TLDR tell me which torque wrench to buy.
I want to start doing my own work on my motorbike and am looking at getting a torque wrench. Mostly chain, suspension, brakes and oil. Not planning on taking the engine apart. What brand and how much should I spend? On eBay I found a King chrome (Half inch) 20-200Nm for $100.
Those appear to be normal ratchet/socket wrench. I'm looking for torque wrenches.
Edit. Super cheap seems to start at $60 for a no name. Would rather drop the 100 on a known brand such as KingChrome.
sorry, I don't talk the torque.
but you can add this 1/2" adapter/torque meter for $17.99
get a mate to come with you and get a second SCA membership to get this adapater for $12.99.
*Kincrome, they lost all their Royalty once they went off shore from Australia's Crown land to Asia.
I think its one of those how long is a piece of string questions. If you are just learning a cheap and cheerful torque wrench is more than enough. Just make sure to check your service manual to get an idea of the torque range required.
My Yamaha YZF-R6 owners manual:
Steering stem nut = 115 Nm
Rear wheel axle nut = 150 Nm
Highest torque I have come across for my car is 230Nm for aftermarket bolts on the performance suspension bushings. 4WD and trucks would probably require a stronger torque wrench.
In terms of value for money occasionally ALDI sometimes sell a $25 Torque Wrench 28-210Nm that OzBargainers have commented as very usable. I picked one up during a clearance sale for $10:
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/comment/3296928/redir
I agree with how long is a piece of string. But you being a rider too, how much do you trust that Aldi wrench?
Short answer is Yes. I'd easily trust the Aldi Torque Wrench for my motorcycles toughest bolts (150Nm max).
Long answer is the Aldi Torque Wrench was designed for use on light to medium passenger cars. A motorcycle should be no problem. I know what 150Nm feels like since many of my car's 14mm suspension bolts are around 180Nm. Even my budget short handle socket wrenches can handle double the torque.
Where the manufacturer of the Aldi Torque Wrench cuts cost is the ratchet action and the thickness of the 3 socket bits. The socket bits feel light and look thin. The socket bits isn't are not an issue for me as I just use my own socket bits instead the included ones. However the ratchet action sounds plasticy and its socket head has a small amount of wiggle, kind of like the looseness of my well used socket wrenches. I don't know if this is normal as I have never owned any other torque wrenches
The Aldi one is good enough. I work in the aerospace industry and we use expensive and frequently calibrated torque wrenches (actually when one of our torque wrenches fails calibration, they are still better than any car mechanic will ever know, so staff take them). But for shits and giggles, we had the calibration on an aldi wrench checked, and it was pretty close. Which for $25 is spectacular.
Aldi appears to be getting the nod from everybody. Lock it in.
i don think Aldi still have the stock at the moment, do you know where else i can find some less expensive torque wrenches? I only need it to change engine oil (for bike). i am certainly not a big fan of any "premier brands".
Can buy my kincrome 1/2 inch off me if you like $70. Done up my rear wheel about 5 times. Plan to leave repairs to my mechanic. It comes in the blue case, was purchased from bunnings.
The answer to your question lies in the answer to this question - Would you trust any cheap wrench with vital system components such as "chain, suspension, brakes and oil"? How much is your life worth?
I've got a few torque wrench's to cover all required ranges. I would go for any GOOD tool brand torque, and this is a case where the more money you spend the better quality you will get. You'll be fine with the ToolPro torque wrench's from Supercheap, they are surprisingly decent. Accuracy on these things over time is questionable.
Totally agree, but there is also a law of diminishing returns. Snap on is way to expensive, cant find prices for sidchrome. Any brands i should look for/avoid?
Buy any cheap one. Get ones that the shaft bends with scale if looking for cheap. You don't use it often or for trade anyway. They are simple tools.
sidcrome and snap on just have a brand tax. As I said, just a good tool brand will do. Kincrome or toolpro from super cheap auto will be fine - neither are the best nor bad quality.
@faceman54: thanks. Will probably go for the KingChrome. Never heard of Toolpro and it isn't much cheaper.
None of those things really have any critical torque settings. You can buy one and it'll be good to use, but you can just learn how to do it 'tight but not too tight' haha.
The problem being that you need a good torque wrench to 'teach' your arm what a set torque should feel like. If it wasn't a motorbike I would use the 'she'll be right' technique.
Aldi torque wrench works fine if you can get it. Otherwise there's some cheapies at supercheap for ~$60 which I have also used (no problem).
So no mention of Repco? Not a fanboy,just curious
I bought a Sidchrome 40-200Nm torque wrench about 10 years ago for about $300. I also bought a 15-150Nm Supercheap auto brand one for about $50 at about the same time.
They both still work and I can honestly say I wouldn't trust either one to be accurate without it being calibrated regularly in some way.
The Sidchrome torque wrench has a plastic handle to adjust the torque setting with a metal shaft. The plastic handle tends to get dirty and is hard to clean. The Supercheap one is all metal.
I originally bought the Sidchrome torque wrench when I was redoing a head gasket on my car and needed to accurately torque the head bolts to 80Nm. I thought Sidchrome would be better quality at the time. I now think that it probably wouldn't have mattered if I just bought the Supercheap one only.
The 40-200Nm is usually too big when working on my cars so I'd recommend going for 15-150Nm or similar. Most of the little bolts are less than 40Nm.
If you bought a Supercheap or ALDI brand torque wrench it is probably going to last you many years, and forking out extra coin for a decent brand isn't necessary. Use the coin you save to buy a decent six sided impact socket set and a 1/2 inch extension set, the six sided socket set will save stripping those tougher bolts.
Perfectly explained. Thank you. Will follow your advice.
Supercheap auto have some less expensive options-
ToolPro Ratchet Handle - Adjustable, 1/2" Drive Price: $51.99
ToolPro Ratchet Handle - 1/2" Drive Price: $40.99 each
Don't forget you can get $5 SCA credit by buying a Supercheap Auto Membership for $5 & Get $10 Credit in Card
so $46.99 + $35.99
I find very little difference (i.e. none) between expensive to inexpensive ratchets when only using them infrequently