i'm almost done with my engine rebuild and in a few day hopefully i will be torquing down the bottom end to specifications.....

I have a torque wrench that I have never used before, i understand how to set it to the correct ft lbs that i need but, not sure how to tell when i have it torqued down.....

Will it click or will i know when i can turn the wrench anymore?

seems like stupid question but, just never used one before....

Ray

hey, it aint a stupid question i didn't know how to use one untill i started torqin bolts down to see what it would do!lol
but anyway, yea it will click and sorta break some, if that makes since. the wrench will move but the bolt wont, just for that short click. go slow cause you can keep torqing the bolt after it clicks. i would try it out some on other stuff that you don't need first, thats what i did.
i hope that makes since

Yeah---try it out on your lug nuts or something to get the feel of it...........Dan

thanks

A bolt that has oil on it will be tighter than a bolt that is dry, when torqued to the same lb's.
The only dumb question, is the unasked one! Everyone had to learn what they know, from someone else also.
Pat

but dont set it to low. One time I was torqueing down my valve cover bolts to 144 inch pounds (12 foot pounds) and I never heard it click and the bolt snaped. so go slow and get a feel for it first

I have heard that you should have your torque wrench recalibrated every so often. If so how often and where do ou have this done?

I work for a steel fabricator and we have some huge torque wrenches, 2-3 fooet long for bolts used when erecting buildings. I think they need to be calibrated and recertified every so often.

There are companies that do certification of tools. Certification is expensive and is usually reserved for those instances (like public buildings, aircraft, military, etc.) where saftey is an important issue.

I would suggest that you get together with a buddy and torque a bolt or two and have them check it with their tool.

I chucked a nut up in a vise and torqued a bolt into it several times to learn about my newest wrench.

When you're torquing stuff down, don't forget to go in patterns where applicable (such as lug nuts) and creep up on the torquing as opposed to setting it to the number it needs to be the first time and only doing it once. For instace, if you're tighening your intake manifold down to 30 ft/lbs, start at the bolt to the right of the middle (looking from the side) and start torquing them all the 15ft/lbs first going clockwise bolt to bolt like a spiral. That might be hard to understand the way I wrote it, but instructions will tell you. After they're all 15 ft/lbs, set the wrench to 30 and then you're done and you will have much more accurately torqued bolts.

Ray,

I'm curious. You said you're almost through with an engine rebuild. How did you do the top end without torquing?

You're getting a lot of good general info from these wise guru's, but I don't see where you specified exactly the engine or other specs. You must do due diligence to confirm you're doing the right procedure for your application, the right lube, new bolts, right grade, checking bearing clearances, etc., etc.

You should seek out particular details in your manuals, part instructions, etc. I trust you have these references and you're reading this stuff thoroughly.

Take care.

when torqing engine parts cylinder heads,cranks,rods,exc. always torque and retorque always do it 2 times just incase you missed one.

as for recalibrating a torque wrench if it is handled with care and stored properly it is not nessary. i store my torque wrench in it's case when finished and i do not drop it or hit it with anything handle it like a baby.


good luck.

Ray,

I'm curious. You said you're almost through with an engine rebuild. How did you do the top end without torquing?

You're getting a lot of good general info from these wise guru's, but I don't see where you specified exactly the engine or other specs. You must do due diligence to confirm you're doing the right procedure for your application, the right lube, new bolts, right grade, checking bearing clearances, etc., etc.

You should seek out particular details in your manuals, part instructions, etc. I trust you have these references and you're reading this stuff thoroughly.

Take care.

Thanks for asking me this!!

It is a 305 ( i have another post with the specifics that i have done)

I have not bolted anything back together yet, so nothing has been torqued down. I have a shop manual, as well as "78 hot rod elky" helping me out with the things i have issues on.


I also saw a really good article on rebuilding, clearances etc. in car craft magazine.


Basically right now my block sits with the cam in it and all cylinders honed.
The fun stuff starts this weekend, provided i get my heads back from the shop.

When you're torquing stuff down, don't forget to go in patterns where applicable (such as lug nuts) and creep up on the torquing as opposed to setting it to the number it needs to be the first time and only doing it once. For instace, if you're tighening your intake manifold down to 30 ft/lbs, start at the bolt to the right of the middle (looking from the side) and start torquing them all the 15ft/lbs first going clockwise bolt to bolt like a spiral. That might be hard to understand the way I wrote it, but instructions will tell you. After they're all 15 ft/lbs, set the wrench to 30 and then you're done and you will have much more accurately torqued bolts.

Makes a lot of sense....

I practiced on my lug nuts yesterday... Click Click....lol