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PSA: An old guy at the Oshkosh airshow told me to always check the cotter pin twice
I was helping him with a wheel change on his vintage Cessna 172, and after I torqued the axle nut, he stopped me. He said, 'Kid, I've seen three gear collapses, and two were from a missing pin you swore you put in.' He made me walk around the whole plane, then come back and physically touch that pin again. Ever since, I do a full lap after any critical safety wire or pin job. Anyone else have a simple double-check that's saved your bacon?
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miab877mo ago
That sounds like overkill to me.
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alice1216mo ago
Overkill is how you avoid the kind of mess @paige_kelly described, it's just being thorough.
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paige_kelly7mo ago
Ever read that story about the mechanic who forgot to put the oil cap back on a jet engine? They found it later, perfectly placed on the workbench after the plane crashed. That's why I double-check the dumb stuff. Like making sure the gas cap is clicked shut on my car. Sounds silly, but I've driven off without it before.
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