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... or - is it worth the money for the Park Tools one? I like nice tools as much as the next bloke, but limits have to be drawn somewhere !! 🙂
I think the standard STW answer is Norbar.
Need to stick up your intended use to get useful recommendations, target torque range if you know it. (eg is it for carbon bars at 4-5Nm or a crank bolt at 54Nm etc)
Park Tool generic tools are generally poor value for money as you can buy cheaper equivalents or higher quality depending on your needs/budget.
I think my big ones from Laser and the small ones x-tools or similar.
There's a few reviews on youtube etc and most of them seem to conclude that the mid-range branded stuff from bricks and mortar shops is entirely adequate for your average workshop use. I use it to set the hub bearings on my car which are ACB bearings and they seem to get that right so it's plenty accurate enough for just torqueing bolts up.
Norbar. Stayed accurate year after year, unlike the previous cheapies that needed adjusting every year to stay within tolerance
I think the standard STW answer is Norbar.
Seems to be.
I got the effetto mariposa, cos it sounds fancy.
Thanks for the info. My immediate use is for bars and seat at 5 Nm.
It depends, a great torque wrench is useless unless it's verified and validated regularly to be accurately reading the correct torque.
All those off the shelf ones? Who knows if they read accurately and continue to with use. Not really imperative with bike parts to be a fraction off but it'd be nice to know your expensive carbon stem or bars weren't over or under stressed.
Wera.
When I see how many badly overtightened bolts there are on many bikes straight from the factory,I sometimes question the point of any torque wrench, let alone whether it's accurate or not, any potential damage is likely to have already occurred before anyone else gets their hands on it (obviously doesn't apply to new, unfitted parts).
LifeLine Professional (which looks suspiciously similar to many other more costly options, what with them all coming from the same factory in Taiwan!). Really cheap when it’s on offer, 3-15Nm, and it goes both ways so it’s good for oddball stuff.
Norbar (or the Halfords branded Norbar one on offer) for higher torques and no doubt better accuracy. Also goes both ways. I have a 12-60Nm one.
These two seem to do well for me.
I have a Torqueleader (Gedore) ADS dial wrench for that, 1-5Nm IIRC. Very, very expensive. I didn't pay that. Worth looking out for in the usual places though, they can go for reasonable money second hand.
I use one of those Ritchey Torque keys – comes in 4nm or 5nm, pre-set. I reckon it’s accurate enough for me.
https://ritcheylogic.com/bike/accessories/torque-key-6-bit
I think Mr Bontrager concluded that the biggest harm done to carbon components wasn’t overtightening of bolts, it was scoring from sharp-edged clamps (seat, stem and lever) and general lack of care in (re)assembly…
Your questions, answered
https://cyclingtips.com/2022/10/cool-tool-tuesday-10-talking-torque-wrenches-part-one/
I've got the lifeline one, it seems to work fine but I've no idea if its anywhere near accurate! Bit like track pumps really.
i have the generic Lifeline/Superstar one, with the 2-15Nm range, it's in the classifieds as I got a new one for my birthday 🙂 £15 plus postage !
+1 for the Ritchey torque key if it's just 5nm you want
I'll add that I don't know how accurate my LifeLine Pro is or how long it'll stay as it is and not drift, but it does match up well with my Norbar where they overlap (12-15Nm).
I can tighen with one or the other, then swap over and it'll not tighen any more.
Lifeline Pro for small things and some big thing from screwfixstation for everything else. Can't remember the last one's manufacturer, but it only does the 54Nm crank bolt on bikes.
I bought a Topeak digital torque wrench years ago and it’s still going strong. I keep the battery out of the tool when it’s being stored in the case though.
I’ve got a Bontrager one that’s set at 5 or 6 or something no and a Topeak t bar one. No idea if they’re accurate, I mainly just go bumpy feel, but then I don’t have any carbon or super light parts.
I have a really big one for torquing the van and lorry wheel nuts but that’s about it.
The 5Nm figure is all well and good, but remember that it's a maximum figure rather than a target. My stem-to-steerer figure is fine in the 3-4Nm range; it just needs to be secure and max 5Nm
I'm a fan of the Topeak Combotorq tool. 3-12 Nm.
Simple, effective and affordable.
https://www.topeak.com/global/en/product/639-COMBOTORQ-WRENCH-&-BIT-SET
The 5Nm figure is all well and good, but remember that it’s a maximum figure rather than a target. My stem-to-steerer figure is fine in the 3-4Nm range; it just needs to be secure and max 5Nm
Probably varies - I've seen plenty of examples where manufacturer instructions say to specifically tighten to 5Nm, granted you can often get away with less (esp. if using something like carbon paste) seems sensible to treat it as a target figure in most cases.
I bought a Topeak digital torque wrench years ago and it’s still going strong.
When was it last calibrated? From what I've heard digital tools are worse than normal ones for going out of cal.