8 3/4 woes

As My68barracuda said, you need a dial type torque wrench, and measure actual turning torque. A clicker (if accurate at that low of a setting) is only measuring "breakaway" torque, which is always higher than turning torque. IMO 16 in/lb is too low for new bearings even for turning torque. Most preload specs for new bearings are in the 20~30 in/lb range.
The specs say 14-19 in lbs for new bearings on a 489 case, so that’s what I was going by.