Shoutout to the guy at REI who told me I was over-torquing my thru-axles

He watched me wrenching down my rear wheel outside the Denver store and said 'you're gonna strip that frame if you keep cranking like that.' So now I'm torn between using a torque wrench every time or just going by feel like I always have. Any of you actually use a torque wrench on your bike or is that just for shop guys?

2 comments

2 Comments

stellablack20d ago

Read somewhere that Chris King actually voids the warranty on their headsets if you use a torque wrench on the binder bolts. Heard that from a mechanic I trust. That alone made me realize there's a whole debate about how much force your average bike part can actually take before it's just overkill. I just go by feel now like everyone else. Stripped one too many derailleur hangers back in the day to trust a clicking tool. Still, that REI guy sounds like he meant well.

angela_kelly20d ago

Exactly the opposite for me. A torque wrench saved my carbon frame from getting crushed when I was hauling down on a seatpost binder. Going by feel is how people crack stuff they can't see until it's too late. The Chris King thing is a special case because their binder bolts are designed to work without clamp load, but most parts need a specific range to function right. Stripping derailleur hangers is usually from cross-threading or using the wrong tool, not from following a torque spec. That REI guy probably prevented a headache that would have cost this guy way more than a simple wrench.