Craftsman digital torque wrench any good?

[MechMyk]

Just found myself with no torque wrench and I need one ASAP. I have always had snappy and such for torque wrenches but in my field I might use it once a month. Does anybody know if a 1/2" digital torque wrench from craftsman would be a good purchase? I'm not gonna be around any tool truck for a while and I know they are the best but if anyone has experience with one of these I would appreciate some feedback thanks guys.....

Fine China the ultimate oxymoron...

 

[zkling]

What do you want to use it for? And please don't reply "to torque fasteners to proper spec". Are we talking lug nuts or head bolts here?

 

[1950mercury]

junk...buy a cdi or pi

 

[fatfillup]

Had a couple of the early Cman digital wrenches come through the shop. They had a problem with the screw housing that held on the electronic component to the handle breaking. Don't know if that has been fixed or not.

On a side note, I buy and sell a fair amount of torque wrenches and finally got a device to test them. Amazingly, the old click style Cman torque wrenches are consistently closer to spec then Snappy's or Mac's or any other brand.

 

[diggerrick]

A friend and his brother both bought those and got tired of taking them back for repair/replacement.

 

[mrjaw14]

I've been wondering what's a decent torque wrench for occasional use myself. I rarely need one, so I can't justify a snap-on.

 

[Hootbro]

I've been wondering what's a decent torque wrench for occasional use myself. I rarely need one, so I can't justify a snap-on.

Quite surprisingly, the Harbor Freight torque wrenches actually are pretty good for home use and most times are spot on within the +/- 4% rated accuracy.

There has been a few threads already on them and when you sift through all the COO ******** and HF bias, most who have used them, rate them well.

 

[Loscaldazar]

I've heard terrible things about the electronic ones. I believe Brownline has some nice electronic torque wrenches that are cheap?

EDIT (on the HF torque wrenches): Yes. I have one and it is pretty good, but I don't like the micrometer click type torque wrenches. My Precision instruments Split Beams are my go to torque wrenches.

 

[mrjaw14]

I actually have the HF wrenches in 1/4 3/8 and 1/2 just because they're so cheap. I never really "trusted" them for anything important like head bolts, I mainly got them to be in the ball park. I do store them right with tension off.

are you guys actually saying you'd use one on a head bolt?

 

[Hootbro]

I actually have the HF wrenches in 1/4 3/8 and 1/2 just because they're so cheap. I never really "trusted" them for anything important like head bolts, I mainly got them to be in the ball park. I do store them right with tension off.

are you guys actually saying you'd use one on a head bolt?

I would have no problem using the ones I have for such work. I have checked mine against a beam torque wrench and a calibrated torque meter and they were either spot on or within the +/- 4% stated accuracy.

Here is a pretty good thread were a HF torque wrench was checked for accuracy. There is some red pubic hair splitting by some in it but you should see that the HF wrench holds it's own.

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=203010

 

[diggerrick]

are you guys actually saying you'd use one on a head bolt?

I do without a second thought. Torquing a head bolt is far from precise, especially when you have to use a thread sealer. Torque to yield bolts give you a better shot with a torque wrench, but turn of the nut is more accurate. I use studs on anything critical now, but used ARP bolts in my first engine. I've sat behind the engine in my avatar at over 150mph with the head bolts torqued with a HF torque wrench.

It's been discussed here and elsewhere many times.

 

[Major Ramifications]

Why not get a beam type? They are cheap, American made and never need calibrating.

 

[Steinmetz]

Just found myself with no torque wrench and I need one ASAP. I have always had snappy and such for torque wrenches but in my field I might use it once a month. Does anybody know if a 1/2" digital torque wrench from craftsman would be a good purchase? I'm not gonna be around any tool truck for a while and I know they are the best but if anyone has experience with one of these I would appreciate some feedback thanks guys.....

Fine China the ultimate oxymoron...

Probably not. Good torque wrenches are hardly scarce.

 

[oldtools]

Had a couple of the early Cman digital wrenches come through the shop. They had a problem with the screw housing that held on the electronic component to the handle breaking. Don't know if that has been fixed or not.

On a side note, I buy and sell a fair amount of torque wrenches and finally got a device to test them. Amazingly, the old click style Cman torque wrenches are consistently closer to spec then Snappy's or Mac's or any other brand.

I have the same issue with my 1/2 CM digital TW. The plastic battery cap crack and crumble. Other than that, I don't use it enough to give it a nay or yay.

 

[STGFordCrazy04]

$10 HF torque wrench.....

 

[ovilla]

A lot of the new cars also require you to torque to certain degrees past the initial torque setting. Anyway I've had good luck with the gear wrench torque plus angle (as they're called).

 

[scaron]

i love my old craftsman beam-type torque wrench... works great, robust... i mostly use it for tightening lugs on my car.

 

[MechMyk]

Yeah just bought the cheap CM non digital click type for now. I will save my Penny's for a PI for any really technical stuff. Thank y'all for the feed back..BTW the new Craftsman TW is made in China oh 'well was in a bind so had to get it....

 

[oldtools]

Yeah just bought the cheap CM non digital click type for now. I will save my Penny's for a PI for any really technical stuff. Thank y'all for the feed back..BTW the new Craftsman TW is made in China oh 'well was in a bind so had to get it....

Should have gotten the HF clicker instead. It is all metal for only $10. I also have the CM clicker. The first time I used it, the plastic torque adjusting nob crack. CM use some cheap plastic. I will never buy another CM TW again.

 

[montanafordman]

I have an older craftsman clicker wrench with a plastic handle and I'm pretty happy with it. I have had it probably about 10 years. Its consistent and works well, I store it in the case with the tension off. Recently I bought a HF torque wrench to keep in my Model A for road trips in case I need to change a head gasket on the road (like I did this year 300 miles from home). I had heard good things about it, and while I've resisted almost anything HF for so long its hard to beat for 10 or 20 bucks especially for a road tool kit. I prefer my USA made craftsman clicker any day since it has a much more positive tactile and audible click than the HF wrench. It also has a smaller head and its easier to get in tight spaces. The ratchet head also has a better feel to it imho. You can certainly feel the difference but both seem pretty accurate and well made especially for the money. I felt the $80 or $100 I spent on my craftsman torque wrenches 10 years ago was worth it, and I've gotten my money's worth in that time frame even though I would have loved to have bought a $300-$400 snap on if I could have afforded it. The HF wrench is a steal at $10 with a coupon though and very hard to beat for that price.

 

[P_I_Torque]

A weekend warrior buys Ryobi, people in the trade may go for something like Makita. Both get the job done. Cost, reliability, serviceable kind of separate the products. Brands are just that.

If you're turning wrenches all day I'd say pass on the Craftsman and look for something higher quality. If not, then the Craftsman will probably be just fine =)

 

[mark5767]

Also it looks like torque wrenches are included in AutoZones loaner tool program so if you have an auto parts store nearby you might be able see if they have one available which gives you a free option if you only need one infrequently.

The AutoZone loaners on the webiste were 3/8" and 1/2" Great Neck clickers which appear to retail for $50 and $100.

Other stores might have different options. For the very few times I need a torque wrench I'm gonna try to keep this in mind!

 

[Hootbro]

Also it looks like torque wrenches are included in AutoZones loaner tool program so if you have an auto parts store nearby you might be able see if they have one available which gives you a free option if you only need one infrequently.

The AutoZone loaners on the webiste were 3/8" and 1/2" Great Neck clickers which appear to retail for $50 and $100.

Other stores might have different options. For the very few times I need a torque wrench I'm gonna try to keep this in mind!

I would never get a auto parts store loaner torque wrench unless it is a beam style. I have know more than a handful of people who were too cheap to buy a breaker bar and just get the loaner torque torque wrench and use it in that capacity. Also have seen them used as hammers and improvised pry bars.

Like I have said before, better off just buying the whole set of HF torque wrenches when they go on sale for $10-$12 every other week than to use some abused and trashed auto parts store loaner torque wrench.

 

[fatfillup]

The Cman clicker with the plastic handle is the one I was referring to that consistently checks out for accuracy.

 

[JCQuick]

I posted this in another thread here. the one on the right is a c/man that they gave me when they lost one that I had from back in the early 70's. anyway its the biggest pos and I knew something was up recently. had my son check it on the snap-on truck its 25lb low.
So I too am in the market for a new one