Hot take: I was wrong about using a torque wrench on carbon seatposts

Honestly, my old boss at the shop in Boulder always said to just use a normal hex key and feel for the pinch. He argued the frame tolerances vary too much for a set number. I ignored him and torqued a customer's post to the 5 Nm spec, and it still slipped during a test ride. Has anyone else found that carbon needs a different touch than the manual says?

2 comments

2 Comments

riley_west8d ago

Man, people get so weird about carbon. It's just a seatpost. I've cranked them down with a regular Allen key for years and never had one crack or slip. The whole torque wrench thing feels like overkill unless you're a total gorilla with tools. Half the time those spec numbers are just there so the company can avoid warranty claims anyway.

robert_anderson698d ago

Yeah, "overkill" is a good way to put it. It feels like they make the specs for the one person who would use an impact driver on a carbon stem. Most of us have a decent feel for it by hand.