Craftsman Microtork Torque Wrench, 25-250 in. lbs., 3/8 in. Drive

"great torque wrench for the price, it has a nice, loud "click" that you can hear and feel to know that your nut or bolt is properly torque to specification.Note: This reviewer may have received a benefit, like a sweepstakes entry or rewards program points, in exchange for writing this review. The benefits were not conditioned on the positive or negative content of the review."

"Between lawn mower, tractor and auto engine maintenance and repairs, my Craftsman Microtork 3\8" 25 to 250 in. lbs (2-20 ft. lbs.) wrench has been invaluable, providing me accurate torque settings over the past 10 years! I had worked with and fought cheaper inferior products for 10 years prior, but found this wrench to offer excellent control, positive feedback, solid build quality and great $$$ value.

When not in use, I keep the torque settings turned way down. During my calibrations and applications, I have found it to keep consistent accuracy through the middle 80%. I purchased it on sale and find its performance\value for my non-professional use to be A+! "

"I used this torque wrench when I rebuilt the top end of my pickup truck. Most everything is torqued in inch pounds so it was invaluable. You can also convert inch pounds to foot pounds for things torqued up to about 22 foot pounds.



The numbers for torque settings didn't last too long. The numbers are still there, but the paint comes off easily, so it makes it tough to tell what torque setting you're at. The dial didn't quite line up correctly. It took a while playing with it to get used to how it was set. As far as actual working, it did perform well. I'm not sure I had too much confidence in the torque, but I didn't have any other way to measure it.



I bought this wrench when it was on sale for $59.99. Even at that price, I don't think it was much of a value. I've seen cheap torque wrenches at Harbor Freight for $19.99 that appear to be better built.



Overall, I needed the wrench when I bought it. It did the job I wanted it too. If I was shopping for a torque wrench, though, I probably wouldn't buy this one again."

"Not accurate at all. I set the torque (using the meter on the tool) to 80in-lb and it was off by 20in-lb or so. I used two other torque wrench borrowed from friends and both confirmed being off by 20in-lb and 22in-lb. I'll be returning the product today."

"This is a very nice torque wrench for its price. Plus it's Made In The USA! Mine came with the BONUS free storage case and includes a owners manual. The ratchet mechanism works very smoothly. The only drawback to this wrench is the plastic locking collar. But, should it ever break, parts are available through Sears Parts Direct for very reasonable prices (Replacement plastic handle w/lock collar is only $7.99). Keep in mind though, that Craftsman Precision tools such as torque wrenches, micrometers, dial calipers etc., only have a one year limited warranty, and are NOT covered by the Forever Warranty the rest of the hand tools have. They never have been and probably never will be. I mention this only because apparently alot of people don't seem to know this, and then they complain and run Sears down for it. I would recommend this tool to anyone; just be gentle with it and you should have no problems."

"I needed the range that this wrench provides, but the dial does not line up with the numbers as you adjust the scale. So I never really was sure what exact torque setting I was on. I'll have to get my ft-lb craftsman wrench and do some testing on a bolt just to figure out if I need to be reading the next number up or below. Not what I expected for $70.



Also, when you adjust for more tension, the clicking action vibrates the wrench and causes the lock adjuster to rotate to the locked position. So if you aren't holding the lock adjuster in the unlock position, while adjusting the wrench for more tension, it will stop you dead in your tracks.



I'll keep it and figure out the quirks, but $70 is a lot of money to be putting up with this. Nearly all my other craftsman tools have been good, but this one leaves some to be desired."

"I've had this wrench (or at least the preceeding equivalent model) for two years, and it's been used probably ten or so times to tighten the lug nuts on my car and once to tighten the oil drain plug.



The cheap plastic control at the base is now busted. It's never been dropped, hammered on, abused, etc, but the mechanism to lock does has broken. It's a Craftsman hand tool, so I just assumed that "Guaranteed Forever" applies and took it back to Sears only to find out that this piece of junk has only a one-year warranty.



For $80, this tool should have lasted for more than ten uses and longer than two years.



I would *NOT* recommend this tool to anyone, and I will think twice about purchasing Craftsmain again in the future (and at the very least will be scrutinizing the warranty from now on)."

"I purchased this torque wrench and used it for one job, to torque the bolts down on my 2001 Cobra intake manifold. Torque specs were 25in lb, 36in lb, 49in lb.

While it did its job the plastic locking ring was the part that failed.

The last torque sequence is when the locking ring broke and spun all the way around without hitting its stop. I didn't turn it hard, it just hopped over the ill designed plastic bump-stop.

It would still lock but it was harder to find the locking point until it was such a PITA to find the locking point again.

I decided to return it.

My Father uses Snap-On only and I use Craftsmen only but I can say NONE of his Snap-On torque wrenches do this and they ALL have an unsaid lifetime calibration warranty. I am strongly considering the Snap-On TECHWRENCH to use on my web-show DriverMod XL. So while Craftsman hand tools will be shown on my YouTube show, any time I need to pull out a torque wrench the Snap-On will be seen.

Snap-On does not say they have a lifetime replacement warranty on Torque wrenches but my Father has ALWAYS been able to swap out torque wrenches no matter how long he has had it. His Snap-On guy never held it against him, in fact he has had dozens of Snap-On guys in two states over the years and NONE of them have ever refused a torque wrench nor any other tool.

For such an important part of ones equipment I find it down right disgraceful to Craftsman's name to not have a lifetime calibration warranty and to use so many cheap plastic parts.

I feel that I speak for the masses when I say we ALL would not mind paying a couple dollars more for plastic parts to go missing even in the cheapest of the tools in your line up.

That goes for cheap metal too! I don't know how many times I have busted my knuckles after the gears in my cheaper Craftsman ratchets failed. My Pro ratchets have not had this problem nor have my Thin Profile ratchets.

These are tools, not toys.

Sincerely;

Eric Crain

CrainRacing - DriverMod XL"

"I am a mechanic and I purchased this torque wrench to tighten the smaller bolts and nuts

like the piston connecting rods, camshaft bolts, oil pan cover, valve covers,water pump and bolts and nuts that required less than 50 pound, ( i don't go tightening my tire lugs with this wrench like that other guy, hahaha). For over 50 lbs of torque I have another torque wrench that is two and a half the size of this one but that is just me i guess I could use it for bigger torquing, but when I need to put over 90 lbs on the head bolts I use the other one because the handle is twice the size and I need the leverage."

"The tool itself seems to be pretty good. I have only had it for a short time, so I am not positive how well it will last.



So far, I do have one strong complaint: The user's instructions for this tool are printed in such small type that they are difficult to read. I am 58 years old, and do not see small type as well as I used to. I had to get a magnifying glass to read the instructions. They should at least be available in a normal on for on-line download.



Also, the plastic part of the handle is a bit cheesy. For a tool that costs this much I would like something that feels a bit better."