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Torque wrenches from the 80s still beat my new one, mostly
Last Tuesday I pulled my old Snap-on clicker out of the bottom drawer, the one my dad gave me in 1987. I had to re-torque a nose gear link on a 737 that kept backing off, and my new digital unit gave me two different readings on the same bolt. The old clicker clicked solid at 90 ft-lbs, no guessing, no battery. I checked it against the calibration bench in our shop in Tulsa and it was spot on after 38 years. Have any of you ran into new tools that just don't feel right compared to the old stuff, or am I just stuck in my ways?
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danielw881mo ago
My old SK from the 90s still hits right on the money every time and my fancy new one is all over the place. Same deal with my dad's 1/2" ratchet, that thing has never slipped once in 30 years. New stuff just feels cheap in the hand.
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joel6031mo ago
Check the date codes on some of that new stuff. A lot of tool companies got bought out in the 2000s and the new owners swapped to softer steel and cut the heat treat time to save a buck. Your SK from the 90s was made when the brand was still owned by the family that gave a damn. Same with your dad's ratchet, that thing was built when a warranty claim actually cost the company money so they made sure it wouldn't come back. It's not nostalgia, the metallurgy really did change.
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