I picked the $40 torque wrench over the $300 one and I'm not sorry

Back in March I needed a new torque wrench for compressor service calls. Everyone in my shop said buy the fancy digital one, it's worth it. I grabbed a beam style from the hardware store for 40 bucks instead. I've used it on maybe 30 jobs since, refrigerant line sets, condenser fan motors, all that. The needle bounces a little but I just go slow. It's accurate enough for what I do. The digital one sits in my coworker's box and he's always worried about recalibrating it. I've dropped mine twice and it's fine. Any other guys out there running cheap tools on purpose and not regretting it?

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davis.noah3d ago

Sold my old snap-on torque wrench at a garage sale five years ago after I realized I'd used it twice in a decade. This thirty dollar beam style has held up through every plumbing job and sprinkler repair since, and all I do is check the zero before I start. You're right about the recalibration nonsense, most of us aren't rebuilding engines, we're just tightening stuff down.