Torque Wrench?

Judging by the mount of scope tube damage I've seen listed on the EE over time, I'd say YES a torque wrench is a Must.

From what have seen it isn't a torque problem, it's incompetent people installing their mounts and scopes.
 
If you don't have access to a torque tester that is in turn, properly calibrated, at best, you are hoping that the wrench you use is capable of getting pretty close to the last bolt or screw you tightened, at the same setting.

Which, for anything that does not have the possibility of throwing me in jail for the failure of, is fine. Y'know. For folks not working for NASA, or otherwise sweating things, when some disaster hits the news.

If you feel the need to bruise your fingers on every bolt you tighten, unless you use a torque wrench, maybe you should be a yard monkey stripping things apart at a Cat dealership or somewhere similar. The tools are pretty well scaled to their use, and tight enough, is.
Unless it isn't. In which case you are supposed to be 10 percent smarter than the tool you are using, and figure out why, before reaching for a bigger hammer.

Stripping the odd thread along the way is a pretty good sign that you at least have been doing something besides sitting on your hands.

Doing it again and again, on the other hand, is a pretty sure sign that you didn't learn anything from the last go round either. :) Met one or two of those.

You pretty much have to part with some decent money to own a decent tool. The cheap option is weights and strings, but they are sure a bugger to work with some times.
 
Tell you what Guntech I am an aviation mechanic and the wheeler was junk, I have many years in the business and if a machinist had your thoughts he does not last long!
 
If you are going to buy a torque wrench for whatever reason buy a good one. Even better if you can have it calibrated. No sense torquing if you don't know what your wrench is doing.
 
Tell you what Guntech I am an aviation mechanic and the wheeler was junk, I have many years in the business and if a machinist had your thoughts he does not last long!

We just differ on what requires torquing to an exact figure. Aviation yes. Scope mounts no.
 
Even in aviation, there is a time to use one, when specified, and lots more times, when the accepted practice is to just do it up and do a decent job of it.

Have seen an awful lot of brand new replacement torque wrenches put on our CF tool boards. Strangely, they always seemed to be clicker type units, unable to pass calibration.
The spring-bar units, esp those with a dial and manually resettable 'max' needle types just kept plugging along.

Like any tool, knowing how to use it is more important than who made it, at least once you are in to the realm of useable tools fit for their purpose, which all too much consumer junk isn't.
 
Amazon.ca had a 1/4" torque wrench for about $30.00
It is a spring type.
I use it for the action screws on my Anschutz.
Seldome do I use it on scope or mounts, commen sense and experance work well (plus the WTF of a stripped out thread fear)
 
I just ordered the wheeler torque wrench, I had read some reviews about the cheaper ones having issues with the calibration.
 
I use a princess auto ratchet style torque wrench. Mostly because I'm a cheap bugger and I can buy another rifle for the cost of a good one lol.

It supposedly starts at 20inlbs but I can dial it down a little lower. I've set up all my scopes with it with no issues.

I dont know how accurate it is in terms of listed torque vs reality, especially when working outside the listed range.

Only part of my concern is over torquing. I'm always careful to torque in even steps and not over do it. That click is very light on such a low setting.

My bigger concern is to ensure EVEN torque on all the screws (I installed a mark 4 last night and the rings use 6 screws each.) I think this is more important for accuracy and even retaining the torque during recoil.

That said, Cadex sells a torque wrench kit (with a set of torque adapter bits) Might be more reliable if it matches the quality of their other products.

Chris

Edit: Cadex lists it at $285. Sounds high but good torque wrenches are not cheap. My snap on 3/8 was over $500!

Doesn't actually list the included limiters except in a picture. Looks like 6, 25, 35, 45 and 65 Inlbs plus a bunch of other bits
View attachment 253315
Hope it's ok that I uploaded the pic.
 
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Now that I come to think of it I did because I bought that whole Wheeler kit that gives you all the latest toys to mount a scope which included the lapping bars and compound. And I remember that was one of the rifles I initially tried it all on.

Do you think that the little material removed from lapping was the cause of the lose scope?
 
Do you torque your barrels or is that that just oh that's ok? Just because you always have done things an old way does not mean it is right!
 
So you don' follow 43-13 1&2

We had a different set of Technical Orders to follow. Plus a Military Prison for our sorry ass to land in to if we screwed it up.

General torque values charts? Ever actually see anyone use a torque wrench on panel screws? I have not.

I actually have a copy of 43-13 around here somewhere. It got used while I was at a civ College, as a reference book, but I can safely say I have not looked in it after that. Got far more usage out of the K factor charts in the Pocket Reference book, than pretty much anything else.

The Canadian Forces Technical Orders, were/are incredibly more in depth than what could be covered by the AC43-13, with a separate set of books in addition to the 'general' ones, for the specific aircraft types.

Personally, I thought that almost all the Civ aircraft repair stuff (edit: Manuals and reference material, not workmanship or such) I saw, was pretty crappy.
 
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