FlatSix911

Get a torque wrench with interchangeable bits ...

Drew Eckhardt 

Note however that conventional micrometer torque wrenches are only accurate in the top 80% of their range.

Looigi

Simplistic dogma based on "% of full scale" spec. Do a calibration curve for one of these wrenches and you'll likely find it's most accurate somewhere other than near the max. For example, a 100 ft-lb wrench rated with an accuracy of %3 full of scale means that nowhere will it be more than 3 ft-lb off. It could be 3 ft-lb off at 100 ft-bl and only 0.5 ft-lb off at 30.

Retro Grouch 

Yeah, but sometimes 1 measurement is worth 1,000 guesses.

Coal Buster

Very true. When calibrating torque wrenches where I used to work, you'd find a sweet spot where it was accurate and a gradual drift away from accuracy at each end of the pole. If you calibrate your own (and if your scale isn't accurate, it's a waste of time) there are two approaches. Keep a chart with the correct values for whatever is read on the scale, or set it to be spot-on at a value you always use and ignore the rest. I suspect that's what is done with these preset type wrenches and why they may be very accurate (but I never tested one).

HillRider

Mine isn't a micrometer, it's a beam wrench, and I'm using it to set 4 to 5 Nm while full scale is 7 Nm

JerrySTL

My CF Giant Defy Advanced has a CF seat post. And it's not a standard round post; rather, it's teardrop shaped. It kept slipping down so I kept tightening it up. Of course I didn't have a torque wrench that went that low.

The Cost: $250
New seat post: $200
Nice little torque wrench: $25
Tacx Carbon Prep: $25

Now I'm a great believer in torquing things properly and Tacx Carbon Prep. That stuff keeps things from slipping and binding without having to resort to excess tightening.

Slash5

The 6nm is the max torque for the stem - they don't know what you are using it on. I think you will find that the fork manufacturer recommends 4nm.

Sixty Fiver

My nice little torque wrench... $150.00



Precision is rated at 4% and is rated for 5000 clicks before re-calibration is required... in a shop environment this level of tool quality makes sense and ensures that torque values are set properly.

It comes in a padded steel tin which makes one mindful not to drop it and it is also compact enough and light enough to live in my shop apron.

(Ritchey sells a re-branded version of this for $100.00 more).

loimpact

Another vote then for the Ritchey tool right at 5nm!

FWIW, my UD CF seatpost has some interesting data that goes like this:


- Seatpost clamp itself says "5nm"

- Sticker on the UD CF seatpost itself says "Recommended torque 6.2nm"

- And then on that same sticker the line right below that says "Max torque 8nm"

That'll keep ya guessin, eh?

Again, I'd guess a 5nm would probably be plenty & certainly safe enough.....BUT.....how in the world somebody's gonna target 6.2nm is beyond me if none of these tools can be as accurate as such anyway...LOL

(FWIW, I recall my fitting guy at the LBS used the same exact "Torqkey" for every fastener on the stem/steerer/seapost and has been the fitter there for 2 years now)

(shrug)

fietsbob

good thing about torque wrenches , the Newton/ Meter numbers have meaning, being on the scale of a 1/4" drive one..
So, we can put a number value on "how tight"

though some may be in inch / Oz pounds but you can find metric conversions online.

beam type cost less..