Torque wrenches in in. lbs

[Bill]

Does anyone know of a decent 3/8" drive torque wrench that measures in inch/lbs? I'm looking for a moderately priced one ($40-60) and I'm only seeing brands I've never heard of (Capri Tools, Tekton, etc). Unfortunately, Craftsman doesn't carry them anymore.

 

[ericbphoto]

Most 3/8” torque wrenches will probably be marked in ft-lbs and nm. You’ll have to do some math to get in-lbs. I would recommend Gearwrench if you can afford it. There was a thread here a while back where several guys claim that the Harbor Freight torque wrenches are pretty decent.

 

[Dirtman]

Tekton actually makes pretty good tools. I have alot of their stuff.

 

[91stranger]

Are you able to use a regular 1/2" torque wrench and just divide by 12 to get the number you need in inch/lbs. Harbor freight has them for $10 all the time and I had one that lasted for 5-6 years before the head fell apart.

 

[19Walt93]

I use a MAC 1/2" drive torque wrench with a range of 10-150 that I bought in 1975 for $120( just over a week's pay) that I've checked for accuracy multiple times against my former techs' newer tools. I'd caution you away from Harbor freight for a critical tool like a torque wrench. If you need to torque it, you need it to be accurate. The Ford RTTP(Rotunda technician tool program) has some Sunex brand stuff that we had god luck with, even though most of it's from China. Did you look at Summit ,Jegs, NAPA online or anything like that?

 

[JOLENE_THE_RANGER]

harbor freight is decent, but the breaking point when reaching torque isnt very noticeable sometimes. so if youre gonna use one just pay close attention. they sort of "tick" rather than clunk. (best i can describe it.) tekton makes nice tools!

 

[pjtoledo]

for inch pounds I use 1/4" drive. I have a beam bar that I bought at a bicycle shop.

inches will be so low on a 1/2" bar that it wont be accurate.

 

[sgtsandman]

for inch pounds I use 1/4" drive. I have a beam bar that I bought at a bicycle shop.

inches will be so low on a 1/2" bar that it wont be accurate.

Assuming it can even go low enough for the proper torque range.

 

[Bill]

Tekton actually makes pretty good tools. I have alot of their stuff.

I'll take a look at those. I've seen their products for sale somewhere around town here.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Sears.com

www.sears.com

Might be hard to find them in a real store, most Sears are gone and I don't know if Lowes stocks them.

EDIT: pic shows ft-lbs, not sure if that is how the 3/8" one is marked or if they used pics from a different wrench.

 

[black_demon69]

Amazon.com

www.amazon.com

You might look here

 

[Dirtman]

62 bucks for a chinese one seems steep to me.

 

[Bill]

Sears.com

www.sears.com

Might be hard to find them in a real store, most Sears are gone and I don't know if Lowes stocks them.

EDIT: pic shows ft-lbs, not sure if that is how the 3/8" one is marked or if they used pics from a different wrench.

I'll have to take a look at that later when I have time. That wrench was not showing up in my search results on the Sears webpage.

I'm surprised they aren't as easy to find as they should be. I consider proper torque to be essential when working on aluminum engines, and with all the tight spaces a smaller torque wrench just seems like a good idea for torquing down things like the bolts on a water pump at 89 in lbs.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

I'll have to take a look at that later when I have time. That wrench was not showing up in my search results on the Sears webpage.

I'm surprised they aren't as easy to find as they should be. I consider proper torque to be essential when working on aluminum engines, and with all the tight spaces a smaller torque wrench just seems like a good idea for torquing down things like the bolts on a water pump at 89 in lbs.

It takes a special kind of special for Sears to end up where they are at today.

 

[Bill]

It takes a special kind of special for Sears to end up where they are at today.

Yep! Look up "vulture capitalist."

It's not entirely Amazon and online shopping that has tanked retailers. A fair share of it was done intentionally. Many venture capitalists acquire a bunch of companies, lower the quality, place all the dept on one of the retailers they acquired to a point there is no way that particular retailer will be able to pay it off, then they declare bankruptcy so Wall Street can get their bonuses.