The Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set is an extremely expensive way to never damage a smaller component or fastener again. It’s built to Wera’s usual high standards of fit and finish, with a quality set of accessories. Being limited to 2-12Nm, the bi-directional functionality is of questionable use, as there are very few bike fasteners in that range that are reverse-threaded. And the click-over requires control and awareness so as not to injure yourself.

If you’re just starting out on your bike fettling journey, our beginner’s guide to bike tools will help you choose the gear needed for basic bike maintenance; or check out our guide to the best torque wrenches.

> Buy now: Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set for £317.11 from Protrade

Wera is a German engineering tools firm renowned for its quality and attention to detail. There’s a corner of bicycle mechanic culture devoted to ‘toolbox wars’, where pro and well-heeled amateur mechanics spend fortunes designing and building out their ultimate toolbox, complete with custom-cutout foam inserts to hold and display select tools perfectly. Wera tools almost always feature, and we’ve reviewed a few, such as the Wera Bicycle Set 3 and the Bicycle Set 4 – the more likely one to see in a pro toolbox, Wera being known for the multi-colour paint scheme to help differentiate tool sizes.

Wera does a range of torque tools, from preset screwdrivers up to adjustable 1,000Nm truck-lugnut-wrestling monsters. The Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench set is a smaller tool for 2-12Nm applications. The A 2 set comes with a complement of bits and sockets.

2023 Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm Hex 23pc - boxed.jpg
2023 Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm Hex 23pc - boxed (Image Credit: Farrelly Atkinson)

The key value point here is the Safe-Torque bit of the name. In a normal clicker torque tool, once the torque setting is reached and the tool has ‘clicked’ it’s still possible to keep pushing and thereby damage the fastener. With the Safe-Torque head, once the torque limit is reached the handle slips forwards by 30 degrees then re-engages. If you keep applying force, it keeps slipping over every 30 degrees. So it’s theoretically impossible to ever exceed a torque setting. Of course, that doesn’t prevent you misreading the required setting or setting the torque incorrectly; it’s a tool, not a magic wand.

2023 Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm Hex 23pc - wrench 1.jpg
2023 Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm Hex 23pc - wrench 1 (Image Credit: Farrelly Atkinson)

There’s no Safe-Torque tool above 12Nm (yet). Wera does a 20-100Nm reversible tool without the Safe-Torque slip function, the Click-Torque C 2. This would be the one to use on left-hand pedals and drive side threaded bottom bracket shells – both of which require more than 12Nm of force. So the range that doesn’t need Safe-Torque reversibility gets it, the range that needs it doesn’t.

(If you know of a common reverse-thread fastener in the 2-12Nm range, please add a comment – I asked around a number of mechanic forums and drew a blank outside of some very esoteric pedal bearing fittings.)

Part of me wonders with the 30-degree slip range, that if applied without care at higher torques, like a BB’s 40Nm, it would be likely to result in injury – say if one were torquing a drive-side BB cup. The chances of your knuckles coming a cropper on the drive side chainstay would be considerable. Testing some of my other torque wrenches, the breakover angle is significantly less.

Near the head there’s a handy lockout sleeve that can be slid upwards to lock the torque function. This is great for undoing fasteners that have been either previously overtightened, or just set at the correct torque. The lock allows you to loosen, flick the lock off and and then re-torque, all without removing the bit from the fastener. It does require you to swap the direction of the ratcheting, which is done using the ribbed cap on the head. This takes much longer to read than to do in practice.

2023 Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm Hex 23pc - wrench 2.jpg
2023 Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm Hex 23pc - wrench 2 (Image Credit: Farrelly Atkinson)

Setting the torque is the same as most wrenches – unlocking, winding the handle to the correct value, then re-locking using the push-pull knob at the end of the handle.

2023 Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm Hex 23pc - wrench 5.jpg
2023 Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm Hex 23pc - wrench 5 (Image Credit: Farrelly Atkinson)

It takes about 1.5 turns per Nm to set, so if you are going all the way to 12, that’s about 16 turns to set and then unset. I have a set of preset Prestacycle Torque tools, and in a shop environment where time is money, not having to wind up and unwind a tool for frequent small-value jobs is a major advantage. Also, you’ll be needing decent eyesight as the Nm gradients are rather small.

2023 Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm Hex 23pc - wrench 4.jpg
2023 Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm Hex 23pc - wrench 4 (Image Credit: Farrelly Atkinson)

Another feature often found on even low-price torque tools but lacking in the Wera Safe-Torque is a thumbwheel to speedily do up a fastener before applying torque. It’s rather annoying to find a fastener is too loose to allow the ratcheting mechanism to work, meaning you then need to remove the tool, find a standard hex tool and snug it up first.

Bits

The bits are a combination of Torx and Wera’s Hex-Plus profiled bits. You get a Phillips PH2, which is almost defunct on a modern bike, then Torx 10, 15, 20, 25, 27 and 30, and finally hex bits in 2.5, 3, 4, 5 and 6mm. The omission of an 8mm speaks to the low torque rating. The Hex-Plus profile ‘provides larger contact zones in the screw head thus reducing the notching effect to a minimum and protecting the profile’ of the hex fastener. Looking at the bits close up they have a slight indentation on each side, which doesn’t appear to be part of the design’s functionality but does make them readily identifiable.

2023 Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm Hex 23pc - bits 3.jpg
2023 Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm Hex 23pc - bits 3 (Image Credit: Farrelly Atkinson)

Speaking of identification, Wera has dropped the ball on this for a £409 product – there are no markings on the case for bit values. Yes, Wera colour-codes the bits – but you can’t see the colours when inserted into the elastic loop bit holders. They are laser-etched with the value, but again too small to see from a distance.

2023 Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm Hex 23pc - bits 2.jpg
2023 Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm Hex 23pc - bits 2 (Image Credit: Farrelly Atkinson)

Wera’s done a good job of presenting the sockets, each one sitting securely on its own wee holder, released with a quarter-turn. The colour-coding is visible, but again, no markings on the case. In order to use the sockets there’s an adapter provided. You get nine sockets, starting with a rather odd 5.5mm, then 6 through to 13mm. Chances are these days you’ll only be using the 6mm one.

Value & conclusions

Being a Wera tool, the feel and material quality is outstanding. Everything glides, snicks and turns with utmost precision. However, in practice the numerous omissions and design choices add up to a disappointing-for-the-money experience. If I’m paying over 400 quid for a tool it better be damn near perfect – and the multiple frustrations of breakover angle, lack of thumbwheel, small scale, much winding to set/unset and hidden bit values all add up. Also, the bulk and heft of the tool is incongruous with the size of fasteners at the lower end of its range – using this tool to safely torque a 4Nm stem bolt is frankly ridiculous. What the A2 set feels like is an automotive tool, repackaged for the cycling market but with little attention paid to the specific needs of such.

2023 Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm Hex 23pc - wrench 3.jpg
2023 Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm Hex 23pc - wrench 3 (Image Credit: Farrelly Atkinson)

If you’re in the market for a torque tool and want to keep up the German-made quality stakes, for around £250 Wera does a single-direction 2.5-25Nm bike-specific torque tool set, which seems a much more appropriate cycle-specific tool. You don’t get long-reach hex or Torx bits like the A2 set offers, as it’s a 1/4in drive, not a bit socket.

And if you’re back into single-direction tools, there’s a plethora of options for far, far less money. To my mind the best pro and amateur mechanic bang-for-buck is the £60 Prestacycle TorqRatchet Pro Deluxe.

If you really need reverse torque, you can purchase a crows foot adapter for buttons – just be sure you know how to use it. I’ve used a BBI TWA-2 for the last 10 years, for all my reverse-torque needs.

So what the Wera A2 set gives you for the stunning price is continuous fail-over safety that shouldn’t really be needed if you pay even rudimentary attention to your work. And for which the reversible functionality requirement is almost non-existent. To which I’d add: if you can’t notice a click on a standard torque tool, you’ve likely got many other other bike-wrenching skill worries to train yourself out of, that buying a £409 tool won’t solve.

Verdict

Eye-wateringly expensive, high quality, but missing a compelling use case as well as key bike shop-friendly features

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road.cc test report

Make and model: Wera Tools Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm 1/4 Hex 23pc

Size tested: 23 pcs

Tell us what the product is for and who it’s aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?

It’s for those wanting to be 100% certain they will never over-torque a fastener, assuming they set it correctly in the first place.

From Wera’s UK distributor Chicken CycleKit: “Tool specialist Wera presents the Safe-Torque A 2 Wrench Set 2-12 Nm 1/4” Hex 23pc. The torque wrench with the slide-over mechanism. The Safe Torque wrench automatically disengages as soon as you reach the required torque level, making it impossible to over or under-torque the bolt, unlike all other torque wrenches. This wrench has a setting range of 2 to 12Nm, for controlled clockwise and counterclockwise torque operation. With a return angle of just 5 degrees, it allows the ratchet to be used even in confined spaces and therefore with angles of rotation.

Hexagon drive for the use of 1/4″ bits

Equipped with a slide-over mechanism. Once the set torque has the reached value, the tool cannot be overtightened.

The torque function can be deactivated. The safe-torque can also be used as a standard ratchet applications with defined angles of rotation.

Easy setting and saving of the required torque with audible clicks upon reaching the desired value.

The ball lock ensures secure seating of the sockets and accessories so meaning it’s reliable during screwdriving

All Wera tools are covered by a lifetime guarantee

Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?

23-piece set; in surface-friendly, compact and extremely robust textile box. Small size and low weight for better mobility.

1 Safe-Torque A 2 torque wrench with 1/4″ hexagonal drive, measuring range 2-12 Nm; for controlled clockwise and counterclockwise torque operation; tightening and loosening with or without torque, disengageable torque function (Torque Lock function); 72 teeth; low return angle of 5°; easy setting and saving of the desired torque value, with audible and tactile locking when the scale values are reached, slip-over release mechanism when the set torque is reached; ergonomic 2-component handle; 9 Zyklop sockets, 12 bits (1/4″, 50 mm long), one connector for sockets (1/4″ external hexagon to 1/4″ external square head).

Chicken CycleKit lists:

Hexagon drive for the use of 1/4″ bits

Equipped with a slide-over mechanism. Once the set torque has the reached value, the tool cannot be overtightened.

The torque function can be deactivated. The safe-torque can also be used as a standard ratchet applications with defined angles of rotation.

Easy setting and saving of the required torque with audible clicks upon reaching the desired value.

The ball lock ensures secure seating of the sockets and accessories so meaning it’s reliable during screwdriving

All Wera tools are covered by a lifetime guarantee

Set Includes:

1 x Safe Torque A 2 wrench with 1/4″ hexagon drive (2-12Nm)

9 x 8790 HMA Zyklop 1/4″ socket (5.5x23mm, 6x23mm, 7x23mm, 8x23mm, 9x23mm, 10x23mm, 11x23mm, 12x23mm, 13x23mm)

1 x 870/1 Adaptor (1/4″x25mm)

1 x 851/4 Z bits (PH2x50mm)

6 x 867/4 Z TORX bits (TX10x50mm, TX15x50mm, TX20x50, TX25x50mm, TX27x50mm, TX30x50mm)

5 x 840/4 Z bits (2.5x50mm, 3x50mm, 4x50mm, 5x50mm, 6x50mm)

1 x Hook and loop fastener strip (50x240mm)

Technical Specification:

Size: 275x100x65mm

Weight: 1070g

Rate the product for quality of construction:
 
10/10

The quality is perfect.

Rate the product for performance:
 
7/10

Yes, it clicked over exactly, every time. But the weight and faff dialling it up and down become tiresome.

Rate the product for durability:
 
9/10

After a few months use it still looks the same and works perfectly.

Rate the product for weight (if applicable)
 
5/10

For the range, it is pretty heavy.

Rate the product for comfort (if applicable)
 
8/10

The padded, sculpted handle is nice to use, but at a maximum of 12Nm force on such a long tool it’s hardly a neccessity.

Rate the product for value:
 
4/10

This is where there’s a major issue – £409 is a huge sum given the limited application in a cycling context and the multiple issues and omissions.

Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose

In terms of protecting fasteners – yes, it breaks over every time, so job done. But the lack of a thumbwheel, its heft, bulk, lack of case markings and time to set-unset all make for a less-than-perfect experience.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

The quality.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

Quite a few things, for the money – lack of a thumbwheel, the large break-over angle, and unlabelled bits.

How does the price compare to that of similar products in the market, including ones recently tested on road.cc?

Astronomical, compared with standard torque tools. I don’t think the continuous break-over is worth the circa £300 premium.

Did you enjoy using the product? Not really.

Would you consider buying the product? No

Would you recommend the product to a friend? No

Use this box to explain your overall score

Overall, the experience of using these tools was sub-par for the price. I’d suggest you’re better off buying a standard, high-quality tool and a nice bit-set, and maybe a few crows foot adapters for if you really need reverse-torque functionality; just remember to use it at 90 degrees to keep the values accurate.

Overall rating: 6/10

About the tester

Age: 47  Height: 183cm  Weight: 77kg

I usually ride: Sonder Camino Gravelaxe  My best bike is: Nah bro that’s it

I’ve been riding for: Over 20 years  I ride: A few times a week  I would class myself as: Expert

I regularly do the following types of riding: cyclo cross, general fitness riding, mtb, G-R-A-V-E-L