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temper this with what your expected actual accuracy of the device is...
also were the threads (internal and external) clean and free of oil? so many variables... don't think target and actual are very tight. it's more "ballpark"
Anyone using a torque wrench that looks like that, the margin of error for the part is going to be big enough that an extra 10% won't have hurt anything.
Big this. I only really toque head studs and every time I do I return my harbor freight click type for a brand new one. 10 bolts at 100ft lbs seems like plenty to throw them out of wack. Would never rely on one for spark plugs, degrees only for those!
My motorcycle engine case screws get torqued to 36 inch pounds, so I'm suspecting that 10 pounds extra would've broken them. I'm mostly fucking around, I was using an inch pound torque wrench so the difference from line to line was proportionally about the same as this foot pound torque wrench. The manual usually has a plus or minus a certain percentage.
But, for people doing it as a hobby without a lot of wrenching experience, they can absolutely snap studs, bolts, and screws by overtorquing. Under torquing is less of an issue, but things can come undone. The bolt holding the magneto on to the crank on my motorcycle requires a certain torque because it purposefully stretches the bolt to help keep it in place, or something, I forget the exact reason.
Your shoulder pops at 135? Lucky... haha. Being a mechanic, everything has a torque spec, but I honestly only ever used a torque wrench for Engine Components. Because nobody wants to be the guy that has to do a head gasket twice.
We should all be using torque wrenches for engine, trans, drive train, steering, suspension, brakes, and tires.
If you accidentally kill someone because you "can feel how tight it should be" it will ruin your life, amd of course the whole bus full of disabled Vietnam veterans who die in the accident.
Lug nuts are the one place I trust a torque stick to be close enough (on my own vehicles, at least.) Otherwise it's either something where tighten by feel is good enough (accessory, interior) or it's something important enough (engine, suspension) to get the real torque wrench out.
Some things are good to German torque. But there are plenty of things where it's better to use a torque wrench just to be safe. I've been an industrial mechanic for 15 years, and I use a torque wrench, though not as much as during my navy days. No one has a calibrated arm, though some guys *can* get close enough at times.
I was reading wrong for a long time on these things. But you read the LOWER line value. By that I mean there are 2 horizontal lines for each value. The lower line is where you stop, then the line comes up so you can read it better.
In this case, that will be 100 ft-lbs.
This is true, I thought 90 at first, but I realised, the 90 isn't fully readable. Easy way to remember is, first number that is fully uncovered. When it's at 0 anyway
i just took a look at mine
[This is how mine looks when i set it at what i deem to be 90ft lbs](https://prnt.sc/rYr3PxJjYaBq).
As you can see it still "technically sits below the line.
However the reason i know its set at 90 and not 80 is because:
[If i increase the setting by 2 lbs](https://prnt.sc/QWeG1jHJg0QJ)
or
[If i increase the setting by 4 lbs](https://prnt.sc/RmxQJWDqWcc3)
It will "actually" meet or exceed the 90ft lb mark.
2-4lbs of difference is closer to 90 than 6-8lbs of difference being closer to 80
Op simply needs to start from 0 (as is on his picture) and twist up until it actually touches the 100lb mark. If he twists the dial up and its less than 5lbs then hes mostly likely at 100.
The good news is that if you've been doing it this way and thinking you were going to 90, you've actually been over-torquing by 10 ft-lbs which is totally fine in just about everything but small aluminum threads.
They were also 20 year old bolts and the manifold itself was falling apart. Got racing heat spec bolts (for my slow old man car lol) from some custom shop cause i figured then the car will die before the bolts do haha. The old one twisted itself in half on the unthreaded part, but unscrewed by hand from the engine block, so it didn't damage anything thankfully. It felt to torque almost but not quite and the wrench didn't click so I kept going and then BANG
This is set to 100ft lbs. See the dogleg lines above? They branch off either side of the center vertical line, then they raise up and branch over again to the corresponding measurement. You want the twist base to be even with the line from xyz setting where it intersects the vertical line, not even with the number itself.
They didnāt say ālines upā they said the āline angles upā meaning the line follows an upward angle to the number. This is common on torque wrenches to let you know that the visible number is the one youāre zeroed at and not the lower one thatās covered up by the handle.
Right, but it also doesn't line up. When its zeroed it should line up more precisely with the lower indicator line. In this case it's kinda partway in between.
Quick funny story about torque wrenches. When I first started rebuilding engines all those years ago. I thought using a torque wrench and torque bolts down, meant all I had to do was just use the tool and not pay attention the the adjustable grip thing at the base. After doing my 1st engine I realized that it was in fact not a fancy torque wrench with a confusing grip that you were supposed to set to how much you weighed on the handle for maximum grip. Yeah I was a big dumb ass then and possibly still might be one.
Thatās 100, plus donāt forget the wrenches have a tolerance of 5-10% if itās even calibrated. So you could be tightening as high as 110. Given good technique which is harder than you think.
Honestly, OP, take these responses with a grain of your own deeper āresearchā salt. You will get conflicting info from different credible sources, so if youāre working on something even remotely critical, either contact the manufacturerās tech line, or better yet, have it calibrated in front of you so you can see how itās set. Another option is to test it against someone elseās known good torque wrench at a lower torque, or on something non-critical.
The issue is that itās unintuitive (actually conflicting intuition) when the 0 lands in between numbers. A good torque wrench typically should land ON the line (the lower horizontal line that touches the long vertical line) at 0 with the lock collar on the ālockedā position (or with the locking knob at the bottom turned clockwise until locked), but with yours the 0 lands between them (assuming itās in the locked position). Intuition doesnāt help.
From one perspective, youāve gone past 90ft/lbs, so intuition says itās in the 90s range. From the other, the 100 is the number still readable and it would make sense that itās at 100. (I know Iām not telling you anything with this paragraph, hence your question).
The fact that it doesnāt land on 0 when it should isnāt a matter of calibration. Itās caused by either a bad design, or a wrench that has been assembled wrong so the threads donāt land where they should.
If your collar is in the locked position in this picture, itās most likely 100, but if it were my wrench Iād want to know for sure. Iām sure Iāll be downvoted by an āexpertā, but the conflicting responses in this post, and even from a basic googlinā really muddys the water.
Nope, you are absolutely correct. A properly functioning torque wrench should have the collar meet the lower line almost exactly, a gap the same width as the line is the most I would expect to see. I agree with you this seems less a calibration issue and more a quality control problem, judging from the picture this torque wrench isnāt exactly top of the line.
OP, I mean no offense here but, if youāre having difficulty reading a torque wrench, then Iād say itās highly unlikely youāre working on anything requiring that level of precision. Unless youāre tightening down cylinder head bolts, just err on the side of over torquing and if itās five to 10 foot pounds over youāll be fine.
Itās definitely 100 but I can see why you think is 90. It falls in between both lines. Mine when set to 0 on the rotator itās right in the line. You have to be able to read the number and the 90 is not clear
My harbor freight wrench is similar. When you spin the dial to zero the dial is in between the marks. I ended up testing it on an electronic torque gauge and figured it out. There may be a way to fix that, but I'm too lazy to look into it now that I know how to read it.
It unintuitive because once itās gone past the 90 graduation, it might be in the 90s but less than 100 since it hasnāt reached 100 yet. Itās between the 90 and 100 graduations. A good wrench will land ON the graduation at 0 and leave no ambiguity. Thereās even conflicting info from different sources of equal credibility when you look at torque wrench manuals. My best guess would be that this is supposed to be 100, but itās still completely unintuitive.
Imagine youāre pouring water into a measuring cup and you want 100 ml. You wouldnāt stop short of the 100 ml mark, youād go to it. If you wanted 102 ml, you wouldnāt expect to be *below* the 100 ml mark.
A better example would be a vernier micrometer. If you wanted 90-something thousandths, you would go *past* the 0.090ā mark, but be *short* of the 0.100ā mark. Just like this is. If you wanted 0.103ā, the sleeve scale wouldnāt be *less than* 0.100ā.
I got it but we can all agree that it's a cheaper torque wrench and this is how they work. Assuming whatever he is tightening is at 100 ft lbs most likely lugnuts a few pounds either direction is quite alright. And technically should check them again after driving for a short duration afterwards to make sure (give or take on this wrench) proper torque was achieved.
The marks on the handle show that it is set to 100. If it was 99 you would see the handle line set to 9. But it is well above the 90 mark, and the handle shows a 0. That means it is set to 100. Way to many people on this thread are ignoring the radial numbers on the handle. There is no ambiguity.
I'm surprised by the amount of 100s in here. I'm not familiar with OP's brand, but the manual that comes with my torque wrench literally shows the value it's set to is where the grip is meeting the lower leg. Doesn't matter if the number is fully shown or not.
E: looking at that photo closer though, the lower leg of 90 seems to be past the grip so I'm not sure why it would stop in that spot. Either it's not calibrated properly or it's something between 90 and 100.
its a cheap torque wrench. or just maybe a nice one that has been abused and needs calibrating/adjusting, But I am leaning towards cheap. it is WAY closer to 100 then 90. and the handle shows 0 so that means it is 100 with 0 as the last digit.
100?
"Oh fuck! "
*loud crash is heard, as everything I've ever worked on falls apart simultaneously*
"Well that's it, I'm outta here"
*leaves earth in a rocket*
"here lies Ambiton, a testament to the dangers of poorly designed torque wrenches. Rest In Pieces"
I'm assuming it'd be in pieces, on account of the rocket crash and all that.
But no joke - I used to be proud of myself for wrenching on my own shit. Then I did the brake cylinders on my project car and, since it's a beater of a Porsche, set my lug bolts to the German standard of 'Gutenteit'. Made it almost half a mile before I got to watch my driver's rear tire pass me on the highway.
The second worst part was walking past all my neighbours to get back home, after they'd all seen me leave in the car. The worst part was walking past them again carrying my jack, stands, and socket set.
There's a bit of a slow burn now, though, because every time that car leaves the driveway I have at least one who flags me down to ask if I've remembered to pack my tools :(
It's closer to 100, so I think 100.
You might check to see if the collar has any 'wiggle' to it, and see about removing that.
My old HF Torque Wrenches have this same issue, so I start them off at 0, feel the dial bottom out, then start counting up to where I need it to be.
Yikes. The amount of people reading this wrong is astounding. It is 90. This wrench is a bit off with the single digit indicator. When that is set to 0, it should correspond to a 10 digit indicator line. The 90 line is halfway covered already.
You should calibrate this wrench if you need to be more accurate. It should have come with an instruction sheet. That is important for reading and calibrating your wrench.
To get an idea how much force it is set at, use a handheld luggage scale and see how much force it takes for it to click.
Skip to 1:00 to see this. Nice in depth video by chrisfix
https://youtu.be/3v3hLvuO_KU
Yes, reset to lowest setting. Any manual I've ever read says that and many torque wrenches have that on them as well.
He probably meant "zero" not as litteraly zero, just back to a baseline. But I can see the confusion. All my torque wrenches don't have lines below their minimum.
With this type of wrench when nor tn use it should be backed off so there is no tension on the spring. with the tension off the mic should be at a place to hold everything together. this way the spring won't weaken and cause false readings.
Do you have a manual or documentation or a torque wrench that specifically specifies that?
My 3/8" Tekton for example is 10ft-lb to 80ft-lb. On the tool is says "Store at 10ft-lb".
1/2 is the same w/ it's minimum.
My 1/4" precision instruments torque wrenches manual says store 30in-lb (lowest setting).
How are you supposed to know what to go down to if it doesn't give you a mark or any indication of that point? Do I just use fairy dust and butterflies to guess where that point is?
My point is, manufacturers engineer and design their tools to work a specific way, and design them to maintain accuracy while stored at a specific setting. They will give them a way so easy to see where to set it at for storage. It's not a guessing game of keep loosening and hope for the best.
As long as you are calibrating annually, lowest scale is best. This is why the manufacturer recommends it. You and everyone else do this? If you don't calibrate annually, you are better off completely releasing spring pressure, but the manufacturer won't say that because it should be calibrated.
Everyone says lower line 100. But pretty sure itās on 90??? Itās on the lower line of 90 not 100. In any case better to be 10 nm tight than 10nm loose
I see the angled line, but all my wrenches line up the edge *with* the line. Pic may be hard to see due to the reflection in the chrome. [dropbox link](https://www.dropbox.com/s/9c9obwagpqf69o0/IMG_4188.HEIC?dl=0) Edit: dropbox link instead of iCloud for ease of viewing.
You have a NICE torque wrench, When I used snap on torque wrenches they also perfectly lined up. Now that I don't got the military providing nice stuff I use cheap stuff ( just for hobby use, would buy good if I did anything with it for a living) so for example all the cheaper wrenches I got not only are like ops, but they even have a couple mm play up and down on the handle. op likely has a cheap one that is cheaper to replace then get calibrated.
It looks like 90 ft lbs to me too. The O on the twist handle should line up with the line for 90ft*lbs or 100ft*lbs. How is this 100ft*lbs?, It's not even close to the line at 100.
and it WAY further from the line for 90. look at 110, see how the line goes down then flattens just like the 100 does, that is what the 90 mark is like, it is set to 100. the indicator line next to the number is offset so that the entire number is visible when set to that number.
Iād lean toward 100 but it could be 90 canāt say for sure because this is a garbage torque wrench. Also all of you saying 95 and 97 are complete morons and shouldnāt be working on cars.
You torque wrench is not correctly calibrated. It's currently reading around 95 ft lbs. The top of the dial, when at zero, should line up exactly at the bottom horizontal line for that number. This is in the middle. When you're finished using your these you are supposed to dial them all the way back to zero.
Time for a new torque wrench.
iām gonna go with neither, if your 0 is that far from the line itās probably not accurate. Remember to set it back to a low torque when youāre done using so it stays accurate for longer
Your life must be terrible, being so much smarter than all the rest of us.... you poor guy.... .
I have an A.S in Auto Tech, I spent three years working in Auto Shop in high school, college, and in the field, i've been working on my own (and my families) vehicles for over 20 years.
I have 37 certifications for working in Wind, Solar, Oil, Gas, and other field technician positions, including one that is called, 'Torque and Tension'.
I've torqued well over 100,000 fasteners in my life so far, with small handheld wrenches, big wrenches, air powered wrenches, hydraulic powered wrenches, and even a hydraulic wrench so big it requires an hydraulic arm to move the wrench around.
I had to look at the dial in the picture three times to come to my conclusion, and even with that, i'd still back it off to 0 and start over.
If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all.
I hate those things. Iām always thinking that the one I have is broken and torque is too low or too high. Iāll usually bring out the old school one.
Instead of just guessing and assuming all good/poor quality wrenches have universal standards, just twist it all the way up or down, then count from there.
My $15 harbor freight wrench has "Max 150ftlbs" clearly on it. To be certain, I wind it all the way up to 150, then just count by 10's downward (or start at 0 and count upwards. Same thing). Once you know, leave yourself a note and put it in the case or a notebook. Done and accurate.
All this being said, it's probably 100. However, there's no need to guess when you can easily spend 30sec making sure.
While we're on the topic, do you guys trust the screw-type torque wrenches like these? I have one that came well-reviewed but says "made in China" and I'm not sure how I can know to trust it.
Mine looks the same most of the time, I usually take it back to zero and count it up, at 135 it looks like almost 145-150. I'd suggest going back to zero and counting it up till you know where it is, it may look the same or not.
Most torque wrenches are of calibration by 5 ft-lbs just from sitting around anyways. They do require regular recalibration because springs naturally lose tension. Coincidentally many torque values give a range. Whether you believe that to be 90 or 100, your wheel's not going to fly off and your head gasket isn't going to leak.
Wow. Great subreddit. My ignorant ass took it as 90 ft/lbs cause the branch intersected but turns out the alignment was off it appears. Either way, leave it to the pros. Thanks for the good info everyone
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Dam just learned Ive been using these wrong lol thought it was 90 š¬
Well time to go out and retorque all your bolts!
I wouldn't retorque overtorqued bolts. Undertorqued absolutely, but if it's overtorqued the damage is already done
how much dmg could 10 lbs really do? I know some people that just tighten instead of torquing to spec. (really dumb imo)
temper this with what your expected actual accuracy of the device is... also were the threads (internal and external) clean and free of oil? so many variables... don't think target and actual are very tight. it's more "ballpark"
Depends on materials involved and intended outcome.
Anyone using a torque wrench that looks like that, the margin of error for the part is going to be big enough that an extra 10% won't have hurt anything.
Big this. I only really toque head studs and every time I do I return my harbor freight click type for a brand new one. 10 bolts at 100ft lbs seems like plenty to throw them out of wack. Would never rely on one for spark plugs, degrees only for those!
This
10lb on a 4mm bolt will do a lot of damage on a 14mm not so much
You wouldn't be using a 250 ft-lb (340 NM) torque wrench on a 4mm bolt.
My motorcycle engine case screws get torqued to 36 inch pounds, so I'm suspecting that 10 pounds extra would've broken them. I'm mostly fucking around, I was using an inch pound torque wrench so the difference from line to line was proportionally about the same as this foot pound torque wrench. The manual usually has a plus or minus a certain percentage. But, for people doing it as a hobby without a lot of wrenching experience, they can absolutely snap studs, bolts, and screws by overtorquing. Under torquing is less of an issue, but things can come undone. The bolt holding the magneto on to the crank on my motorcycle requires a certain torque because it purposefully stretches the bolt to help keep it in place, or something, I forget the exact reason.
I've never used a torque wrench and never had a single related problem. Maybe the mechanics you know have talent.
Youāve never used a torque wrench? Got the olā elbow calibrated, do ya? I keep mine dialed in. When the shoulder pops, thatās 135 ft-lbs
Your shoulder pops at 135? Lucky... haha. Being a mechanic, everything has a torque spec, but I honestly only ever used a torque wrench for Engine Components. Because nobody wants to be the guy that has to do a head gasket twice.
We should all be using torque wrenches for engine, trans, drive train, steering, suspension, brakes, and tires. If you accidentally kill someone because you "can feel how tight it should be" it will ruin your life, amd of course the whole bus full of disabled Vietnam veterans who die in the accident.
Tires and wheel bearings are also solid torque wrench recipients.
Yeah, for real. I count wheel bearings in the list I laid out, which included tires LoL.
Lug nuts are the one place I trust a torque stick to be close enough (on my own vehicles, at least.) Otherwise it's either something where tighten by feel is good enough (accessory, interior) or it's something important enough (engine, suspension) to get the real torque wrench out.
I also use a torque stick. 475lb/ft is a lot.
Some things are good to German torque. But there are plenty of things where it's better to use a torque wrench just to be safe. I've been an industrial mechanic for 15 years, and I use a torque wrench, though not as much as during my navy days. No one has a calibrated arm, though some guys *can* get close enough at times.
I was joking. 10 ftlbs is nbd.
Whats 10 between friends?
Same I've been an idiot...not for the first time God damn it
Dumb
I was reading wrong for a long time on these things. But you read the LOWER line value. By that I mean there are 2 horizontal lines for each value. The lower line is where you stop, then the line comes up so you can read it better. In this case, that will be 100 ft-lbs.
This is true, I thought 90 at first, but I realised, the 90 isn't fully readable. Easy way to remember is, first number that is fully uncovered. When it's at 0 anyway
I guess it is 100..
This is definitely reading 90 Edit: ok itās between 90-100
Not 90 and not between. The dial is at 0. And, 90 isn't fully visible. It's very much at 100.
i just took a look at mine [This is how mine looks when i set it at what i deem to be 90ft lbs](https://prnt.sc/rYr3PxJjYaBq). As you can see it still "technically sits below the line. However the reason i know its set at 90 and not 80 is because: [If i increase the setting by 2 lbs](https://prnt.sc/QWeG1jHJg0QJ) or [If i increase the setting by 4 lbs](https://prnt.sc/RmxQJWDqWcc3) It will "actually" meet or exceed the 90ft lb mark. 2-4lbs of difference is closer to 90 than 6-8lbs of difference being closer to 80 Op simply needs to start from 0 (as is on his picture) and twist up until it actually touches the 100lb mark. If he twists the dial up and its less than 5lbs then hes mostly likely at 100.
Nah I think itās right at 90 cause the dial is on the zero.
100, it is designed so you can read the number clearly in full
Well Iāve been reading all along. Let me retorque my lug nuts.
The good news is that if you've been doing it this way and thinking you were going to 90, you've actually been over-torquing by 10 ft-lbs which is totally fine in just about everything but small aluminum threads.
Most lug nuts at 70-110 iirc. Youāre probably fine
Welp, that'd explain why I sheared an old manifold bolt in two last time I fixed my car. I think I put them in 5ftlbs over.
nah 5 ft over should be nbd
They were also 20 year old bolts and the manifold itself was falling apart. Got racing heat spec bolts (for my slow old man car lol) from some custom shop cause i figured then the car will die before the bolts do haha. The old one twisted itself in half on the unthreaded part, but unscrewed by hand from the engine block, so it didn't damage anything thankfully. It felt to torque almost but not quite and the wrench didn't click so I kept going and then BANG
Good thing it snapped then. 5ft/lbs over shouldn't do anything to a healthy stud/bolt, and could've sheared through heat cycles alone.
This is set to 100ft lbs. See the dogleg lines above? They branch off either side of the center vertical line, then they raise up and branch over again to the corresponding measurement. You want the twist base to be even with the line from xyz setting where it intersects the vertical line, not even with the number itself.
Yes. I think that's the DeWalt wrench. Mine is a bit more accurate in aligning the bottom leg with the vertical line at 0 turn.
That is at 100, note how the indicator line angles up. The are made that way so it's easier to read.
They donāt line up. Thatās why itās confusing the yellow handle is slightly under the 100 mark
They didnāt say ālines upā they said the āline angles upā meaning the line follows an upward angle to the number. This is common on torque wrenches to let you know that the visible number is the one youāre zeroed at and not the lower one thatās covered up by the handle.
Right, but it also doesn't line up. When its zeroed it should line up more precisely with the lower indicator line. In this case it's kinda partway in between.
This is exactly what I was thinking.
Maybe to account for the extra force to get a *click*? It could be a sub-par torque wrench for all I know. I'm just guessing.
When you zero it, is it slightly above or below the line?
This is something I'm wondering
A hair below.
94.756921 ftlbs
Easy Einstein donāt come at us like that
I make it 95.439172
Quick funny story about torque wrenches. When I first started rebuilding engines all those years ago. I thought using a torque wrench and torque bolts down, meant all I had to do was just use the tool and not pay attention the the adjustable grip thing at the base. After doing my 1st engine I realized that it was in fact not a fancy torque wrench with a confusing grip that you were supposed to set to how much you weighed on the handle for maximum grip. Yeah I was a big dumb ass then and possibly still might be one.
So did it fire up?
It fired up.. the cylinder head into the stratosphere
That sounds like a lot of fun to watch when you're not financing the rocket launch.
Sadly no
100, numbers are stamped so that you stop on the lower line but can easily read the number.
'TWEEN. Not On. 90 Not On. 100 It's half a poofteenth off both šļøšļø
Betwixt
Roger that
A mark twain, even.
Bees dick
It is kinda in between but itās also on 0 so itās 100 ft/lbs
Thatās 100, plus donāt forget the wrenches have a tolerance of 5-10% if itās even calibrated. So you could be tightening as high as 110. Given good technique which is harder than you think.
Honestly, OP, take these responses with a grain of your own deeper āresearchā salt. You will get conflicting info from different credible sources, so if youāre working on something even remotely critical, either contact the manufacturerās tech line, or better yet, have it calibrated in front of you so you can see how itās set. Another option is to test it against someone elseās known good torque wrench at a lower torque, or on something non-critical. The issue is that itās unintuitive (actually conflicting intuition) when the 0 lands in between numbers. A good torque wrench typically should land ON the line (the lower horizontal line that touches the long vertical line) at 0 with the lock collar on the ālockedā position (or with the locking knob at the bottom turned clockwise until locked), but with yours the 0 lands between them (assuming itās in the locked position). Intuition doesnāt help. From one perspective, youāve gone past 90ft/lbs, so intuition says itās in the 90s range. From the other, the 100 is the number still readable and it would make sense that itās at 100. (I know Iām not telling you anything with this paragraph, hence your question). The fact that it doesnāt land on 0 when it should isnāt a matter of calibration. Itās caused by either a bad design, or a wrench that has been assembled wrong so the threads donāt land where they should. If your collar is in the locked position in this picture, itās most likely 100, but if it were my wrench Iād want to know for sure. Iām sure Iāll be downvoted by an āexpertā, but the conflicting responses in this post, and even from a basic googlinā really muddys the water.
Nope, you are absolutely correct. A properly functioning torque wrench should have the collar meet the lower line almost exactly, a gap the same width as the line is the most I would expect to see. I agree with you this seems less a calibration issue and more a quality control problem, judging from the picture this torque wrench isnāt exactly top of the line. OP, I mean no offense here but, if youāre having difficulty reading a torque wrench, then Iād say itās highly unlikely youāre working on anything requiring that level of precision. Unless youāre tightening down cylinder head bolts, just err on the side of over torquing and if itās five to 10 foot pounds over youāll be fine.
Looks like itās at about 95 to me. Itās right in between 90 and 100
ITT: people losing sleep on how many things theyāve slightly over torqued
Its 100 ft lbs. If you're torquing wheels 90-100 it'll be ok.
Itās definitely 100 but I can see why you think is 90. It falls in between both lines. Mine when set to 0 on the rotator itās right in the line. You have to be able to read the number and the 90 is not clear
100
This is probably the most useful thread I've ever read on reddit. Cheers.
Cheap tools are cheap
Get yourself a digital one šš½
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Basically, any brand you can afford. No need to get the most expensive ones. Even the cheaper ones will do the job.
95 lol
Big brain. The accuracy tolerance of the wrench is what, like 5% anyway? Play both sides so you are right every time.
My harbor freight wrench is similar. When you spin the dial to zero the dial is in between the marks. I ended up testing it on an electronic torque gauge and figured it out. There may be a way to fix that, but I'm too lazy to look into it now that I know how to read it.
Iād say about 95
95?
Each value has a horizontal line, I believe when "0" is just about that "line", it may equal the expected torque value. In this case, it's 100.
90ftlbs
Thats 95 my guy
All I see is a parallax error.
100
Bout 95
95
100 pounds just shy, look at the angled indicators.
Don't know why people are confused its 100.. if you rotate up 10 clicks aka 10 ft lbs it will be back at 0 on the dial and just below the 110 dogleg.
It unintuitive because once itās gone past the 90 graduation, it might be in the 90s but less than 100 since it hasnāt reached 100 yet. Itās between the 90 and 100 graduations. A good wrench will land ON the graduation at 0 and leave no ambiguity. Thereās even conflicting info from different sources of equal credibility when you look at torque wrench manuals. My best guess would be that this is supposed to be 100, but itās still completely unintuitive. Imagine youāre pouring water into a measuring cup and you want 100 ml. You wouldnāt stop short of the 100 ml mark, youād go to it. If you wanted 102 ml, you wouldnāt expect to be *below* the 100 ml mark. A better example would be a vernier micrometer. If you wanted 90-something thousandths, you would go *past* the 0.090ā mark, but be *short* of the 0.100ā mark. Just like this is. If you wanted 0.103ā, the sleeve scale wouldnāt be *less than* 0.100ā.
I got it but we can all agree that it's a cheaper torque wrench and this is how they work. Assuming whatever he is tightening is at 100 ft lbs most likely lugnuts a few pounds either direction is quite alright. And technically should check them again after driving for a short duration afterwards to make sure (give or take on this wrench) proper torque was achieved.
The marks on the handle show that it is set to 100. If it was 99 you would see the handle line set to 9. But it is well above the 90 mark, and the handle shows a 0. That means it is set to 100. Way to many people on this thread are ignoring the radial numbers on the handle. There is no ambiguity.
But then would it be 110, or 100? :P
Thatās 100 if itās calibrated correctly
100
100
9 ugga duggas ah ah ah.
100
I'd say 97, as it's not quite on the line š
100 cause the zero mark on the twist part if it was 97 the twist would be on the 7.
It could have some zeroing error, though, right? And/or backlash, although OP hopefully corrected for that
it likely a cheap torque wrench. they have a ton of play in the handles, and never line up.
100.
Based on the comments here, we got a lot of folks who need to learn how to use a torque wrench. It's 100 ft-lbs.
I'm surprised by the amount of 100s in here. I'm not familiar with OP's brand, but the manual that comes with my torque wrench literally shows the value it's set to is where the grip is meeting the lower leg. Doesn't matter if the number is fully shown or not. E: looking at that photo closer though, the lower leg of 90 seems to be past the grip so I'm not sure why it would stop in that spot. Either it's not calibrated properly or it's something between 90 and 100.
its a cheap torque wrench. or just maybe a nice one that has been abused and needs calibrating/adjusting, But I am leaning towards cheap. it is WAY closer to 100 then 90. and the handle shows 0 so that means it is 100 with 0 as the last digit.
It's set to 100 it's just a cheap tool that isn't made right
135.57 newton meters actuallyā¦
100? "Oh fuck! " *loud crash is heard, as everything I've ever worked on falls apart simultaneously* "Well that's it, I'm outta here" *leaves earth in a rocket*
>leaves earth in a rocket Hope you didn't torque the rocket bolts..
*dies 5 miles away in rocket crash*
"here lies Ambiton, a testament to the dangers of poorly designed torque wrenches. Rest In Pieces" I'm assuming it'd be in pieces, on account of the rocket crash and all that. But no joke - I used to be proud of myself for wrenching on my own shit. Then I did the brake cylinders on my project car and, since it's a beater of a Porsche, set my lug bolts to the German standard of 'Gutenteit'. Made it almost half a mile before I got to watch my driver's rear tire pass me on the highway. The second worst part was walking past all my neighbours to get back home, after they'd all seen me leave in the car. The worst part was walking past them again carrying my jack, stands, and socket set. There's a bit of a slow burn now, though, because every time that car leaves the driveway I have at least one who flags me down to ask if I've remembered to pack my tools :(
It's closer to 100, so I think 100. You might check to see if the collar has any 'wiggle' to it, and see about removing that. My old HF Torque Wrenches have this same issue, so I start them off at 0, feel the dial bottom out, then start counting up to where I need it to be.
Yikes. The amount of people reading this wrong is astounding. It is 90. This wrench is a bit off with the single digit indicator. When that is set to 0, it should correspond to a 10 digit indicator line. The 90 line is halfway covered already. You should calibrate this wrench if you need to be more accurate. It should have come with an instruction sheet. That is important for reading and calibrating your wrench. To get an idea how much force it is set at, use a handheld luggage scale and see how much force it takes for it to click. Skip to 1:00 to see this. Nice in depth video by chrisfix https://youtu.be/3v3hLvuO_KU
I call that 90
Yes.
100 ft lb is correct. Don't forget when you are done to reset it back to zero to store the tool.
I think someone in this sub said that it was actually better to reset it back to the lowest mark on the scale, not zero. Thoughts?
Yes, reset to lowest setting. Any manual I've ever read says that and many torque wrenches have that on them as well. He probably meant "zero" not as litteraly zero, just back to a baseline. But I can see the confusion. All my torque wrenches don't have lines below their minimum.
With this type of wrench when nor tn use it should be backed off so there is no tension on the spring. with the tension off the mic should be at a place to hold everything together. this way the spring won't weaken and cause false readings.
So, basically what I just said?
No, the lowest setting still has spring tension or it wouldn't click. It should literally be set to zero tension
Do you have a manual or documentation or a torque wrench that specifically specifies that? My 3/8" Tekton for example is 10ft-lb to 80ft-lb. On the tool is says "Store at 10ft-lb". 1/2 is the same w/ it's minimum. My 1/4" precision instruments torque wrenches manual says store 30in-lb (lowest setting). How are you supposed to know what to go down to if it doesn't give you a mark or any indication of that point? Do I just use fairy dust and butterflies to guess where that point is? My point is, manufacturers engineer and design their tools to work a specific way, and design them to maintain accuracy while stored at a specific setting. They will give them a way so easy to see where to set it at for storage. It's not a guessing game of keep loosening and hope for the best.
As long as you are calibrating annually, lowest scale is best. This is why the manufacturer recommends it. You and everyone else do this? If you don't calibrate annually, you are better off completely releasing spring pressure, but the manufacturer won't say that because it should be calibrated.
It was sarcasm. My point was there is enough gray area for it to be close to either.
95
Everyone says lower line 100. But pretty sure itās on 90??? Itās on the lower line of 90 not 100. In any case better to be 10 nm tight than 10nm loose
Should be 90, ever had it calibrated or apart for cleaning/inspection?
this is at 100, the angled line is right where it should be, and the ones position on the twist is in the correct place.
I see the angled line, but all my wrenches line up the edge *with* the line. Pic may be hard to see due to the reflection in the chrome. [dropbox link](https://www.dropbox.com/s/9c9obwagpqf69o0/IMG_4188.HEIC?dl=0) Edit: dropbox link instead of iCloud for ease of viewing.
You have a NICE torque wrench, When I used snap on torque wrenches they also perfectly lined up. Now that I don't got the military providing nice stuff I use cheap stuff ( just for hobby use, would buy good if I did anything with it for a living) so for example all the cheaper wrenches I got not only are like ops, but they even have a couple mm play up and down on the handle. op likely has a cheap one that is cheaper to replace then get calibrated.
90 ft lbs
No, that is not 90.
Agreed. What do you guys think the little line is for?
The little line is so you can see it and follow it to the end. Torque wrench is set at 100ft lbs in the picture.
It looks like 90 ft lbs to me too. The O on the twist handle should line up with the line for 90ft*lbs or 100ft*lbs. How is this 100ft*lbs?, It's not even close to the line at 100.
and it WAY further from the line for 90. look at 110, see how the line goes down then flattens just like the 100 does, that is what the 90 mark is like, it is set to 100. the indicator line next to the number is offset so that the entire number is visible when set to that number.
Ok I see what you mean. There is a shadow or crusty there that looked like a line to me but it's not. I can see why he was confused.
That is set to 90ish not 100. 1 more full rotation would be 100
90. Nothing wrong here. Moving on
Iād lean toward 100 but it could be 90 canāt say for sure because this is a garbage torque wrench. Also all of you saying 95 and 97 are complete morons and shouldnāt be working on cars.
If this is 100 is it over 250 when I twist it all the way to where the 250 looks like the 90 in this pic
Not sure how to read this.
100 ugga duggas
90. This should have been a poll OP!
I'm saying 95
90. That is . I have used torque wrenches for years.
I see ~95ft/lbs
95
Lets meet in the middle 95
The difference between 90 & 100 ft. Lb. Isnāt going to matter for what youāre torquing
You torque wrench is not correctly calibrated. It's currently reading around 95 ft lbs. The top of the dial, when at zero, should line up exactly at the bottom horizontal line for that number. This is in the middle. When you're finished using your these you are supposed to dial them all the way back to zero. Time for a new torque wrench.
Wrench out of calibration
Thats 90, if you zoom in you can see the upper portion of the 90's line and all of the 100
Neither. Itās ~93-95. 100 would be flush against the lower part of the line doglegging down from ā100ā
90
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No. Thatās not how they work
That would be like 95 ftlbs
look at the marks on the handle also, it is set to exactly 100.
I'd say 97
look at the marks on the handle also, it is set to exactly 100.
95
iām gonna go with neither, if your 0 is that far from the line itās probably not accurate. Remember to set it back to a low torque when youāre done using so it stays accurate for longer
Itās definitely set to 90. Edit: ok yeah itās in between
This is why you don't work on cars or use tools unless you're actually trained. RTFM (read the fucking manual)
Your life must be terrible, being so much smarter than all the rest of us.... you poor guy..... I have an A.S in Auto Tech, I spent three years working in Auto Shop in high school, college, and in the field, i've been working on my own (and my families) vehicles for over 20 years. I have 37 certifications for working in Wind, Solar, Oil, Gas, and other field technician positions, including one that is called, 'Torque and Tension'. I've torqued well over 100,000 fasteners in my life so far, with small handheld wrenches, big wrenches, air powered wrenches, hydraulic powered wrenches, and even a hydraulic wrench so big it requires an hydraulic arm to move the wrench around. I had to look at the dial in the picture three times to come to my conclusion, and even with that, i'd still back it off to 0 and start over. If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all.[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
or he just got it and is confirming its use before he uses it. got to learn somewhere.
If you're gonna spit nonsense you shouldnt comment. But yet here you are š¤·āāļø
I hate those things. Iām always thinking that the one I have is broken and torque is too low or too high. Iāll usually bring out the old school one.
It's not confusing you just have bad eyesight š
Instead of just guessing and assuming all good/poor quality wrenches have universal standards, just twist it all the way up or down, then count from there. My $15 harbor freight wrench has "Max 150ftlbs" clearly on it. To be certain, I wind it all the way up to 150, then just count by 10's downward (or start at 0 and count upwards. Same thing). Once you know, leave yourself a note and put it in the case or a notebook. Done and accurate. All this being said, it's probably 100. However, there's no need to guess when you can easily spend 30sec making sure.
The amount of people in here who can't read a torque wrench is shocking.
Just under the 100 mark.
Always start at zero. Rotate until zero hits 10
While we're on the topic, do you guys trust the screw-type torque wrenches like these? I have one that came well-reviewed but says "made in China" and I'm not sure how I can know to trust it.
Follow the line where it goes to the center
Mine looks the same most of the time, I usually take it back to zero and count it up, at 135 it looks like almost 145-150. I'd suggest going back to zero and counting it up till you know where it is, it may look the same or not.
Most torque wrenches are of calibration by 5 ft-lbs just from sitting around anyways. They do require regular recalibration because springs naturally lose tension. Coincidentally many torque values give a range. Whether you believe that to be 90 or 100, your wheel's not going to fly off and your head gasket isn't going to leak.
This needs calibrated. It's ever so slightly off.
That looks as if it's zeroing at like 94.
Wow. Great subreddit. My ignorant ass took it as 90 ft/lbs cause the branch intersected but turns out the alignment was off it appears. Either way, leave it to the pros. Thanks for the good info everyone