Torque Wrench

[cpaharley2008]

Before every trip I use one of these on all 8 wheels/36 lugs and make sure all 8 tires have proper pressure using my air compressor in the garage.

[War Eagle]

Originally Posted by AKCamper

... Beam style tourque wrenches NEVER go out of calibration.

First, for perspective, we're talking lug nuts on a trailer here, not head bolts on a Formula 1 race car. That said, I was under the impression that even beam-style torque wrenches can suffer metal fatigue over time and drift out of spec tolerance. The difference is there is no way to re-calibrate beam style if/when they do, as opposed to dial- and click-style torque wrenches that can be re-calibrated. But perhaps that's just auto shop folklore (picture some cagey old mechanics sitting around a space heater swapping stories about fuel pumps and brake shoes, hoping the space heater doesn't ignite the age-old grease built up on their shop coveralls).

[Iowa Dave]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

Before every trip I use one of these on all 8 wheels/36 lugs and make sure all 8 tires have proper pressure using my air compressor in the garage.

Hey Jim,
Are you missing some nuts or are you good with four out of five? I'm not familiar with the bolt pattern or count on the Dodges, as I don't own one but I think there's 5 on the Escape wheels. I also make sure to check tire pressure on the spares on both vehicles. I've gor a few spare nuts in the tool box too since I have some locking nuts on things, Spuds and onions going in tomorrow, garlic doing well, nice 1/2 inch rain last night. They are getting some little grey Morel mushrooms in northern Missouri, more to the south. Won't be long here now.
Dave

[thoer]

Originally Posted by War Eagle

First, for perspective, we're talking lug nuts on a trailer here, not head bolts on a Formula 1 race car. That said, I was under the impression that even beam-style torque wrenches can suffer metal fatigue over time and drift out of spec tolerance. The difference is there is no way to re-calibrate beam style if/when they do, as opposed to dial- and click-style torque wrenches that can be re-calibrated. But perhaps that's just auto shop folklore (picture some cagey old mechanics sitting around a space heater swapping stories about fuel pumps and brake shoes, hoping the space heater doesn't ignite the age-old grease built up on their shop coveralls).

Ok, I'm old! The pointer on a beam-style can be carefully bent to correct calibration numbers.... at least that's what an even older guy than me showed me! And he would have laughed at using a torque wrench on lug nuts - that a good mechanic can just feel it.

Wait that is how the whole Torque Off contest started......

[War Eagle]

Oh, and another prop for the click-style torque wrench. To be accurate with a beam-style wrench, you have to be looking straight at the visual scale, 90 degree angles to both the wrench shaft and reading scale. Not that easy to do when horizontally torquing lug nuts 8 inches off the ground or when doing a quick check in low light or bad weather situations. Click-style, you can hear and feel the click from any location, any angle, any lighting - quick and easy.

[cpaharley2008]

Originally Posted by Iowa Dave

Hey Jim,
Are you missing some nuts or are you good with four out of five? I'm not familiar with the bolt pattern or count on the Dodges, as I don't own one but I think there's 5 on the Escape wheels. I also make sure to check tire pressure on the spares on both vehicles. I've gor a few spare nuts in the tool box too since I have some locking nuts on things, Spuds and onions going in tomorrow, garlic doing well, nice 1/2 inch rain last night. They are getting some little grey Morel mushrooms in northern Missouri, more to the south. Won't be long here now.
Dave

I was waiting for someone to do the math, I have 4 locking lug nuts on the truck which I leave alone.

[Iowa Dave]

Originally Posted by thoer

Ok, I'm old! The pointer on a beam-style can be carefully bent to correct calibration numbers.... at least that's what an even older guy than me showed me! And he would have laughed at using a torque wrench on lug nuts - that a good mechanic can just feel it.

Wait that is how the whole Torque Off contest started......

It lives,
It lives where 90 weight courses through the hearts of men, thinned by whiskey colored by the blood of knuckles.
It lives in the light rain of fall, optimism growing, prizes await.
You picked a fine time to leave me loose wheel plays softly from distant radios.
No apologies No excuses
Dave

[War Eagle]

Originally Posted by thoer

... And he would have laughed at using a torque wrench on lug nuts - that a good mechanic can just feel it. Wait that is how the whole Torque Off contest started......

Shouldn't that be a "Torque ON" contest? Regardless, a torque wrench offers relatively inexpensive peace of mind for recreational trailer users who are not "Mr. Good Wrench" certified....

[thoer]

Originally Posted by War Eagle

Shouldn't that be a "Torque ON" contest? Regardless, a torque wrench offers relatively inexpensive peace of mind for recreational trailer users who are not "Mr. Good Wrench" certified....

Torque on, torque off.... as long as there is beer involved...

I love the smell of 90W in the morning.... To Paraphrase the Famous Iowegian Poet

[escape artist]

Originally Posted by Iowa Dave

Hey Jim,
Are you missing some nuts or are you good with four out of five? I'm not familiar with the bolt pattern or count on the Dodges, as I don't own one but I think there's 5 on the Escape wheels. I also make sure to check tire pressure on the spares on both vehicles. I've gor a few spare nuts in the tool box too since I have some locking nuts on things, Spuds and onions going in tomorrow, garlic doing well, nice 1/2 inch rain last night. They are getting some little grey Morel mushrooms in northern Missouri, more to the south. Won't be long here now.
Dave

Hi: Iowa Dave... Just when you think you've done everything on your "Recipe for disaster" you forgot to "Torque your nuts"!!! Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

[thoer]

Originally Posted by escape artist

Hi: Iowa Dave... Just when you think you've done everything on your "Recipe for disaster" you forgot to "Torque your nuts"!!! Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

Or in some cases. Torque. You're nuts!

[AKCamper]

Originally Posted by thoer

Ok, I'm old! The pointer on a beam-style can be carefully bent to correct calibration numbers.... at least that's what an even older guy than me showed me! And he would have laughed at using a torque wrench on lug nuts - that a good mechanic can just feel it.

Wait that is how the whole Torque Off contest started......

you are correct there. A beam torque wrench will not loose accuracy over time and I am one of those old mechanics. I wouldn't laugh at using a torque wrench in lug nuts at all. The good old star wrench will do fine too if you know how to use one. Torquing lug nuts really became important with the invent of the impact wrench that in a matter of a few bamb-bamb-bams can be so tight you can't get the lug nuts off for the life of you. Also with disc brakes uneven torque leads to warped rotors. I must have I think 9 torque wrenches and I always use a click that is checked by a beam wrench to torque my lug nuts.

[Ron in BC]

Originally Posted by thoer

.

I love the smell of 90W in the morning.... To Paraphrase the Famous Iowegian Poet

Castrol R does it for me.

Ron

[thoer]

AK, now you are understanding how the contest idea started! And it all led to many trips to Harbor Freight for me to buy the contest prizes and work for Dave to build the rig. But a good time was had by all.

Now that Dave has the rig all made he can take it to all those rallies he hits every year...

[Fox hunt]

HA HA OK now you made this even more confusing then the guys at Harbor freight did. Maybe someone at the rally in May will show me what to buy and how to use it -just to check tighten lug nuts- trust me i'm not doing work on brakes etc...

[Ron in BC]

Originally Posted by Fox hunt

HA HA OK now you made this even more confusing then the guys at Harbor freight did. Maybe someone at the rally in May will show me what to buy and how to use it -just to check tighten lug nuts- trust me i'm not doing work on brakes etc...

This forum specializes in "more info than I needed to know" Basically if you push down with pretty much all you've got, without resorting to stepping on the wrench with your foot, you'll be fine.

I have to say, I've used torque wrenches all my life for important things like cylinder heads etc. but I'd never heard of using one on wheel nuts until I got an Escape. I've raced cars that didn't have the lug nuts torqued and no wheels ever fell off. But torque specs seem to be the flavor of the day. My new bike came with a long list of torque specs for every single machine screw.

Ron

[thoer]

I'm with Ron. I've taken on and off I don't know how many wheels in my lifetime and before I got a vehicle with disc brakes, I'd never once used a torque wrench on them (but I did always followed proper tightening order). My torque wrench came out when rebuilding engines, etc. But that said I was always working on vehicles that had wheels that centered on the hub - trailers are different in that respect.

(Before I get pounced on, and according to my lawyer's advice the following is my disclaimer) Using a torque wrench on the lug nuts is recommended on trailers due to the fact that the wheel can move slightly under the lug nuts after initial installation, and therefore need to be rechecked after use.

[C&G in FL]

Originally Posted by Fox hunt

HA HA OK now you made this even more confusing then the guys at Harbor freight did. Maybe someone at the rally in May will show me what to buy and how to use it -just to check tighten lug nuts- trust me i'm not doing work on brakes etc...

If you watch the You Tube video by Chris Fix entitled "How to properly use a torque wrench" all your questions will be answered. The key points are grab the handle in the center and only the handle. Do not place your second hand on any other part of the wrench. It is best to do a long, slow application of torque until it clicks rather than a bunch of short ratcheting strokes. And be sure to set the torque wrench back to a low value when finished. Buy a 1/2-inch torque wrench that is in the 20-150 foot pound range. This puts the lug nut specified torque somewhat in the middle of the wrench's limits. When choosing a torque wrench (if you have more than one), you select the one where the desired torque will be somewhere in the middle of its limits. You really don't want to use a torque wrench that has a range of 10-100 foot pounds if you want to torque something to 95 foot pounds, if you have another that has a range of 20-150 foot pounds.

[cpaharley2008]

We have yet to hear from last years "Torque" championship winner who used her feminine intuition to beat most of the male's who have posted their expertise here. Her ideas on use of the torque wrench may be enlightening....

[thoer]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

We have yet to hear from last years "Torque" championship who user her feminine intuition to beat most of the male's who have posted their expertise here. Her ideas on use of the torque wrench may be enlightening....

Very true.