Do Owners Find Expensive Torque Wrenches To Be More Accurate Than Bargain-Bin Ones?
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You've heard the saying, "You get what you pay for"? Well, it doesn't always apply to torque wrenches. Sometimes cheap torque wrenches can be just as accurate as expensive ones. This has been demonstrated by several YouTubers and bloggers who conducted their own tests. In fact, the winner in one test cost the YouTuber just $9.
This is usually reflected in these wrenches' product descriptions. Both cheap and expensive wrenches, with some exceptions, typically list their accuracy as within 2% to 6% and 20% to 100% of full scale. What do those numbers mean? Let's say your wrench is rated for 20 to 200 pound-feet of torque, but its accuracy is certified for within 4% of 20%-100% of full scale. That means it's most accurate at 40 to 200 lb-ft (20% of 200 lb-ft = 40 lb-ft), and will be less accurate at torque lower than 40 lb-ft. Torque accuracy, naturally, is important (so you have to know how to tell if your car parts are torqued to spec).
So why are some wrenches so expensive? Basically, you're paying for features. For instance, Milwaukee sells a torque wrench priced at $899. We don't know who would be possessed to pay that much for a torque wrench, unless they're working on the next NASA rocket. It's accurate to within 2%, but this wrench is motorized, is digital, and has Bluetooth. Yes, Bluetooth. We've never once been working on our car and thought to ourselves, "You know what would make this job easier? Bluetooth."
What the owners of torque wrenches say
We looked at the torque wrenches rated 4.8 stars and above on Amazon and found prices ranging from $26 all the way up to $615. The reviewers for the $26 product, the Yiyeie Upgrade 3/8-inch drive torque wrench, had almost nothing but good things to say. The 35 reviews consistently used phrases like, "quality wrench," "quality tool," and "well-built." One reviewer said it "Looks and feels like a more expensive tool."
The wrench that was most similar but more expensive is the $161 Proxxon 23350 3/8-inch torque wrench. Customers were equally effusive about it, one saying, "Simply put: quality, reliable, and handy. Great purchase." There also were a few negative reviews (to be fair, this product has hundreds more reviews than the other one), one saying that it was made from poor materials, one said a part fell off, and another called it "unusable."
Someone posted the question on Reddit's r/Tools: "Is there any difference between cheap and expensive torque wrenches?" Most of the commenters weren't sold on the idea that cheaper torque wrenches can be of good quality. One Redditor, u/stoneymightknow, praised the $25 Harbor Freight wrench they own, but most of the others said the more expensive wrenches are more accurate and durable. U/endofbeanz stated, "You do in fact get what you pay for."
Obviously, everyone's got opinions. What's important is to find a quality torque wrench, which will help with things like preventing spark plug ejection.
Calibration can make all the difference
Both cheap and expensive torque wrenches lose their accuracy over time. Wear and tear will do that, as will dropping the wrench, or letting it bang around with the other tools in your tool box. That's why it's generally recommended to get them calibrated after every 5,000 cycles or every year, whichever comes first. We don't know who keeps track of every time they use a torque wrench, so the once-a-year recommendations seems like a good rule.
Automotive Racing Products (ARP) has let attendees at various events bring torque wrenches to its trailer for accuracy testing. Chris Raschke, ARP director of sales and new products, said via EngineLabs, "Torque wrench calibration is absolutely critical. We've seen up to a 49-percent drift on wrenches brought to our event trailer. That can really play havoc on your desired clamp load."
Financially speaking, however, getting a calibration only makes sense for the more expensive, or maybe mid-priced, wrenches. The cheapest calibration services we could find start at $30, and they can go for well over $100. That doesn't include shipping the tool or labor if it needs to be repaired. So if you're content to the get the $20 torque wrench from Walmart, it will cost you less just to buy a new one every year. The important thing is to use a torque wrench that's accurate (though you don't need to use a torque wrench on oil drain plugs).
