Customer Reviews

Brown Line Metal Works BLD0212 Digital Torque Wrench

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

After many years of tightening things by feel, I decided that as I was able to do more work on my cars that I would have a nice torque wrench for my toolbox. I needed one pretty quickly because of some new aluminum wheels I was installing and didn't want to over-torque the wheels. I picked this one, despite its relatively high cost because the digital readout with its instantaneous reading seemed very appealing and it had a nice range of 20-150 ft/lbs.

The tool itself is long (as all torque wrench are) which can be an issue in tight quarters or even if you're torquing lug nuts since it will bump into the fenders at most angles. But the advantage of the length is that you can be much smoother when tightening which is essential to getting an accurate torque reading. For lug nuts either a deep socket or an extended will be necessary on most cars.

The tool seems made well, and work well. The plastic body leads me to treat this a bit gingerly, but I don't know that its necessary. I suspect I will drop it at some point accidentally and I'll know for sure). It requires 3 AA cells which are not included. The instructions provided are brief and to the point.

You set the appropriate scale (ft/lbs or nt/m) and then set the desired torque amount. The numbers are shown on a backlit LCD display. As you use the tool, there are 3 LEDs that tell you what's happening. Green means you're applying torque, yellow means you're close (within 20%) and when you hit the red led and you hear a beep, it means you're hit it. The tool will display torque applied as its being used and will display peak torque.

It couldn't be simpler.

The one flaw comes from the auto-off feature. The tool will power off in a couple of minutes, which is fine, but when it does, it forgets everything, most annoyingly the target torque you've set. Its not a huge deal, but every time you set the tool down and come back to it, you start all over again. It didn't seem right so I looked through the manual and there seems no way to save your torque.

That said, the tool works very well at what it does. I just wish it wouldn't forget the torque settings so easily.

I received this wrench as a present for Father's Day, and so far it
has been working great. It is one of the best father's day gifts I
have ever gotten.

First, the wrench looks great, and is easy to use. You just set the
desired torque and then go. There is a yellow light that lets you
know when you are getting close, and a red light and beep goes off
when you hit the programmed torque. Best of all, afterwards it will
display the actual torque that you hit - so you know exactly what the
value was. The wrench can go up to 150 ft.lbs. - which has so far
covered everything that I need.

Compared to my old "clicker" model - it is so much easier to use.
Overall, a great tool.

Good value for money and so far it works fine. It's quite long which is useful for leverage. Quality appears to be nice. The only issue is that you have to wait several seconds for a final torque reading after each crank of the wrench (e.g. on lug nuts) and then you have to hit a button to reset it for the next effort to flash a final torque measure. If you forget then you won't get a reading after the next torque...you do get one while you're wrenching but how often can you watch the little window when you're cranking something down over 100 ft lb's???

There's a track mode I need to try to see if that makes life easier. It's kind of slow the way I'm using it now for something that requires multiple torques.

I have really enjoyed this torque wrench and I find it much easier to use than my old craftsman click style torque wrench. Using the digital settings is easy and faster than spinning the handle on the click wrench style. I also find it more precise and I dont have to worry about zeroing out the wrench when the job is done. The only small complaint is that when checking the torque on multiple bolts, you have to press the memory button twice or the you will not get a beep to notify you that you have reached the final torque value. A bit of a pain but not really that big of a deal.

For the money this digital torque wrench cant be beat its built very solid. I use it for all kinds of jobs and has yet to let me down or dissapoint me.

the torque wrench is quality made, and accurate as well as easy to use, but it is longer than i expected which is good for applying even torque but bad for use in tight spaces. not necessarily a flaw, but something prospective buyers should be aware of.

The idea of this wrench is outstanding, but the one I received is defective. When powered on the wrench displays 32 N*M, as if torque is being applied. Also when you apply torque the display decrements down to zero (as apposed to increasing). It may have been damage in shipment as the wrench was able to move around in the box. There was packing material only on one end of the box. Also the blister pack was damaged at the top. The wrench itself appears to be undamaged.

I'm going to return it to amazon for another one and I'll update this review when I receive it. Note I did attempt to contact the folks at Brownline via email but so far have not seen a response. The item was shipped by UPS.

Update: I received the new wrench and all is well. It functions great and is real easy to use. Also note Brownline responded to my email and was willing to correct the issue. They really stand behind their product.

The package arrived with plastic casing torn off somewhat at the top where the head of the wrench lies. I figured it would be okay and put some batteries in it to give the wrench a shot. It ended up being calibrated at a set 25 ft lbs on the loosening end which leads me to believe it was either mishandled or is a factory defect. The wrench itself worked but like i said to get it to beep at 25 ft lbs on the monitor tightening it, I would have to set it at 50 ft lbs since it was stuck at 25 ft lbs on the loose side. I like the concept of this wrench so will return it for an exchange and hope that the next one works and will update the review.

UPDATE****
I got the replacement wrench and the product works exactly as described I think its an awesome tool and just takes a little getting used to. 5 stars

this is a most have for any mechanic or rookie, is very easy to use and very solid material from alloy build, very accurate and professional, i can tell because as soon as i torque all al the bolts re-check 2 or 3 times and the torque stayed there! this is a professional torque wrench and for its price it can't be beaten i highly recommend , Merry Christmas ! :)

I order this Digital Torque Wrench form Brown Line Metal Works Part Number BLD0212I this Torque Wrench work vary will,