Ha ha! I have a Craftsman clicker type torque wrench I've had since buying it new in about 1970. Had it serviced at Sears once about 25 years ago when it broke a pawl in the ratchet mechanism. Now, it's "locked up", I can't turn the adjuster sleeve either direction to adjust the torque settings. Took it to Sears yesterday, and the two young counter guys did't have a clue, about anything. Nothing new compares to it, so I'd like to get it repaired. Has anyone had any dealings with Torque Team out of Bismark, North Dakota? They say they can handle something that "old". Or is there someone else you'd reccomend? I am Butch/56sedandelivery.
I have never had any dealings with them but I have sent torque wrenches out to snapon to be repaired and calibrated.
In the didn't work for me department, when my Sears unit went bad I was told they wouldn't repair it because I didn't bring it back for the "required" annual recalibrations. I tossed it and got a new one. Besides the digital ones are COOL and I needed an excuse for an upgrade. Gary
Loosen the locking nut at end. Mine have a set screw on the side that adjusts breakaway torque. Might try loosening that. To calibrate I have always used a 20lb barbell weight hung a foot out.
I have a Snap On torque wrench that I get checked on the truck every once in a while....check with them.
As a teenager I worked at Sears,Roebuck & Co. in shipping & receiving and I remember all the guys in the tool department knew their stuff and I bought my first set of Craftsman tools at that time,,this was in '67. About 3 years ago my half inch ratchet quit working so I took it to Sears to get the repair kit that was available when I was a employee,,they no longer exist,the young teenage girl,probably part time,didn't have a clue as to what the policy's are but after finding someone in authority she came back and tossed my ratchet in a box under the counter and told me to go get a new one off the rack. I got a new ratchet off the rack and a pair of snap ring pliers and walked back to the counter and started disassembling the new ratchet and asked her to get my old ratchet out and I took the parts out and replaced them with the new ones,,the girl ask why I would want the old ratchet with the dirt and chrome peeling. I just told her because it was just starting to get broken in! HRP
Yup... the 'new' Sears. Prices remain upscale, while quality and service have dropped to K-Mart levels. Corporate can't figure out WHY they are bearly hanging on to the edge of the bowl. I bought my clicker wrench in the mid-70's. Past couple years, it became a KNUCKLEBUSTER when torquing lug nuts at 100ft.-lbs. Easist soultion for me was to replace it with a NEW one from Harbor Fright - 10-bucks with a coupon. NOT that I wanted to, but after reading many pages of good reviews, I took a chance. Also have a in.-lb. wrench ($10), both are made in TAIWAN, decent looking quality. I'll get my CRAFTSMAN wrench fixed before my next engine build. Compare the tool chests between Craftsman and H-F - I couldn't tell much difference, except the PRICE. Butch, ya have any buddys working at Boeing? Maybe they have a buddy inside the plant, or know of a shop in Seattle... Good Luck, Tim
It's unfortunate, but it's much more cost-effective to replace rather than repair. Given the age of the wrench, it's probably impossible to repair in any case.
Sears and K-mapart share the same store in Tucson. I bought my Craftsman battery charger and had K-mapart on the recipt. I have a Snap-On 3/4 drive torque wrench that starts at 100lbs and goes to 800lbs. Never know when ya gotta change a wheel,,,,,on a train.
one thing for certain is if you have a 25 year old tool from Sears that breaks the new replacement will only last 3 years.
I HAD A PROBLEM WITH A 1/4 craftmans ratchet.Sears didn't want to replace it so I just now threw it out and cut up my Sears card! Bruce.
This torque wrench looks brand new, I take very good care of my quality tools; the cheap ones are the ones that get abused. I took a chance and sent it off to Team Torque after talking with them on the phone; they said they most likely can repair it. But, it costs $40 for them to even evaluate it, plus the shipping I paid. I guess that could be an easy way to make money by really doing nothing (?). I could't tell you how many engines I've rebuilt using that wrench, so it's a bit sentimental. I've got other cheap torque wrenches also, some are measured in inch pounds, and some in kgf-cm (kilograms force per centimeter) that were being tossed out by the techs installing a new CAT Scanner in my Dept. years ago. Hopefully it works out for the better, and I'll report back. I am Butch/56sedandelivery.
years ago my 1/4 ratchet quit working. took it apart , cleaned it . Works fine to this day. Old tools are worth saving..
My son is always on a crusade to find good vintage tools. Like me, he despises the "Made In China" scrap. I gave up on Sears after finding that most of their Craftsman line is now of Chinese manufacture. That, and the last time I traded in a couple of broken tools, the sales clerk tried to charge me for the new ones because he wasn't aware of the lifetime warranty...had to track down the store manager for that one.
I've had my 30-40 year old torque wrenches calibrated every so often and it usually costs about what a new "cheapy" wrench would cost new, but I like my older stuff much better. On clicker type wrenches, be sure to store them set at about 30% of their total capacity, that makes them last a lot longer and helps maintain accuracy.
Have a clicker torque wrench for many years now, but learned a very expensive lesson when it got out of wack, sent it out and it was repaired free, to this day, I always check it against my beam torque wrench that my parents got me for at Christmas in 1962/3, I have tools from back then, have served me well and when I wreck one doing stupid, sears always gives me new one, no questions asked.
I gave up on clicker or the break beam style many years ago when I found out heat and cold can effect them plus , I had one screw up and it over torqued on me before it clicked , and damaged the motorcycle head I was torquing down , I now only use a dial style torque wrench Made by proto . the nice thing is its easily calibrated very accurate ( no ratchet teeth to cause misreading ) . and not as fussy as the clickers in cold weather , as for sears tools . I take care of my craftsmans I was given by family over the years , I buy the rebuild kits online vs going to the store and having to deal with the clueless sales people and the crap they sell ( its scary when a 9/16 HF socket can out perform a craftsman ) , lately I been trying to buy Allen tools, I was a S-K tool guy till they went belly up ( they are making a comeback ) as they were one company that made craftsman before it went to mexico, when I rebuild a rachet I use brake grease ( syl glide ) instead of regular grease and they work in all temps . as for calibration of my torques I have a local company that does it for me . its 15 bucks a pop and while you wait .
I had a very accurate beam TQ wrench that I'd use to check mine from time to time. Someone needed it more than I. I look for em at swap meets now.
I had one too , till my brother keyed the car over while torquing down some convertor bolts and made it into a expensive horseshoe ( I will try to get pictures of it as it hangs on his garage wall )
You might try the Matco rep in your area. Mine says he can get any tool repaired. My Matco guy's name is Rick and his phone is 206-818-3491, you might check with him. Len
We've used Team Torque to repair torque wrenches with no problems. I used to own a company that did calibration and we used them to do the repairs on broken wrenches that weren't cost effective for us to repair. I'd call them first to be sure that have the parts to fix your wrench.
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