i don't have a need for one that can also make cappuccino, but I want one that works and is easy to use.
what's out there at the different price points? What do you use? What do you recommend me getting for working on the Duc?
I'm about to replace clutch & basket, so that's the first task this thing will be up against. (8 basket bolts, and one hub nut i believe).
This would do better in tech.
You can move it. [thumbsup]
april fools was a few days ago, DP.
chris at ca-cycleworks has a couple low-budget torque wrenches that are working PERFECTLY for me.
nice, loud, audible and tactile clicks when you hit the right torque setting.
engraved readings, etc.
not bad for $35.
Which one of the two do you recommend? 1/2 or 3/8" drive for work on the bike?
I figure I eventually would benefit from both, but I don't have that kinda scratch just now.
Quote from: ato memphis on April 05, 2009, 06:27:06 PM
april fools was a few days ago, DP.
...am I an idiot? ;D
Sorry.
I have a Husky 1/2" that I really like. It was fairly cheap, has proven accurate against my buddy's $200 Snap-on, and locks in place so you don't accidently change torque settings.
It came from Lowes and I think it was under $50.
I suggest a 1/2" rather than a 3/8". The 1/2" models are longer, handle a higher torque rating (Mostly), and you can use a 3/8" adaptor for the smaller sockets.
Go to harbor freight on summer ave. I doubt that you will use it enough to want something like snap-on or mac, or maybe even craftsman. Got mine at the 24 hour autozone a block down from harbor freight. It is something like $15-20. The husky would be nice too but for me, my budget and the actual work i dont just dont justify me buying high quality tools at the moment. They (H F) also have some adapters and i would also recommend the 1/2 inch
By the way.....IM SO BUMMED. Your'e from Memphis, i think you know what i mean. I so wanted an announcement on April 1st to be a joke.
I used to use Snap-On or Mac or other high end stuff. Now it's Craftsman or if I need a killer one, one of the Snap-On or Matco from work (the shop was sponsored by both those guys at different times in the past few years), as for the Harbor Freight, I try to stay away from the Chinese stuff, the job you save might be your own. If that bugs some people, oh well, I try not to buy Chinese or Taiwan stuff, as a principal, their manufacturing habits are going to kill manufacturing in this country.
I've got 1/4" and 3/8" from Harbor freight and they both work well. These are the click style and were both inexpensive. I also have a flex bar type 1/2" I've had for years. I only use it for a few things like axle nuts.
Scott
Quote from: corndog67 on April 05, 2009, 09:59:04 PM
I used to use Snap-On or Mac or other high end stuff. Now it's Craftsman or if I need a killer one, one of the Snap-On or Matco from work (the shop was sponsored by both those guys at different times in the past few years), as for the Harbor Freight, I try to stay away from the Chinese stuff, the job you save might be your own. If that bugs some people, oh well, I try not to buy Chinese or Taiwan stuff, as a principal, their manufacturing habits are going to kill manufacturing in this country.
If i had the scratch, i would buy better specialty tools. Most of the time, if i need some sort of "specialty" tool, i most likely only need to use it that one time, or not much more after. also, most of the time, these "specialty" tools are not available at some place that sells mid quality stuff but available at harbor freight. hence me picking up a tool at HF every once in a while. So far, the cheep made in china stuff has got through the mods and maintenance work on my bike. I would love to have the whole snap on collection of tools but i have yet to win the lottery.
Quoteas for the Harbor Freight, I try to stay away from the Chinese stuff, the job you save might be your own. If that bugs some people, oh well, I try not to buy Chinese or Taiwan stuff, as a principal, their manufacturing habits are going to kill manufacturing in this country.
+1. It doesn't bug me at all, and I'm glad to see I have some company. Principles seem to be going by the wayside in this country. The price difference between say Sears and HF isn't all that much anyway, although Sears tools aren't what they used to be they're still better than HF and still mostly made in the USA.
My Tigers: (http://www.forumsextreme.com/images/sSa_falltopieces.gif)
I'll run down to Autozone to peruse their "selection" later today, and see if I can find a nearby Sears.
I rarely need or use a torque wrench and I like the simple beam and pointer type. You can see the physics of how it works right in front of you and no hidden springs or other parts to adjust or get out of calibration. If I used one all day long every day I might feel different about having a convenient "click".
get the 1/2 drive version, as the range is better suited for the stuff you'll want to use a torque wrench on. use an adapter for your 3/8 sockets. i know you're not supposed to, but it never gives me any problems.
i have both, and have found that i RARELY need the smaller wrench, as its range is 20-200 inch pounds, which is like 2-16 ft. lbs...
I've never had a problem with HFT, for what I use their tools for , they seem fine. If I was a pro, using specialty tools all day, I'd go for something high $.
QuoteI've never had a problem with HFT, for what I use their tools for , they seem fine. If I was a pro, using specialty tools all day, I'd go for something high $.
To beat a dead horse, there are more alternatives than HF and high $$. You can get reasonably good US made tools for low prices at Sears and other places, although US made tools are getting harder to find. Some of the Chinese HF junk may actually work for awhile, but that's not the point. The point is that by buying that HF crap we're voting with our wallets and voting against ourselves and our own manufacturing industry. Probably a moot point since no one much cares anymore. I guess this thread is heading in a political direction so I probably should stop.
My god Matco and SnapOn are expensive.
I have a Kobalt one from Lowes. It is lifetime guaranteed, made in the US. I am pleased with the quality. I have a 3/8 drive. It is 10 - 100ft-lbs, $80. I would recommend something in this range. When I need to remove a wheel, front sprocket, other high torque item I rent one from a local autoparts store. They charge your card for ~$80 and when you bring it back they refund your $$. They give me a 48 hour time window to return it.
Front sprocket is a high torque item? ???
i dunno about that, but i believe the clutch hub is.
Quote from: Langanobob on April 06, 2009, 07:35:41 AM
To beat a dead horse, there are more alternatives than HF and high $$. You can get reasonably good US made tools for low prices at Sears and other places, although US made tools are getting harder to find. Some of the Chinese HF junk may actually work for awhile, but that's not the point. The point is that by buying that HF crap we're voting with our wallets and voting against ourselves and our own manufacturing industry. Probably a moot point since no one much cares anymore. I guess this thread is heading in a political direction so I probably should stop.
Not only that but if you are using a torque wrench then accuracy is important. So, for all the people saying that the HF unit did the job, how do you know you torqued it properly? Just because it turned the nut without the wrench breaking in half (not uncommon with HF) it doesn not mean you torqued it properly. If you want to save money by using a torque wrench that has unknown accuracy then you might as well save even more and just use a breaker bar and tighten it until it "feels right".
Quote from: minnesotamonster on April 06, 2009, 08:46:50 AM
Front sprocket is a high torque item? ???
186Nm I believe. That is ~137ft-lbs...pretty hefty if you ask me. That is on the 1100DS motor. I had a used a breaker bar to get it off....its a 32mm nut too...so I had to buy a special socket.
New style. Old style is two bolts. Compare:
(http://bread4life.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/frontsprocket.jpg)
New style (hidden by sprocket cover):
(http://www.ca-cycleworks.com/shop/catalog/ducati/img/ag_902156.jpg)
see also,
(http://www.motospecialties.com/UploadImages/12-0201CLR-GLD.jpg)
I've got:
3/8", 25-250 in-lb clicker.
3/8", 10-75 ft-lb clicker.
1/2", 20-150 ft-lb clicker.
1/2", 0-150 ft-lb beam.
All Craftsman.
Torque wrenches aren't so accurate near the ends of their ranges.
Beam types are nice and reliable, but many situations it's hard to get a good view of the pointer, IE at >100 ft-lb.
Quote from: Langanobob on April 06, 2009, 05:05:28 AM
+1. It doesn't bug me at all, and I'm glad to see I have some company. Principles seem to be going by the wayside in this country. The price difference between say Sears and HF isn't all that much anyway, although Sears tools aren't what they used to be they're still better than HF and still mostly made in the USA.
Good thoughts. I've been trying to stay away from HF and buy better quality tools anyway. You always end up using them more than you think you will once you own them. That said, Craftsman stuff isn't what it used to be but also isn't bad. What's with that other brand Sears is selling now? It looks cheap and crappy.
Scott
Wow, the new style front sprocket nut is HUGE
To beat a dead horse as speeddog and silentbob beat me to it.
1) Torque wrenches are not accurate at the far ends of their rated ranges. The outside twenty percent one both ends is ideally, not used. So for a torque wrench rated from 10-20 ft-lbs, you would use it from 12-18 ft-lbs only.
Also, because you set it to 16 ft-lbs and it clicked, does not mean you are torqued to 16 ft-lbs.
I'm not even going to say this is why you should not buy a cheap tool-they may actually be accurate, but if you want to *really* know, owning a toque checker would be ideal. Essentially it's a digital reader that will record the highest torque you've exerted with your torque wrench.
While this is all overkill I figured I'd mention the proper way.
Quote from: ato memphis on April 06, 2009, 05:10:15 AM
My Tigers: (http://www.forumsextreme.com/images/sSa_falltopieces.gif)
I'll run down to Autozone to peruse their "selection" later today, and see if I can find a nearby Sears.
I think you are in dallas now. The auto zone one and the one at harbor freight did not seem too different from each other compared to the ones i saw at sears. The one at autozone they charge $30. At that price, you may want to look into sears.
Quote from: MrIncredible on April 06, 2009, 12:26:05 PM
1) Torque wrenches are not accurate at the far ends of their rated ranges. The outside twenty percent one both ends is ideally, not used. So for a torque wrench rated from 10-20 ft-lbs, you would use it from 12-18 ft-lbs only.
+1 I don't think I've ever seen a torque wrench that I'd happily use on both the clutch hub nut and the clutch spring posts - they're _way_ out the opposite ends of the ordinary torque range.
I've got a quite nice Kinchrome 3/8" drive one that'll happily do the small stuff with pretty good accuracy, and I've got a cheapish chinese (SupaTool brand) 1/2" drive that I use for the big stuff.
QuoteAlso, because you set it to 16 ft-lbs and it clicked, does not mean you are torqued to 16 ft-lbs.
I'm not even going to say this is why you should not buy a cheap tool-they may actually be accurate, but if you want to *really* know, owning a toque checker would be ideal. Essentially it's a digital reader that will record the highest torque you've exerted with your torque wrench.
It's really nice to have access to a torque wrench calibrator, but it's not something I'd ever consider owning myself... (friends who work at big engineering places come in _very_ handy - I've had both my torque wrenches calibration checked courtesy of Qantas, even the cheapo one is within 7% right across its range...)
big
There's one thing people here havent mentioned. Like everything else in life your torque wrench will treat you that same way you treat IT. If you follow the rules you'll be fine if you dont, even a high end craftsman will bite you in the a$$ (this is from personal experience). Following this one simple but utterly important rule below will extend the life of a clicker by ages
1) NEVER LEAVE A TORQUE WRENCH LOADED FOR MORE THAN 5 MINUTES.
This means that if you're doing intermittent work in the garage you should not leave a clicker torque wrench at any setting other than the lowest value noted on the wrench. If for some reason you forget and leave one at a highly loaded value, you will end up overtime screwing up a calibration. I've had my torque wrenches for 4 years now and they still work accurately for all intensive purposes. I forgot once and jacked up a torque wrench. Luckily it was a craftsman so I was able to get it taken care of relatively easily.
hadn't even thought about that, and the effect. thanks!
No prob..
Personal opinion on what tools to buy (similar to previous posts)
You need to do some serious thinking on how serious you are about wrenching on your bike. Its kind of a comittment you have to make in advance. When I bought mine, I comitted myself to pretty much doing all the maintenance on all three of my vehicles (2 cars and 1 bike). As a result, I could justify buying decent tools. The long term payback is much greater. That being said, I was forced to buy 3 torque wrenches to cover the entire spectrum of bolts for just the bike.
If you're not sure about this yet are you're "testing the waters" to see if wrenching interests you, I would suggest harbor freight tools to start off. You can get 3 torque wrenches for about 50 bucks. They will work for fine for a while with no issues. Use these until you're ready to make a comittment. Then go buy the good stuff. You'll be out 50 bucks but hey, at least you wont be out 300 if you buy hi quality ones and dont use em. Resale value on tools isnt that great.
Just my opinion.
I did the dirty deed on a Craftsman from Sears. Set me back about $80, we'll see how this whole wrenching endeavor goes. (I'm excited, lets put it that way).