Stupid question that will not bennefit me in any way...
 

Why do they call it a torque WRENCH ?

It's a wrench

Looks like a ratchet.

...but it does NOT ratchet. :confused:

a ratchet is actually called a ratcheting wrench.

hey Putter, all of mine ratchet. the original ones were just a bar with non bending pointer.

Some ratchet and some don't. Some are in inch/lbs, ft/lbs and Newtons.
I have a 2000 ft/lb Torque wrench here at work with 4 pipe extensions that has a dial gage, along with a few in smaller increment ratings.

I believe the original Snap On wrenches with the snapon/off adapters(sockets) were called socket wrenches, and they did not ratchet. They then came out with ratcheting socket wrenches, or ratches. I suppose they could be called torque ratchets, or torque socket wrenches, or even ratchetingtorquesocketwrenches, but that last one is a little long. I think I'll stick with torque wrenches. think I have that same 2000 pound torque wrench and cheaters. I have only used to 1500 pounds though. Now I have a torque multiplier. It is essentialy a 6:1 reduction gear transmission, with of course a socket head adaptor :D It also ratchets. Would that be a ratchetingreductiongeartorquemultiplyingtorquesocketwrench?????

BTW the answer will benifit you in making you a more well educated person ;)

what the hell do you torque to 1500-2000 ft lbs?!? lol

the only time i used more than one pipe extention i ended up with a busted lip!!

I've been calling rachets socket wrenches as long as I can remember. Right or not, I'm sure I picked it up from my dad.

ditto, i'm curious also...

Used to use hydraulic torque wrenches to torque the drive-carrige bolts on large excavators, torqued them to about 2-3000 ft-lbs. Allot esier than when in the corps using a few cheater pipes to tighten sprocket bolts on a tank.

We torque aircraft flap attach hinge stud bolts to 1400 ft. lbs. onto the back part of the wings. Certain ones require this, some of the others require lesser torque amounts.

The Flap Hinges bolt onto these studs and the Flaps attatch to the hinges, basically.

It takes 4 -5 of us to do it.

wow. thats awesome

wrench ( P ) Pronunciation Key (rnch)
n.
1. A sudden sharp, forcible twist or turn.
2. An injury produced by twisting or straining.
3. A sudden tug at one's emotions; a surge of compassion, sorrow, or anguish.

4. A break or parting that causes emotional distress.
5. The pain so associated: felt a wrench when he was parted from his children.
6. A distortion in the original form or meaning of something written or spoken; twisted interpretation.
7. Any of various hand or power tools, often having fixed or adjustable jaws, used for gripping, turning, or twisting objects such as nuts, bolts, or pipes.

In other words wrench != rachet. The word "wrench" applies to all hand tools for adjusting torque. The word "rachet" only applies to hand tools that adjust torque that actually rachet.

Stingray42 - It would less awesome and much more appreciative if certain hotdog pilots would not over -g the aircraft and dern near rip a flap off! lol

I work the fuel systems and these studs go into the tanks in which we have to seal them. One aircraft in particular was fine before, but came back with over a dozen fuel leaks! Um, that was alot of fun. Not sure if that pilot was a Redneck or not, but they did land safely.