To Brent's comment, I'm speaking more generally and not so much about the
oil pan. I don't plan to use a torque wrench on all fasteners.
But on the
oil pan, because it is problematic, I will use the stainless rails that I fabricated so I can put more torque on the studs without distorting the thin pan rail. Rather than torque the studs to the limits of the pan rail, which is usually 5-6 ft-lb, I will torque them to the limits of the studs themselves. ARP tells me that with their high strength studs I can go to 18 ft-lbs safely this torque should stretch the bolt. With the serrated bottom flanged nuts, I'm hoping they won't loosen.
For things like pulley bolts, I'll probably use Loctite and a flat washer.