Any of you guys have a torque wrench (specific brand) that you have good experiences with or any brands to avoid?
I'm guessing a 1/4 inch wrench that covers the 20-150lb range should cover almost everything I would need to do on the bike.

Any of you guys have a torque wrench (specific brand) that you have good experiences with or any brands to avoid? I'm guessing a 1/4 inch wrench that covers the 20-150lb range should cover almost everything I would need to do on the bike.

3/8 would be your friend for that range
craftsman has a digital version for 50 bucks on promo at the moment
1/4" torque wrench shouldnt see much more than 50ft.lb

Get a micrometer type torque wrench. The beam or dial type are not worth the hassle.
 
You almost need 2 wrenches. A 1/4 for the smaller torques usually expressed as in*lb and a 3/8 for ft*lb. I have a 1/2 for doing the axle nut and my tires, but I intend on getting a snap-on Techangle wrench in 3/8 whenever I can afford it.

Get a micrometer type torque wrench. The beam or dial type are not worth the hassle. 
You almost need 2 wrenches. A 1/4 for the smaller torques usually expressed as in*lb and a 3/8 for ft*lb. I have a 1/2 for doing the axle nut and my tires, but I intend on getting a snap-on Techangle wrench in 3/8 whenever I can afford it.

That wonderous tool is expensive
 
https://store.snapon.com/TechAngle-174-Models-2-Accuracy-Ratcheting-Flex-Head-Torque-Wrench-Electronic-TechAngle-reg-Flex-Ratchet-Steel-Body-12-5-to-250-ft-lb-1-2-drive-P823314.aspx
 
I need one though
my craftsnab clicker isnt very accurate

Get a micrometer type torque wrench. The beam or dial type are not worth the hassle. 
You almost need 2 wrenches. A 1/4 for the smaller torques usually expressed as in*lb and a 3/8 for ft*lb. I have a 1/2 for doing the axle nut and my tires, but I intend on getting a snap-on Techangle wrench in 3/8 whenever I can afford it.

That wonderous tool is expensive 
https://store.snapon.com/TechAngle-174-Models-2-Accuracy-Ratcheting-Flex-Head-Torque-Wrench-Electronic-TechAngle-reg-Flex-Ratchet-Steel-Body-12-5-to-250-ft-lb-1-2-drive-P823314.aspx
 
I need one though
my craftsnab clicker isnt very accurate

This is the one that I want. I don't need it in fancy chrome.
https://store.snapon.com/TechAngle-174-Models-2-Accuracy-Ratcheting-Flex-Head-3-8-Drive-Electronic-Flex-Head-TechAngle-Torque-Wrench-5-100-ft-lb--P759379.aspx
 
They are worth every penny if you do a fair amount of engine work. If not than a standard micrometer wrench is perfect.
 
 

That wonderous tool is expensive 
https://store.snapon.com/TechAngle-174-Models-2-Accuracy-Ratcheting-Flex-Head-Torque-Wrench-Electronic-TechAngle-reg-Flex-Ratchet-Steel-Body-12-5-to-250-ft-lb-1-2-drive-P823314.aspx
 
I need one though
my craftsnab clicker isnt very accurate

This is the one that I want. I don't need it in fancy chrome. https://store.snapon.com/TechAngle-174-Models-2-Accuracy-Ratcheting-Flex-Head-3-8-Drive-Electronic-Flex-Head-TechAngle-Torque-Wrench-5-100-ft-lb--P759379.aspx
 
They are worth every penny if you do a fair amount of engine work. If not than a standard micrometer wrench is perfect.
 

3/8" would be fine for 90% of the bike
still expensive though
 

Any of you guys have a torque wrench (specific brand) that you have good experiences with or any brands to avoid? I'm guessing a 1/4 inch wrench that covers the 20-150lb range should cover almost everything I would need to do on the bike.

3/8 would be your friend for that range craftsman has a digital version for 50 bucks on promo at the moment
1/4" torque wrench shouldnt see much more than 50ft.lb

What's the promo? I'd be interested in buying it for $50

 
 

3/8 would be your friend for that range craftsman has a digital version for 50 bucks on promo at the moment
1/4" torque wrench shouldnt see much more than 50ft.lb

What's the promo? I'd be interested in buying it for $50

 
 
Well i feel stupid now.... that was supposed to say 80 bucks.... dont you just love google's text-to-speech engine?
 
http://m.sears.com/craftsman-electronic-torque-wrench-3-8-in-drive/p-00947711000P?intcmp=crf-pdp-buy-cta

 

What's the promo? I'd be interested in buying it for $50

Well i feel stupid now.... that was supposed to say 80 bucks.... dont you just love google's text-to-speech engine?
 
http://m.sears.com/craftsman-electronic-torque-wrench-3-8-in-drive/p-00947711000P?intcmp=crf-pdp-buy-cta

You owe me $30. Ha! Jk. Thanks man.

thanks @sorkyah and @ravenlord
I'll look at the 3/8 wrenches.
I wouldn't even mind the click wrenches (accuracy > fancy) but the only thing that sucks about the craftsman wrenches are that they only give you a 90 day warranty. I'm looking at the Husky (home depot) brand since it has a lifetime warranty and it's not too bad on price
I hope it's better than the harbor freight ones that sell for $10  (rofl)

 

What's the promo? I'd be interested in buying it for $50

Well i feel stupid now.... that was supposed to say 80 bucks.... dont you just love google's text-to-speech engine?
 
http://m.sears.com/craftsman-electronic-torque-wrench-3-8-in-drive/p-00947711000P?intcmp=crf-pdp-buy-cta

That's still a really good price for that wrench. I have the "analog" version of that and the bigger brother (250 ft-lbs), both of which cost me around $100. Sadly, Sears is on its way out of this galaxy, so there will be deals.  Craftsman tools are now pretty much the same as the ones sold by Home Depot and Lowes. Doubtful any of it is made in the USA anymore. 
1/4" drive clickers are almost always in inch-lbs.
 
This may be obvious, but never use a torque wrench to remove a bolt/nut - it can be easily damaged doing this. And always return the adjustment to zero when it goes back in the tool box. Leaving them cranked up will weaken the spring and affect calibration eventually.

I have an old clicker type, Craftsman, that's a real workhorse. It gets down to 11 ft/lbs but the more moto work I do the more I find something that will hit the inch/pounds, so I'll go first back to Craftsman.

I have an old clicker type, Craftsman, that's a real workhorse. It gets down to 11 ft/lbs but the more moto work I do the more I find something that will hit the inch/pounds, so I'll go first back to Craftsman.

i try to stay away from the ends of the ranges for these clickers as they are likely less accurate there than in the meat of the range. i have a 1/4 inch clicker, but usually just depend on my hands and experience in that range. 

I actually calibrate torque wrenches among other things for a living. I usually recommend not getting craftsman torque wrenches to manufactures and shops, but they should be fine for garage use. I always recommend CDI or SnapOn.
 
And yes, a clicker type wrench is definitely the best for working on bikes.
 
Most all torque wrenches are built to be accurate within 20 to 100% of their full range.

I did a little too much research on these things.
I ended up getting the Tekton ones from amazon because people on another forum (Garage Journal) seemed to have good experiences with them and their customer service.
Craftsman/Husky/Tekton were all in the same price range (and all three made in China or Taiwan) and it seems like they are about the same quality nowadays so I just settled for a wrench with a decent warranty that's "good enough." I couldn't justify spending $100+.
I got a 3/8 inch wrench that covers 10-80 ft-lb but I'm considering getting a 1/4 for the inch-pounds.
 
 
I was also searching amazon for a breaker bar and came across this comment that made me laugh:
 

I did a little too much research on these things. I ended up getting the Tekton ones from amazon because people on another forum (Garage Journal) seemed to have good experiences with them and their customer service.
Craftsman/Husky/Tekton were all in the same price range (and all three made in China or Taiwan) and it seems like they are about the same quality nowadays so I just settled for a wrench with a decent warranty that's "good enough." I couldn't justify spending $100+.
I got a 3/8 inch wrench that covers 10-80 ft-lb but I'm considering getting a 1/4 for the inch-pounds.
 
 
I was also searching amazon for a breaker bar and came across this comment that made me laugh:
 

Kinda hard to get perspective from this pict, but the smallest thing here is 1/2" drive. The far left socket is a 36mm lump. The breaker bar is 3/4" drive and the bar itself is 1" diameter. Yep, kinda hard to f*** it up. Needless to say, even a 3ft long piece of pipe and a 150  ft-lb fastener won't bend this sucker.  
http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f216/rashapir/IMG_1018_zpseu8bja1l.jpg
 
 
 

I have a Husky 1/4" torque wrench and it's been good around the shop for about a year so far.
 
The Husky warranty isn't too bad to claim, but you'll need to keep a file with the receipt and barcode if you don't want any hassle come exchange time.

I have a Husky 1/4" torque wrench and it's been good around the shop for about a year so far. 
The Husky warranty isn't too bad to claim, but you'll need to keep a file with the receipt and barcode if you don't want any hassle come exchange time.

I have a Home Depot pretty much in walking distance from my house. Been using their tools w/o issue for a while now. Quality (finish as well) seems pretty good. 

Being an automotive mechanic I stand by my snap on tools. I have both 1/4 and 3/8 electronic torque wrenches previously mentioned and I wouldn't go back to regular click type. So much more you can do and it converts to different measurements as well as angles. Very pricey but definitely worth it.

Well, I'm not a mechanic in the least, so you should probably not do what I do. I bought a click-type torque wrench 3/8" drive from Harbor Freight for about $35. I'm gentle with it, always keep it in its little box and don't bang it around. It's been a little over a year since I tightened down the bolts for my frame sliders and axle sliders with it, and they haven't fallen off yet. I've used it for a number of other jobs with the same results as far as I can tell. It may not be a good quality tool, but I wouldn't know the difference anyway.
 
I will also just add, for everyone's amusement, that when I initially got it, I didn't know if it was okay to use a torque wrench to loosen bolts. I spent hours googling that. Every mention of a torque wrench I could find was about tightening bolts, never about loosening them. Of course, it's "common sense" to someone who is mechanically-inclined, but I am not so blessed.  ;-|
 

Yeah, they operate in what looks like a loosening mode, but in reality, it's for tightening those pesky left-handed fasteners.

Ya not recommended to loosen bolts with it lol, like Rick said it's for those awful left hand threads.