate tool to begin with) and sets it to 5 ft/lbs.. and snap! bolt breaks in half. what happened wasnt a result of using a clicker, its the result of improper usage. clickers can only be used at 20-100% of their range! that means that 0-100 ft/lbs wrench can torque, at the lowest, 20 ft/lbs!

if you had that same 5 ft/lbs bolt, and a clicker with a range of 0-100 in/lbs, you're good to go and that bolt will be tightened appropriately and accurately. right tool for the job.

for bikes, clickers are usually too expensive to be really practical when bending beams are so cheap and available.. but theres nothing inherently wrong or inaccurate about clickers besides user error.

 

[drexlerkm]

OK, I keep wavering..

Can't decide whether to get the TW1 and TW2, or just the TW5.

The TW5 is the clicker, but goes from 26-132.

If I get both the TW1 and TW2, I will have 0-60 and 0-600.

I could have sworn one of my linkages asks for 300inch/lbs. I'll have to wait and go home to check.

 

[Carraig042]

For general use, I have a Craftsman Torque Wrench. It does a good job and the click it really noticeable. If you need 300in/lbs, you can get a ft/lb wrench and convert.

-Brett

 

[KevinB]

Can't decide whether to get the TW1 and TW2, or just the TW5.

The TW5 is the clicker, but goes from 26-132.

If I get both the TW1 and TW2, I will have 0-60 and 0-600.

I'd go with the TW-1 and the TW-2. The TW-1 will give you the ability to accurately torque your rotor bolts (which usually require a torque of 55 inch-lbs) or a Thomson Stem (which requires 48 inch-lbs). You do not want to over-torque stem bolts; doing so can lead to a cracked stem.

The one problem with the TW-1 is that the bits and sockets from the SBS-1 will not fit it directly. You'll either need an adapter or another bit set for 1/4" drivers. (I have two sets of bits; one for the 3/8" drivers and another set for the 1/4" tools.

 

[savagemann]

Thanks for the thoughtful replies, Kevin.

I think what I may do is get the TW1 (1/4" 0-60in/lbs) and TW2 (3/8" 0-600in/lbs) and the Park Tool bit and socket set. That's almost cheaper than the TW5 alone.

This is what I recommend to do 100%
Thats the combo I use everyday, and they work fine.
Trust me, you will want the TW1 too. Although I only use mine half as much as the TW2, I still use it alot.

 

[rallyraid]

There's no need to buy torque wrenches from Park Tools. They market it as bike specific and charge extra, but it's just a torque wrench. Buy one for general use and save money.

Husky clickers are pretty decent. Available at Home Depot.

 

[4slomo]

I have three clicker type torque wrenches. Each has a range with a lower and a higher limit. Snap-On 10-50 in-lb, Snap-On 40-200 in-lb, Craftsman 10-150 ft-lb. I use each within their respective ranges. Oh, and I did get the Craftsman rebuilt with a Snap-On head when the Craftsman head wore out.

 

[92gli]

http://www.craftsman.com/shc/s/p_10...ipment&cName=Hand+Tools&keyword=torque+wrench

 

[23mjm]

I second looking at Craftsman. I own 3 torque wrenches 2 Craftsman and 1 Snap-On. The Craftsman wrenches are very good and accurate. About 2 years ago I had all 3 of my wrenches calibrated and they all were with in spec. 1 of my Craftsman was 10 years old and never calibrated--it was just fine. One thing about clicker wrenches, you have to take care of them, after using back the adjustment off all the way-never leave them with a setting.But I would not spend the extra money on a Park wrench, all the shops I have worked at all had Craftsman wrenches--nobody paid extra for the Parks--Hell the park wrenches are probably made the same place as the Craftsman.

 

[bad mechanic]

Personally, I own three torque wrenches, and I plan to add a fourth (for really BIG stuff). Like One Pivot said, a clicker becomes increasingly inaccurate below 20%. I'd recommend buying at least two wrenches, along with a set of hex bits.

 

[wv_bob]

One thing about clicker wrenches, you have to take care of them, after using back the adjustment off all the way-never leave them with a setting.

Gotta be careful to not drop them too, I dropped my in/lb Craftsman and it hit just right, so no click no more. Probably would cost more to fix it than to replace it. :madman:

 

[One Pivot]

craftsman clickers really are pretty bad. ive compared new ones to freshly calibrated high end wrenches and its just appalling. my CDI would click at 75 ft/lbs and the torque would be something like 75.9 ft/lbs (verified by the machine and calibration report.. 15-75 ft/lbs settings were no more than 1 ft/lbs off. nice!). set the craftsman to 75, clicked.. 80, clicked.. 90, clicked. 100, clicked.. finally turned the bolt a little more at 115! thats really bad.

you gotta pay up for the good stuff. KD/gearwrench/matco clickers are about 100 bucks, cdis are my favorite currently at about 125-175 bucks, sk's are good at about 100-150, thats kind of a lot for a bicycle when a couple beams for cheap will get the job done accurately.

craftsman torque wrenches are alright for tightening down lugnuts on your car.

 

[AL29er]

The park TW-5 is a pile. Only thing I like about it is that it is small, so it fits nicely into a tool box
I feel the same about most bike specific torque wrenches. The are just cheap tools. If I wanted cheap tools I would march over to Harbor Freight and buy them there for cheap prices.

You can grab a low range in-lb and a mid range ft-lb pair from HF for about $50. Ratcheting clickers are a lot quicker and easier to use since you don't have to reposition the wrench and you don't have to see the dial. That is particularly useful on bikes with bolts in every manner of orientation.

Personally I wouldn't sweat the accuracy too much. I don't deal with carbon though. Steel an aluminum can usually handle any over-torque due to tolerance issues of a cheap wrench. Only time I break stuff is when I don't use one