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Stretch bolt gauge ?

1K views 6 replies 5 participants last post by  LilSmoke 
#1 ·
I took a peek in one of this month's issues of a car mag and there's an arttical about the stretch bolt gauge and why they should be used instead of torqueing the rod bolt's like most of us do. Just want know if one of these gauge's are worth $80. buck's from Summit to tight'en down my ARP rod bolt's in my 355 sbc that's only gonna be driven on the street as a dailey driver.:confused: :thumbup:
 
#2 ·
Using the tool is the prefered method. If you cann't afford one maybe you can barrow one. It's possible to tighten to stretch without the tool miking the bolt before torqueing. Tighten the bolt to 1/2 the expected torque required and remike. Now tighten in 5 ftlb steps miking at each step.
 
#4 ·
The whole idea of torquing a bolt is to put a specific tension on it to carry a load. It is a precise stretch of the bolt that is the goal and torque is a secondary indicator that is close enough for government work in most cases. In critical apps like super pressured vessels in refineries and the space shuttle, only a bolt stretch gauge is acceptable. For auto work it is overkill, Unless you are building a 7000hp top fuel engine (and even those guys use torque wenches) I wouldn't sweat it.
 
#6 ·
By using a stretch gauge you will be tightening the fastener to it's best ability to hold. We have found that with aftermarket rods, the torque specs. that you get with them are not jibing with the stretch specs. Using the stretch gauge will ensure your rod fasteners will hold. Having said that, we also find that when the fasteners are tighened to the proper stretch spec, the rod may have to be honed round again or resized to bring it back to round.

tom
 
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