I was torquing down a Chris King headset cap for years before a customer pointed out my mistake

I always used my Park Tool TW-5 wrench and just cranked it down until it felt snug, you know, like a stem bolt. Then last week, a regular who's a machinist watched me do it and said, 'You know that's only supposed to be 5 in-lbs, right? You're probably over by triple.' I looked it up, and he was totally right. How many other small parts have I been over-tightening without even thinking?

2 comments

2 Comments

jesse_west28d ago

Remember that torque spec is for the top cap bolt only, not the stem clamp bolts. Those still need proper torque, like 5-6 Nm usually. It's easy to mix them up since they're right next to each other. The top cap just removes play, then you tighten the stem.

thomas.piper28d ago

That "felt snug" standard is a real trap. I see it with people installing their own toilet seats, cranking those plastic bolts until they crack the porcelain. We default to a general sense of tight, not the specific light touch a lot of small hardware actually needs.