Torque Wrenches

bikedave99 · Jul 17, 2008

Just getting going on doing maintenance and mods on the VMax and need to know what kind of torque wrench to get and what range. Does any one wrench have the range I need or will i need to get an in/lb and well as lbs/ft wrench? What brands are you guys running? I hear precision instruments are some of the most accurate. Thanks!

Lew L · Jul 17, 2008

Just my $.02 here,
I have both and I'll bet that most of the guys here that do any bike and auto work have both. Buy the best you can afford but if you get the micrometer type( handle is rotated to set the reading and it "clicks" at the set torque) always release the setting on the handle when finished.

Lew

m-cman · Jul 17, 2008

You definitely need the 3/8" drive inch pound and 3/8" drive ft lb. The inch pound covers small fasteners but does not go very high so you need the 3/8" ft lb also. I would also recommend the 1/2" drive ft lb for axles, steering nut, etc.

bikedave99 · Jul 18, 2008

Thanks for the responses guys, can you give me an idea of the poundages i should be looking for?

m-cman · Jul 18, 2008

I think they are somewhat standardized. My inch pound goes from 25 to 250 in lbs (about 20 ft lbs). My 3/8" drive goes from 5 to 75 ft lbs and my 1/2" drive goes from 20 to 150 ft lbs. There are even bigger ones but this covers everyting I have ever needed.

vmaxman99 · Jul 19, 2008

Unfortunately, you are going to need three from 1/4" drive to 1/2" drive to cover all the fasteners on the bike, along with adapters to change to different size sockets. Since I don't use mine in a professional, daily use environment, I bought mine from Harbor Freight. I checked the 1/2" one against a Craftsman Digital and "break" occurred at the same place on a fastener. That's close enough for me!