Torque Wrench Questions

[MarkJ]

Hi guys, I need your advice on torque wrenches.

Basically I need one for day-to-day mainenance tasks on my Hornet 600 (rear axel bolt, spark plugs etc.), the lowest ratings in my haynes manual is 9Nm for the drive chain slider bolts and 5Nm for the carburettor stud nuts.

I've seen a lot of torque wrenches that start at 10Nm, will these be OK? Or should I get one that starts at 0Nm? All the wrenches seem to be around 20-30 quid. They'd work with a normal socket-set wouldn't they (ones with square ends)? Or should I get two: one for 10Nm+ and one from 0Nm?


Nm stands for Newton-meters, doesn't it?

Cheers guys (Sorry, there's a lot of questions )

[fuzz]

Mine goes from 28Nm to 200Nm, and it's fine for everything I do. 5Nm isn't that tight really. Anything under the scale on my wrench I do up as tight as I can with a normal wrench. The only time you need to be torquing to the right value is when there are bearings behind the nut/bolt, and on things like brake mount bolts. These are usually above 30Nm anyway. My torque wrench cost about £16. Spark plugs are best done by feeling when they are tight. You might be worried at first that it's not tight enough/too tight, I was, but believe me, you know when it's right.
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Bikes: '99 NSR125R, '00 SV650S, K1 GSX-R600, '97 CB500, K3 SV1000S, '16 VFR800

[Cillit-BANG]

A torque wrench for £30 won't be accurate enough down to 5nm anyway so your far better 'feeling' those bolts home.

Mine was a Draper for £30 which does 20-80nm which does most jobs on a bike that require the proper torque.

They work with a normal socket set up, but check it's either 3/8" or 1/2" drive to make sure it's compatible with your sockets. I'd imagine you'd want a 3/8".

If your looking for a cheap one, I'd avoid one that does a massive range of settings, as it's likely to be far less accurate.

[BorderHooner]

torquers from halfords (in glass display cabinet) are excellent value and rate highly in surveys and reviews.
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Benelli. Happy as a pig in cacky.

[John C]

I've got 2 Norbar torque wrenches:

1 for 8-54Nm
1 for 40-250Nm.

You're looking at £40+ for a decent one as they're the torque wrench world equivilent of snap-on sockets.

[syl]

Another vote for Halfords (professional range). £50-60 each but worth it. I have 2, one is 8 - 60 Nm and the other is 60-300 Nm. They also make a 40 - 200 Nm but i didn't see the point in getting that. Standard sockets work with them - but check which size they are (1/4, 3/8 or 1/2 " drive) and which size sockets you already have.
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Current bike: Kawasaki Z750S

[0ddball]

Avoid the Clarke ones, i've gone though literaly about a dozen of them. Poor quality, poorly calibrated and if it isn't already broken when you buy it as many are, it soon will be.

Yet another vote for the Hafords pro one. My current one is serving me well.

[Finglonga]

[MarkJ]

Cheers guys

[divuk83]

Got a large Teng one and a smaller Norbar one. Teng one is huge and does 40-210nm upwards, other smaller one does 8-54nm. Better to get two than to try and get one that covers the whole range of torque settings. Make sure to get one thats the same size as all your existing sockets etc!

Dave

[Radnor]

Another vote for avoiding cheap torque wrenches

When it does turn out to be miles out of calibration you'll have done more damage than the extra £20-£30 for a decent one would have cost you

From my own experience

[jay12329]

Most of the bolts on may hornet arnt torqued with a special rench. I have a halfords one which is good. But doesnt cover the whole range.
Rear axel nut is done up "tight" and the wheel adjuster nuts are just done so they wont move.
HTH
J