A grumpy old timer at the shop told me to quit torquing stems by feel and I argued for a week before trying it

Elizabeth Fisher · 2026-10-01T02:30:03.956081+00:00

I was working on a customer's bike at my bench in Sacramento about two months ago and this older mechanic named Ray who has been at the shop since before I was born watched me snug down a stem bolt by feel like I always do. He said, and I quote, 'you are gonna crack somebody's steerer tube one day and I hope I am retired when it happens.' I laughed it off at first because I had done it that way for close to a decade and never had a comeback. He handed me his torque wrench and made me check the last three bikes I had finished, and two of them were over spec by a decent margin. Not enough to break anything yet, but close enough that I felt dumb. I bought my own wrench the next day and now I check every stem, seat clamp, and brake bolt even when it feels fine. Has anyone else had an old timer call them out like that and turn out to be right?

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A grumpy old timer at the shop told me to quit torquing stems by feel and I argued for a week before trying it | Bicycle Mechanics - Guest Forum