Just realized I've been torquing bleed valves wrong for a decade

I always went by feel on those small bleed valves, thinking the spec was too low to matter. A guy at the hangar in Phoenix showed me his digital torque wrench set to 35 inch-pounds, and the seal looked perfect. Are you all using torque wrenches for every single fitting now, or just the critical ones?

3 comments

3 Comments

gibson.mark10d ago

Yeah, that's a solid way to make a small problem into a big one. I've definitely been that guy, just giving it a "good enough" snug until something weeps. @jordanl82 is right, we're probably all causing little bits of wear and tear without even knowing. My old rule was if it didn't have a safety wire hole, it didn't get the torque wrench. Learned that was a dumb move after having to redo a whole manifold. Now I just bite the bullet and use the little wrench every time, it's slower but way less annoying than fixing my own mistakes later.

the_rowan20d ago

That's why my car leaks oil, I've been doing the same thing.

jordanl8220d ago

Ever wonder how many other problems we're causing without knowing? @the_rowan, that leak is probably just the first sign of something bigger wearing out. We ignore the small stuff until it turns into a real repair bill.