Pet peeve: people who torque lug nuts by feel on jets

Was helping a buddy swap a tire on a 737 in Atlanta last month and he just cranked the nuts down with a breaker bar like it was a Toyota. Busted out the torque wrench and found three of them were 40 ft-lbs over spec, which is a good way to warp a wheel flange. Anyone else run into mechanics who treat torque specs as suggestions?

3 comments

3 Comments

holly_sanchez752mo agoMost Upvoted

40 over on a 737 flange? Dude was asking for a warp.

alice_palmer202mo ago

Hold up, are we really acting like 40 over is gonna blow the whole job? I've seen guys push way hotter than that on smaller flanges and it was fine. Unless the metal was already paper thin or the guy was using a torch like a flamethrower, it's probably not that big of a deal. Sometimes the internet gets real dramatic about stuff that's just a minor oops in the field.

nina_jenkins26d ago

Oh man, I totally agree with you on this. I saw a guy do the exact same thing on a 747 flange once and it warped so bad you could practically see daylight through the gap. I mean, maybe it's just me, but I've never understood why people push the heat that hard when you can just take your time and do it right. Idk, it's like they're trying to set a speed record or something, but all they end up with is a headache and a ruined part.