Opted for old school torque wrenches over digital for 15 years now

Back in 2008 at the Texas A&M hangar I had to choose between a $400 digital Snap-On and a $80 beam style. I picked the beam because it never needs batteries and survives drops, and it's still within 3% after all these years. My coworker's digital unit failed on a cold morning in Lubbock and we had to redo 4 wheel bearings. Anyone else stick with the old tools because they just don't quit?

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the_tara16d ago

Wait hold on, a beam style can be off by almost 10% if you're not looking at it dead straight and it takes twice as long to use on every single bolt. Your coworker's digital dying is bad luck, but I've seen way more beam tools get knocked out of calibration on a shop floor than a decent digital unit ever does. You're betting your whole job on a piece of metal that bends, that's not smart.