kcari

iTrader: (5)

anyone not use em? or just trust the power of the impact drill?

tuningmycivic

iTrader: (11)

yes. if you do any wrenching of your own, a torque wrench is a good thing to have. you can cause some serious damage under- or even in some cases, over-torquing a bolt or nut..

manahoonie

well, if you overtorque a nut or bolt too much, the next time you may need to go at it, it will probably be a b***** to get off, from all the vibrations the car puts it through and all too.

jgcentury

absolutely ^, especially on something like alloy wheels, you can possibly over torque a lug nut and crack a rim with an impact gun.

kcari

iTrader: (5)

well i just removed my wheels today and put them on without an impact gun. I think i'm more concerned about not putting them on hard enough rather than over doing it because im weak

jgcentury

100 ft lbs is all you need which isn't much, I've broken a stud cranking on a lug by hand with a four way lug wrench. When you use a torque wrench for the first time and see what 100 ft lbs feels like it's like, "wow!, that's not much at all."

tuningmycivic

iTrader: (11)

if you have ever had to stand on your lug wrench to get the wheel off, it was probably over-tightened, which is more than 100 ft/lbs....

kcari

iTrader: (5)

so whenever i need work done on my wheels/brakes etc or any other time that an impact gun is required, what should i do since most shops do not use a torque wrench. it took me a lot of effort to remove my lug nuts even with a pipe extension

jgcentury

Tell them use a f'ing torque wrench, all shops should have them if they have any decent mechanics.

kcari

iTrader: (5)

can i get one for under 20 bucks?

kcari

iTrader: (5)

btw, can undertightened lug nuts cause the car to feel wobbly - or perhaps i just need an alignment (after lowering my front half an inch more today) tire balancing?

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

i had to use a breaker bar with a cheater pipe on the end of it to get my lug nuts loosened after a shop worked on it. im surprised they didnt break off they were way overtorqued. 80 ft/lbs is all you need and yes all nuts have to be the exact same torque or the rotors will warp. i cant believe so many people still dont use a torque wrench. just amazes me. my huge one costed $25

kcari

iTrader: (5)

ya my rotors is kinda warp already - i feel sensation under my breaks sometmies.
so im gonna get that torque wrench tomorrow.

if its over tightened past 80 ft/lb will it tell me?

jgcentury

with a torque wrench, it will just click when you get it tightened to the setting that you have it on, then you know you are done. And some you can find for pretty cheap, cheapest I've seen is $14, but you should make sure you get a decent brand at least. I've also seen some in the + $100 range. But that isn't that necessary unless you are a mechanic or at least someone who uses it very frequently.

manahoonie

yeah. Snap-On has ones that are digital that get pretty pricey!

wow, it's been quite a while since i've named brands like that!

Hondan

I am going to purchase 1 soon.

kcari

iTrader: (5)

what will the torque wrench do if my lug nuts are tighter than setting?

jgcentury

You don't have to take them off with the torque wrench if that is what you mean, otherwise I'm not following....

civicsrcool

i dont know how you anyone can call themselves are car enthusiast/mechanic without using a torque wrench. torqing bolts is VERY CRITICAL.

civicsrcool

the torque wrench will click if it is overtightened and not tighten the bolt anymore. to redo it just loosen the lug nuts and retighten them slowly until you hear the audible click from the wrench. if you do it too fast the torque wrench might give you inaccurate readings because it couldnt read the torque readings fast enough.. also do not drop your torque wrench and do not leave it on the highest settings for long periods of time. doing so will knock the calibrations off of the wrench.

i bought a really nice HUSKY torque wrench from home depot for 60 bucks. it locks in the torque so it cannot be changed while using it. comes with a nice carrying case too so it doesnt get damaged.

jgcentury

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^Husky from Depot for $60 w/case ftw!!!!

kcari

iTrader: (5)

so i loosen my nuts first while the car is not jacked up, then retighten them with the torque wrench?

jgcentury

correct!

kcari

iTrader: (5)

okay the difference in feeling was actually the lugs not being tightened enough!! i just went out this morning and thought i would try to retighten them and hell they were still able to be tighten by a lot and i barely used any force. I guess I was just afraid to over tighten them that I under tightened them. Afterwards, took it out for a drive and the feeling is back to normal woot woot.
i'll ask the alignment place to retorque them to be safe. thanks again

manahoonie

it will click when it reaches the set ft. lbs.

just put on your lugs (or whatever bolt/nut) with your hand, until it's hand-tight...then just use the torque wrench to get it to the set ft. lbs.

using it as a normal wrench up until the set ft. lbs. doesn't mess it up or anything.

IMSHANE

If you ever need a quick torque check Discount Tire can check them for free. It doesn't take that much time to torque depending on the wheels. Most take less than a minute. The torque for the lugs is 80 ft lbs and any experienced tech there can tell when they are over torqued.

TemjinX2

iTrader: (11)

80lbs is enough to have them tight. you don't want to over tighten them because you can cross thread the threads on the hub. its a relatively expensive fix. just tighten them and drive around for a bit and gently re-tighten them if there slightly loose. torque wrenches are very useful when your tighten more fragile components like suspension and screwing on bolts in the engine bay.

metalviper

iTrader: (13)

it looks like you have non oem wheels. if you have a key you shouldnt use an impact gun anyway. and how the hell do you not know to loosen the lugs beforre you jack up the car?

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

with aluminum wheels, they will need to be retorqued again after around 50 miles before they keep the right torque.

DDragon7

I know I should be doing that, but I always end up doing it a lot later, but they dont loosen itself. That's for me anyways, I cant say the same for others.