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Spent $180 on a used torque wrench off a guy in Bakersfield, and it paid for itself on one flange job
Picked up a used 3/4 inch drive torque wrench off a retired millwright in Bakersfield last month for $180. It looked rough but he swore it held spec, so I took it to a shop and had it checked for $40. It tested dead on. Two weeks later I used it on a header flange on a package boiler and hit the spec first try, no re-torque, no leak at startup. On that one job it saved me about six hours of going back and forth with a breaker bar and a cheater. I know buying used tools is a gamble, but a calibration check took the guesswork right out of it. Any of you running older torque wrenches, how often do you actually send them in for a check?
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the_anthony10d ago
I always figured used torque wrenches were too risky and you'd just be trusting a stranger's word, so I stayed away from them for years. Getting it checked for $40 is the part that changes the math, since the check turns a gamble into a known quantity, and yours paid off on that flange job. Your mileage may vary with how the tool was stored, but a cheap check before use seems like the smart move.
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