Just realized my old torque wrench was off after a job in Atlanta

I was working on a Cessna 172's landing gear in a hangar at Peachtree-DeKalb Airport about two months ago. I torqued a set of bolts to spec with my trusty click wrench, but the lead mechanic double-checked with his digital gauge and found I was under by 15 foot-pounds. Turns out my wrench hadn't been calibrated in over five years. Now I send my tools out for calibration every single year without fail. Anyone else have a specific schedule they stick to for tool checks?

2 comments

2 Comments

sarah26812d ago

My buddy who works on heavy machinery had a similar scare last year. He was using an old torque wrench on some big loader engine bolts, thought he was right on spec. The whole assembly came loose after a week of use, cost his shop a ton in downtime and repairs. Now his whole crew gets their critical wrenches checked every six months, no excuses. That kind of close call really makes you stick to a schedule.

jamiegreen12d ago

Yeah but come on, every six months? That seems a bit much. How off could the wrench really get, @sarah268? Feels like overkill unless you're working on planes or something.