Originally Posted by
gutsofgold
Do most of you just judge the torque on the crank arms bolts when installing? Or do you actually use a torque wrench? I hand tightened mine and then gave each one an extra "push" so I could feel the crank arms squeeze up on the BB spindle. I've rode it a few times and it feels great, I'm just not sure if it's too tight (ruin the crank arms?) or too loose.
Not only can too tight ruin the crank arms, but too loose will ruin the crank arms. So can re-tightening the crank arms after they're already installed.
This is why a torque wrench is a good idea. A 20 dollar tool can save you from ruining a couple hundred dollars in cranks. You can get by without one on cheap cranks (I installed a 50 dollar set of cranks without a torque wrench because I didn't mind if I messed em up) if you just tighten them down really well. It's a lot more common to have them too loose than too tight.