Old timer in Kansas City fixed my torque routine.

Guy I work with, retired Delta mechanic, told me to stop using the click torque wrench for final steps on landing gear. Said use a beam type instead. I ignored him for two weeks. Snapped a bolt on a 737 nose gear. Cost the shop 4 hours of downtime. Switched to the beam wrench and haven't had a single issue since. Anyone else get burned by ignoring a veteran's tip?

2 comments

2 Comments

emerymoore18d ago

Man, you are so spot on with this. Old guys know their stuff because they broke stuff the hard way first. I had a similar wake up call with a rusty bolt on a 1978 Chevy 350. Used my click wrench like I always do. Snapped it clean off. Retired master tech I know just shook his head and handed me his old beam torque wrench. No problems since. Those beam wrenches are just more honest, especially on stubborn fasteners.

faithbarnes18d ago

You ever stop to think that maybe the real issue isn't the type of wrench but how we treat our tools after years of use? @emerymoore, I bet that old master tech's beam wrench didn't work any better because it was a beam wrench, but because it hadn't been dropped on concrete fifty times like your click wrench probably was. A click wrench that's taken a few tumbles can drift off calibration without you knowing. The beam wrench is just harder to throw off, no springs or moving parts to mess with. That's the real difference, not some magic honesty in the design.

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