The 1/2-drive 20-150 ft/lb. wrench is on sale for $16 and the 1/4" 200 in/lb. wrench is $20 (usually $30). The first is almost always on sale but the smaller wrench almost never does, so you can now get both for $36.

 

How do you check calibration on one of these things?

 

There are torque testers on the market, but since they're expensive I doubt if many individuals own them. I certainly don't and mooch off a friend who has every tool known to mankind, including one of these. Here are some sold by Sears:

Torque testers

 

Those are really expensive. I thik that 2 or 3 lbs are not going to hurt.

 

Indeed - infact CDI is owned by Snapon

 

FWIW, with respect to the bar type torque wrenches, when i was working on jets in the Corps we never used them. Click type ratchet yes, inch and foot lbs. Sometimes dial indicator types.

The bar types have a propensity for the bar being pushed around and causing inaccurate readings that combined with metal stretching over time. I figure if its that important on a jet due to safety, then my azz and the OL is just as important.

 

I stripped out the little screw that holds the tour pac latch on using a harbour freight torque wrench. Of course that is only pot metal. If I wasn't so darn ****, I would have never used a torque wrench on something that small and un-important. But the torque wrench was new, and I thought I would tighten it perfectly!! My wrist has finally been trained over the years (and after many mistakes) NOT to over tighten and I wish I had just used my internal torque wrench. Might not have got it tight enough, but wouldn't have stripped it out. I loc-tighted the screw and ran it back it in, so far so good.