1st torque wrench! Deciding on bolt torque?

[GeoHorn]

Good words, RCW…. And I’ll add another consideration: In the “good ol’ days”…. engines were asembled with gaskets…. made of paper or rubber or cork even. The torque-specs were in consideration of the use of gaskets.
However in “modern times”…. engines may be asembled using RTV or “Gasket-Maker” adhesives which compress and squeeze-out excess RTV instead of …say…compressing a gasket made of cork.
The difference can be significant.…and especially-so when dealing with aftermarket replacement parts which may be constructed of materials different than OEM……the point being to be judicious when using older data with newer or modified equipment. Use the instructions and data such as torque which applies to the actual equipment being worked. If an aluminum diffy cover with RTV is used in place of the OEM stamped-steel cover which utilized a paper gasket…. then don’t use the 20 year old data found in the Chilton manual. Use the data that came with the aftermarket cover, etc. etc.

 

[Mossy dell]

Oh, the details and complexities grow the more one knows and does! Great info and questions, RCW. I now even have to wonder and worry about getting my wrench recalibrated. Before, the issue as tight or loose. My hunch is that many mechanics don't take the time to sweat torque; they have a feel or just get things "guten tite!"

 

[RCW]

Oh, the details and complexities grow the more one knows and does! Great info and questions, RCW. I now even have to wonder and worry about getting my wrench recalibrated. Before, the issue as tight or loose. My hunch is that many mechanics don't take the time to sweat torque; they have a feel or just get things "guten tite!"

Mossy - -

You're not torqueing heads on a high performance engine head.....

Don't sweat calibration for your uses....just use it when you want to!!!

Whether it's REALLY 104 or 112 will not make a difference for what you're doing.....you're in the ballpark. Call it good enough. I do.

Have no interest in re-calibration for lug nuts....

I sometimes think about pulling mine out for the blade bolts on my mower. Seems like 90 or so.....I don't use the torque, but should....I did for several years, and got a good idea...wouldn't be bad to re-learn myself.

Honestly, those oil pans/drain plugs I mentioned before can get you quick and be a real hassle more than a wheel stud or lug nut.

Mine is steel (I think), but many engines have very thin pans, or aluminum. Good thing to not get heavy-handed with. A TW is a good thing to have and use, if new to the process.

 

[Oliver]

.....I'm always concerned with aluminum oil pans. Doesn't take much to strip out a drain plug.....a torque wrench could be handy for something like that......

Use caution tightening bolts into oiled aluminum threads. That's what I did many years ago on a 1976 motorcycle and I kept thinking "man it's still turning surely it'll click soon?" Well it didn't, it suddenly started turning easier after it stripped! I believe it called for 18 ft lb, I should have reduced it to 13-14# to allow for the residual oil present on the threads. Since then that's one application where I tighten by feel, and it really doesn't take much tightening to hold a plug in.

 

[Mossy dell]

I guess I'll round this off. I regret that this thread's subject line reflects where I started—learning to use a torque wrench—and not where it went: discovering a missing bolt, having the dealer install that bolt, and finding the new bolt loose.

Today I checked all the loader subframe bolts, about half of which seemed fine and the rest loose. The new bolt and the one they moved next to it, farther to the rear, are real bears to work on (see middle photo, below).

The farthest rearward bolt, the one that wasn't tightened at all but at least now exists, is crowded by a bracket. It is impossible to get my torque wrench between the nut and the bracket. I had to lie on my back and use a regular wrench to tighten it. Maybe this is why the tech didn't tighten it.

The bolt in front of that one is right above the big round tube that's the bottom of the loader subframe. My torque wrench can be used but it contacts the tube. I doubt this enables an accurate torque reading. So I just got that one tight too and let it go.

The first photo shows my loader manual for the location. Next is the fix with the new rearward bolts that are hard to work on. The bottom is what I initially found.

 

[Fordtech86]

Now its time to invest in torque adapters and a calculator

(just jokin)