OT torque wrench

I Knowing what their purpose is and what they are used for, I hope you didn't need that warning. About the only time I could see using one to loosen a bolt would be if you wanted to see if it was excessively torqued. Even then, not sure if you torqued it to 30 that means it will unscrew at 30, might take more, but there should be a correlation.

A friend of mine was complaining that a tire shop had way over torqued his lugs. He went back and the manager took a torque wrench, put it on a lug, showed him that it clicked at the correct value and said that proved they torqued it correctly......

I used my cheapo to loosen the wheel nuts - but I'm pretty sure that was not the failure cause - they both had screws loosen off - in different spots . I suspect that homeowner torque wrenches do not measure the loosening torque . . < professional tools - perhaps ? >

Re-torquing click does not prove that it wasn't originally over-torqued ... duh. John T.

Lifetime of the wrench is when id dies (or falls apart)

Torque wrench reads both directions - has to, otherwize you could not torque left hand nuts. The "prohibition" against using it for loosening is the fact that the force released when a bolt snaps loose is extreme and WILL throw the calibration off in time. If the bolt/nut is not semi-seized, and comes off easily with no "snap" it will NOT hurt the wrench - but you don't know how it will come off untill you try it. That's why the "kits" come with a "breaker bar" - break the nuts loose with the breaker bar, then run them off with the torque wrench with the ratchet set to the "off" position. Why else would they but a reversible ratchet head on a torque wrench????

Ask DeWalt or all the other wrench companies .. John T.

Princess Auto was very good with both returns - I didn't need to show proof of purchase or anything. .. but the product was still very poor - I suspect that they had a lot of returns .. I got a store credit for the $ amount so they will get about 50 % back ...

As for CTC I copied the web site lifetime warranty - to use when this one fails... as opposed to the packaging 1 year warranty. John T.

I'm not arguing with Clare or DeWalt ... except - .. why do they put a reverse option ? on the cheap homeowner torque wrench that is not meant for that task ? .. and then print strict warnings to never use it to loosen a lug nut ... John T.

Two reasons. It is cheap to do. You may also want to measure torque on lef hand thread.

I don't us chisels as screwdrivers even if they fit the slots or gefty wrenches as hammers. But, this is America, you can if you want to.

Didn't the older Chrysler products have left hand threaded lug bolts on the driver's side?

because, like I said, you sometimes need to torque a LEFT HAND THREADED FASTENER. My 1/2 inch drive Snap-On micro-adjusting click torque wrench is now ell over 40 years old - they don't have the jigs for recalibrating it any more - and it has been used "in reverse" fairly often - but NOT as a "breaker bar"

So did some oldsmobiles and cadillacs and hudsons and some British cars as well - just for starters,

Keep the receipt - the "lifetime warranty" is with CTC - not Stanley/ Black and Decker Corp (the owner of DeWalt brand).

CTC is pretty good with their warranty - but not as simple as Princess Auto (we are not satisfied until you are)

My 1/2" drive beam torque wrench is getting old too. It still works.

Do they say what they will replace it with?

Perhaps a kitten.

My beam wrench is likely older than me - not much to go wrong on them