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Torque wrench

ShawnAM

Member
So I was perusing the Cleveland tool website and came across their CDI torque wrenches. I don't yet have a torque wrench so figured it might be time to start looking at options. Cleveland recommends the 1/4" drive 20 to 150 in. lb wrench.

I am looking for some opinions on this recommendation.

I am barely beginning the emepnnage but this seems like a rather small torque wrench.

A side note, amazon has what appears to be the same wrench for about $90 less. here

Any and all suggestions are much appreciated.
 
I think I have a CDI as well. But I didn't know how light the torque specs were on the RV-7 when I bought the wrench. So I have a ft/lbs scale in 3/8". I would say that they are close to correct on the recommendation. And at those specs, you certainly don't need a 3/8" drive. I too got mine on Amazon I believe. Luckily I have motorcycles and cars as hobbies too, so it is not going to waste. Believe it or not, for the plane, I use a 30+ year old Craftsman I had from my youth on the plane. It is one of those with the flat scale near the handle and the long "arm" needle above the wrench itself. Works like a champ. I only have the other one because I am a tool hound at heart.
 
PS. I am not the builder of my plane, so I only do maintenance. The only things I can remember torqueing in about 4 years are the nuts that keep the wheel halves together, the bolts that attach the gear legs to the engine mount, and the bolts on the brake calipers when you change the pads.
 
I have a CDI torque wrench, but I'm not sure exactly where I got it. You just need to make sure the torque range covers what you need to use it for. This tends to work out so that you end up with a 1/4" drive wrench.
 
I recently finished my empennage and have started on my wings and so far the only times I've needed a torque wrench were for fasteners that required 20 to 25 in lbs of torque. So you'll definitely need torque wrench capable of those small forces.

I have a Craftsman wrench that I bought from Sears that is good for something like 20 to 250 in lbs. I know I'll need a larger one eventually but I figure I'll get it when that time comes.
 
I have a CDI torque wrench, but I'm not sure exactly where I got it. You just need to make sure the torque range covers what you need to use it for. This tends to work out so that you end up with a 1/4" drive wrench.

Yes, 20-150 is good, and then 0-80 in-lb I use a beam tool for the low range. Get out Section 5 and look at the range. Most will be #10 (-3), some 1/4-28 (-4) and some 5/16 for the engine fasteners.

Get (or make) a number of offsets for hard to reach fasteners - there are many.
 
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Very timely that I saw this thread.

Last night I stumbled on and watched this youtube video that compared a SnapOn torque wrench to one of the new ICON branded Harbor Freight torque wrenches. I have zero experience with either of these, as I myself a while back bought some real nice torque wrenches, some of which were CDI. But, after watching this youtube video, it's clear that I could have saved some money had I been buying today rather than a few years ago.

Here's the video:
https://youtu.be/ck_O5U1Tyz8

If ICON has one in the size or sizes you want, it may be a good way to go. I myself have 3 or 4 sizes I think, for all the various things to torque on my RV's.
 
Torque wrench calibration check

Slight thread drift (sorry).

I have several torque wrenches, a couple of the old ones have not been used a a long time. Does anyone have a good place to get the calibration checked? It seems like a good thing to do. The newer ones are probably due as well. I know in some circumstances the FAA requires the test at regular intervals.
 
I have a CDI torque wrench that is 10-50 in-lb range...perfect for those AN3 bolts (25 in-lb, as I recall).

I don't think the 20-whatever range wrenches will work...at least not very accurately down that close to the end of the range. Better to have one where the desired range is within the middle 80%, from what I've read.

But then again, I'm a tool junkie... :)
 
Thanks for the responses! I will checked hazard fraught's website but it looks like the smallest ICON is 3/8 and its range is 20-100 ft. lbs. That is like 240 - 1200 in. lbs. Plus, for only 20 or so extra you get a U.S. made tool with CDI.
 
I don't think the 20-whatever range wrenches will work...at least not very accurately down that close to the end of the range. Better to have one where the desired range is within the middle 80%, from what I've read.

Good point! This is something I will have to consider more . . .
 
Yeah I haven't checked them out at all as far as other models. I was just shocked to find that they actually seemed to do better in that particular test than SnapOn. But you're right, you definitely need one capable of small torque levels also. You'll want a larger one for prop bolts and wing spar bolts.
 
Apologies to those who already know this, but for you that are new to torque wrenches, here are a couple of things worth knowing.

1. 'Click' type wrenches are really convenient, but do *need* periodic calibration. And more importantly, if you forget to reset the dial to zero before storing the wrench, it *will* affect calibration. I made that mistake with one of mine, and almost ended up with some cylinder hold down nuts improperly torqued.

2. 'Beam' style wrenches (the ones with the long pointer and an 'analog' scale at the handle) obviously require you to see the scale while torquing a connection, but their calibration isn't nearly so prone to drifting as the click type wrenches. (Not saying to ignore calibration; just that they're less prone to getting out of cal.)

3. I don't own one yet, but if I were shopping for my 1st torque wrench, I'd at least look carefully at some of the new strain gauge type wrenches. They at least have the potential to be more accurate, just as important (to me, anyway), more consistent and repeatable than either of the older styles. You can even get a strain gauge that works with a regular wrench, but space may limit its usefulness in a lot of our applications.

4. You're going to be surprised at how many -3 bolts need to be torqued in a kit. And a typical 1/4" drive model is just barely adequate on the low end for that purpose.

FWIW,

Charlie
 
3. I don't own one yet, but if I were shopping for my 1st torque wrench, I'd at least look carefully at some of the new strain gauge type wrenches. They at least have the potential to be more accurate, just as important (to me, anyway), more consistent and repeatable than either of the older styles. You can even get a strain gauge that works with a regular wrench, but space may limit its usefulness in a lot of our applications.

You are talking about something like this?
 
I have three different torque wrenches.

My favorite is a 1/4" Dr. Micrometer Type Torque Wrench" from K-D Tools that measure from 5 to 50 inch-pounds. It is rather small and fits in tight spaces.

I also have a Sears Craftsman inch-pound torque wrench that is pretty good size.

The third one is an old-school (I bought it before I become old and was in school) beam style foot-pound torque wrench.

I have used all three in my build but really like that little 1/4" drive one from K-D Tools.

Update: I just found out that K-D Tools is now owned by GearWrench. Here is a link.
 
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I purchased the 1/4" Capri Tools in-lb torque wrench from Amazon, and have been very happy with it. It comes with a calibration certificate, has a good feel and size. I liked it so much that I purchased their 3/8" torque wrench from Amazon when I needed the higher ft-lb for the prop bolts and a few engine bolts.

I didn't want to go cheap on the torque wrench, as I have read too many stories of people who snapped off bolts and damaged engines/equipment because their cheap wrench didn't work and they over torqued bolts to failure.
 
This https://www.sears.com/craftsman-3-8-in-dr-beam-style-torque-wrench/p-00932999000P torque wrench will work well on your top auto type plugs. It will fit between the baffles and plugs. Beam torque wrenches do not need calibration. Treat it good and it will last a lifetime.

You can also use a beam torque wrench to check your click wrench so you don't need it calibrated for occasional use. This means you can purchase cheap $20 Harbor Freight click wrenches and set them to the torque that you want with your beam wrench before use. Click wrenches are best used where you can't read the scale..... but the heads are big and don't fit in many places.

A small 1/4 inch wrench like this.... https://www.amazon.com/Neiko-03727A...torque+wrench&qid=1550200655&s=gateway&sr=8-5 works great for small fasteners.

And if you need a torque screwdriver..... https://www.amazon.com/Wheeler-Accu...01201&s=gateway&sprefix=torque,aps,450&sr=8-5 .
 
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I use a torque screwdriver for the AN3?s. Mine is a Sturtevant Richmont, but I think you can find others made for bicycle maintenance a bit cheaper.
 
I use a torque screwdriver for the AN3?s. Mine is a Sturtevant Richmont, but I think you can find others made for bicycle maintenance a bit cheaper.

A torque screwdriver seems like a great idea. However, through my brief searching it seems like there are either cheep ones (with mixed reviews) or high-end like the one you have (pricey).
 
Klein tools has what seems like a perfect one, range is 5 -40 in. lbs. Looks easy to set desired torque. But its over $300 :eek:
 
CDI

I have two CDI. One is the Amazon link. The other a 3/8" version. Also have a Husky 1/2".
I think CDI builds the Snap On. It works great. As mentioned, buy a set of adapters to use 3/8" hardware. Also, practice on a bolt in the vice. The click is very subtle.
I work on cars a lot so they all get used. You should try torquing an axle to 250 ft/lbs!
 
A guy locally is selling a klein torque screwdriver for about half of retail. I might have to jump on it
 
After some further research and though, I am scrapping the torque screwdriver idea. Klein wants about $100 to re-calibrate and certify a used one, effectively making it same as buying new in the first place.

For the smaller torque loads I am going to go with a dial wrench like this. I figure this is the range where precision is most important. The dial wrenches don't need re-calibration so I will always be sure torque is correct (provided its generally taken care of well). For the larger torque loads, AN5 and up, I will use a beam style like AndyRV7 posted above and Gasman suggested. Again, should not ever need re-calibration. If and when I come into a spot neither work well, I may again consider a CDI click style.
 
Keep in mind that there will be times were the big dial torque wrench won't fit and/or you can't see the dial.

That's why I'm a big fan of the micro 1/4" wrench for AN3 bolts.

Either way, I suspect you will own a couple of torque wrenches before you are finished.
 
If you change your mind on the screwdriver, I have a low-range torsion beam style calibrator, so I could at least check it for the cost of postage. I also have access to a real calibration lab at work, but they recently moved it to another facility in another state, so official cals are a bit more involved. Interestingly, the only tool that I checked that was ever off significantly was my buddy's big Craftsman digital, and that includes the cheap HF clickers.

(and to N941WR's point, yeah, I probably have 8 different torque tools and two calibrators! Mostly because they were free via the bin of unwanted tools at work.)
 
If you can get past the fixation on 'certified' (you're building an experimental, after all), you can easily self-calibrate a torque wrench, at least at the smaller values. A one lb weight one inch out from the centerline is 1 in/lb. 10" out is 10 in/lbs, etc. A 2' bar with an attach fitting in the middle (to zero out the bar), a 1 lb, a 2 lb, and a 3 lb weight would get you every value up to 60 in/lbs. A 3' bar gets you to 108 in/lbs.

BTW, I'm pretty sure you still 'need' to get beam style wrenches calibrated, if you're using them for certified work (though they rarely if ever drift). Click style wrenches *will drift* if you don't zero them after every use (at least mine did).

Charlie
 
If you can get past the fixation on 'certified' (you're building an experimental, after all),

Charlie

Yeah I might be overthinking this, I tend to do that.

I was looking at another click wrench (forget brand) but they advertise that it maintains accuracy for something like 10,000 clicks (and its made in Taiwan). So I am guessing if I buy a good U.S. made clicker, like CDI, it will probably last for the build as long as I store it correctly and don't drop it, much anyway.
 
Other bolts

I have that CDI torque wrench and it works very well. However it maxes out at 12.5 ftlbs (150 inlbs). So you would need a second torque wrench for higher torque requirements. For example (depending on your reference) spark plugs are 25-35 ftlbs and the hold down nuts on mags are 17 ftlbs.
 
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