Dropped a 10mm socket inside a PT6 engine and had to fish it out with a magnet on a stick

I was working on a PT6 at the hangar in Tulsa last Tuesday, trying to torque a fuel nozzle line. The socket slipped right off the extension and plopped into the compressor section, I just stared at it for a solid 10 seconds. Had to grab a flexible magnet probe and spend 20 minutes wiggling it past the stator vanes without scratching anything. My lead mechanic came over and just laughed, said I wasn't the first to do it. Anyone else have a tool go where it definitely shouldn't have?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_elizabeth15d agoTop Commenter

Hate to be that guy but honestly if you're dropping sockets into a PT6 you're probably rushing or not paying attention. I've seen guys do this and blame the tool but really it's about being careful with your hands. Twenty minutes fishing it out is lucky too, could've been way worse if it got stuck deeper.

mark_cooper15d ago

Whoa, hold on, I gotta push back on that a little. In my experience, those PT6 intakes can be a real pain with the way the oil and light are. Sometimes a socket just slips no matter how careful you are, especially if your hands are greasy. I've seen guys who are super methodical still have one pop out from the weirdest angle. I don't think it's always about rushing, sometimes it's just bad luck with the geometry of the tool to the part. Your mileage may vary, but I've seen too many good mechanics have a simple oops to blame it all on being in a hurry.

matthew86415d ago

Yeah but I've seen guys take all the time in the world and still drop one, it's not always just rushing.