Ritterview

Wow, that is a great find.



The key thing is, it comes with...

• Includes 1/4-inch drive 3/4/5/6/8/10mm hex bits and T25 & T30 Torx bits

The Harbor Freight wrench does not, neither does it sell 1/4" drive metric hex bits. You look elsewhere for these, and its expensive. These are $30 at Amazon, and you'll still not have the T25 & T30 Torx bits, nor handy storage as in the Nashbar kit.

colotandem

I have that Nashbar set. It's a pretty handy set and reasonably priced!

For travel, just use my Richey multi-torque key. It is just for 5Nm only. But that is what was needed for the carbon bits on my travel bike.

akexpress 

+1 I have the same kit but also travel with only the richey key as it covers all the things that you torque when traveling.

Ritterview

That won't work for me. The ENVE stem steerer clamp requires 6 Nm, and on the Stoker's suspension Ergon CF3 Pro Carbon Setback seatpost the requirements are for 5 and 7 Nm. If its too loose, it slips.

diabloridr

Another data point: A Human is as Accurate as a Torque Wrench?

Dean V

Why are they so specific on torque settings but do not say if it is for a dry or greased bolt. This has significant effect on what torque you are really getting.

Ritterview

The Ergon seatpost is sold with carbon paste, and the manual specifices where's its to be used.

joe@vwvortex

You didn't mention bolts that already have blue threadlock on them

FBinNY 

You're looking at a different metric than I am. If the goal is to tighten a bolt to a specific torque spec, then a direct reading intrument will generally beat a human. NBut that's not the actual objective. The objective is to tighten a clamp so it holds, without over tightening to where it breaks.

Talk to professional mechanics and they'll speak of countless cases where after torquing to spec, the post slipped, or in some cases cracked. Same with stems, and the pattern repairs all over the bike. So they end up with a dilemma, the part is torqued to spec yet slips, now what. And they are forced to override the spec using they're judgment guided by experience. If bicycles were aircraft engines where torque specs are spot on and meaningful, it would be a different story, but this isn't the case. Bicycle torque specs are more by way of a guideline than a bet your life on it, spot on value.

This is why I say that a torque wrench is not a substitute for skill or judgement. I'm not saying don't use one, just don't depend on one exclusively.

But of course folks are free to do as they please.

zonatandem

Have you ever had the need to call AAA on the north rim of the Grand Canyon, Bulfrog UT or similar places we travel through?
Or cell phone reception trying to call AAA in the middle of some way out mountain range?
Like a good scout, be prepared!

joe@vwvortex

I wouldn't be traveling through there in my Porsche which has no provisions for a spare. It does have a can of fix a flat though.......

jfarwell

I agree with this comment. For carbon parts, in the basement, I use a torque wrench. It doesn't take too long to figure out what feels right. Out there on tour, I tend to go by feel, but just to be safe, I'm having our new tandem built up with aluminum seatposts and handlebars; I'll take my chances on the fork steering tube.

waynesulak

The need for exact torquing and slippage is one reason I am not a big fan of carbon tubes that need to be clamped like on seatposts and handle bars. I did recently buy some carbon bars for the stoker in an effort to make cold weather riding more comfortable and faced the torque wrench question.

Bought a cheap one at harbor freight and had trouble hearing or feeling a click when tightening. I stopped what I was trying to tightened and tested it on a safe bolt and lost all faith in it. Once it clicked at what seemed the right time and the next it never seemed to click. Harbor freight sells cheap tools and I happily buy generic stamped out stuff there. On the other hand, it seems to me that there is little quality control with inexpensive manufacturers. For a lot of stuff that is ok as long as you keep in mind that sometimes you get what you pay for.

I decided to buy an expensive torque wrench to use on my carbon parts and feel better about. It is also nice to use on lightweight aluminum parts as well as the carbon. If it is a critical part like a seatpost or handlebar that might break when over tightened then I am willing to spend money for quality control on the wrench to make sure that does not happen. If I want to save money then aluminum bars and seatposts work well and are not that much heavier.

Mistikka

To return to the Giustaforza that you mentioned at the top of this thread: I have one and it really is a gem for travel. (Yeah, the price is up in the jewelry range, too.) A word of warning if you're considering getting one: the ratchet model is a pleasure to use, but it only works to tighten; you need a second wrench to loosen bolts. For practicality's sake, the non-ratchet model may be a better choice.

merlinextraligh

This. With some feel and experience, you can easily assemble or reassemble a bike without a torque wrench.

For one thing most torque specs on a bike are maximum figures not to be exceeded, not a specific number that has to be hit precisely.

For example, the spec for a stem bolt is typically 5nm. But you just tighten it to the point the bolt is snug and the part doesn't slip. With Cf assembly paste that May well be below 5nm.

A torque wrench is a tool that guards against being ham fisted, but once you have a feel for things it's really not necessary.

I've had the opportunity to do rides supported by mechanics with Pro Tour experience, and they didn't use torque wrenches assembling our bikes.

If you're concerned about crushing CF parts, I would get a torque wrench, use it at home, and get the feel dialed in, but Iwouldnt travel with a heavy torque wrench.

twocicle

Hi Will,

Regarding flying with United (as you referred), since your BikePro case exceeds the 62 inch limit, it is classified as oversized. That would be a $200 fee regardless of your travel class. So, you will not want to check that case as regular luggage (the agent should not allow that anyway).

You should check this case as a bicycle. That will incur a $150/way fee (domestic travel), however the dimension allowed is 115 inches and up to 100lbs. see the UAL Sports Equipment page for info on this.

Note, we once had a UAL check-in agent try to charge us $200 overweight plus $200 oversize with that same type of case. We had to get him to call their own agent help desk to clarify the correct rate per their Sports Equipment rule, even though we had a printout of the same.

Ritterview

I was all set to purchase the Nashbar wrench above, and in reading the reviews at Nashbar several indicated they purchased the exact same wrench elsewhere for cheaper. One mentioned the Venzo version. So I googled Venzo Torque Wrench, and whaddya know, it is exactly the same, and cheaper ($50) as well as Prime at Amazon.



What's great about Amazon, is that it doesn't show up in the credit card bill so clearly as a bike part item as does Nashbar.

colotandem

So does this imply that Mrs. Ritterview keeps track of said "bike part items"?

Ritterview

She can't help but notice, when the credit card bill is a litany of bike retailers. The more that I can put under the generic headers, the better.

This is probably just me, I doubt there's any other guys reading this that have some marital skepticism about cycling purchases.

colotandem

It is not just you. I am just not as smart as you... It struck me as funny that the amazon category would be different on the cc bill (mostly because I had not thought of it before)>

The good news is that I get quite a bit of lee-way when it comes to purchases for the tandems... So there may be some gray area in the "bike parts" purchases category. That is all well and good until I show up with a new cyclocross bike, then there is no hiding it!

akexpress 

I don't get much grief from my wife on bike purchases however everything I buy costs twice as much as the advertised price because I had better buy two of them as she wants to latest as well.