As an automotive technician, the standard micrometer torque wrenches you find in the big box stores become very annoying to use as you're constantly winding them up to whatever setting you require and then winding them back down to store them. Split beam wrenches eliminate the need to wind down the wrench between uses and are much faster to adjust to the desired setting. Of course the professional tool brands like Snap-On and MAC offer similar torque wrenches but they are usually at least double what this torque wrench costs and as many other reviewers have said, they offer little to no improvement over this Precision Instruments version.
Personally comparing side by side against my coworkers Snap-On version, this Precision Instruments wrench does have slightly less flex in the flex joint, it's a bit quieter one the low end of the torque scale and the case that comes with the Precision version is larger, but considering I paid $250-300 less for mine, I think that's a fair trade-off. In short I couldn't be happier with this torque wrench and I highly recommend picking one of these up if you're in need of a reliable torque wrench without paying your local tool truck unnecessary extra cash for essentially the same tool.
