If a nut or bolt is not tightened sufficiently it will eventually work loose and may even drop off resulting in damage or a dangerous situation. Conversely, if the nut or bolt is tightened too much, it may either strip its thread, snap, or stretch the stud being fastened. A torque wrench is specifically designed to avoid both of these situations — it produces the correct amount of tension in the bolt necessary to hold the parts together without the danger of distorting the bolt, nut or the parts they are holding together.
For higher ranges of torque settings, the torque wrenches used have to be strong and robust, as well as being accurate. This new range of torque wrenches from Laser Tools fits the bill, and are very well suited to heavy workshop use in both commercial vehicle and motor racing applications. There are four torque wrenches in the range: 1/2″-drive x 595mm length (part no: 7169), 3/4″-drive x 970mm length (part no: 7170), 3/4″-drive x 1150 length (part no: 7171) and 1″-drive x 1250mm length (part no: 7172).
The wrenches are dual scale, with a separate easy to read unit graduation and feature a locking ring to maintain the setting. They are all supplied with a calibration certificate. The torque range for each wrench:
7169: 1/2″-drive: 60 – 300Nm (44 – 221lb/ft)7170: 3/4″-drive: 110 – 550Nm (81 – 405lb/ft)
7171: 3/4″-drive: 150 – 750Nm (110 – 553lb/ft)
7172: 1″-drive: 200 – 1000Nm (147 – 737lb/ft) — as used by Laser Tools Racing in the BTCC, for the centre wheel-retaining nuts on Aiden Moffat’s Mercedes-Benz A-Class, which are torqued to 750Nm.
