How does a Torque Wrench Work| Beginners Guide
Do you ever get the chance to tighten the nuts and bolts? Well, you need to know how does a torque wrench work before doing this task. Here, we will help you understand the working completely.
For construction projects and auto repair tasks, the use of torque wrenches is very common. Being the owner of a vehicle, keep in mind that you have to understand its working. It needs calibration before you decide the amount of torque or rotational force to loosen the nuts and bolts. Also, you can fasten them with the help of a good quality torque wrench which is more accurate and easier to handle. According to recent studies and surveys, it is known that these wrenches are better than traditional ones. Moreover, some mechanics overtighten the nuts and bolts. This may reduce the functionality of the machine and even damage the bolts.
How does a Torque Wrench Work?
If you want to increase the life and improve the performance of your equipment, start using torque wrenches. You will also be able to avoid bolt stripping and other damages that standard wrenches could cause. One thing to consider while buying is that there are different torque wrench types. Based on this, how does a torque wrench work is also different for each one of them?
Here we will learn about the basic working of the torque wrenches so that laymen could understand this tool. Also, we will explain how you can make the best use of it in the best possible way.
What is a Torque Wrench?
Do you wonder what is a torque wrench and fail to understand this tool? Well, the torque wrench came into existence in the 20th century by Conrad Bahr. Its design was made in 1918 after which its popularity started to increase. More and more people made use of it, thus it became a common tool in a very short time.
It is a tool that has predetermined calibration of torque value to lose or tighten the bolts. They help provide a proper amount of tension to the fasteners to avoid over tightening and under-tightening. It is essential to provide the bolts and nuts with correct torque for the proper functionality, safety, and assembly of equipment.
Torque Wrench Working Mechanism
The torque wrench mechanism of working is mainly dependent on torque calibration values. According to the calibrated value of torque on the tool, it can put pressure or load onto bolts. The amount of torque that you need to fasten or loosen the bolts depends on how much pressure you apply on its handle. It is also dependent on the length of the torque wrench because we multiply this force with the length.
We know that there are different torque wrench sizes, so they vary in weight and length of the handle. For example, you are applying 20 pounds of pressure on the bolt to tighten or loosen it. The length of the torque wrench is 10-feet. This means that you are using 20-foot pounds of torque to fasten or loosen the bolts. Now, for instance, you are using a 1-foot-long torque wrench and applying 20 pounds-force. This will increase the leveraging effect that we multiply with the torque. Thus, you will be applying 40-foot pounds torque.
We understand from the above section that a torque wrench is the load, pressure, or force that we apply on a fastener. By making use of a deflection beam or spring mechanism, this how does a torque wrench works. The screen at the top will show you the force that you are exerting on the fastener. Apart from foot-pounds, you can also optimize its units as Newton-meter and inch-pounds.
How to use the Wrench?
Other than the working principle of a torque wrench, another important thing to understand is its effective use. How to use a torque wrench when you have never used it in the past. Even if you are a good use of it, how can you use it in better ways than before?
Well, there are different types of torque wrenches, such as click torque wrench, lug nut torque wrench, etc. All of them have different uses although their working principles are the same. So, the first thing is to know the specification of the torque wrench that you are going to use. For this purpose, you can use the manual or get services through an online portal.
The amount of friction that the thread will create when you are fastening the bolt depends on the pressure you are applying to it. The best torque wrench has the least amount of friction, thus you can apply maximum load on it. you can lubricate it with oil to reduce the friction to the minimum value. If it has friction, it can break, or damage the bolt. Therefore, you should always check if it needs lubrication or not.
Another thing to keep in mind while using the car torque wrench is to start with standard wrenches. You may tighten the bolts with the help of it. It should be done to a point where it is not fully tight. After this, you can make use of the torque wrench to fully tighten it according to the specifications given on the fastener.
Overall, we come to know that how to set a torque wrench depends mainly on the thread lubrication. Other than this, the strategy of tightening the bolt is also important because you have to do it very carefully.
Conclusion
From the information given above, we are sure that you understand how does a torque wrench work. It is a simple tool that causes the rotation of an object around the pivot that acts as an axis for the fastener, bolt, or nut. If you understand its working, it becomes very useful in many ways. A simple tool like this could solve your biggest problems related to automobile tasks and construction projects. We are sure that the above information must be of great use for you in this regard, and you will be able to reap its benefits as well.
