18 months of torquing struts the same way, until a line guy clued me in

I always torqued the main gear strut bolts on the 737s at OKC from the top, never really thought about it. A line guy named Ray watched me one afternoon and asked why I wasn't using the extension bar from below to avoid bending the bolt shank. Turns out I'd been putting side load on the bolt the whole time, which explains why I kept chasing torque readings on the same side. Has anyone else had a basic habit that got busted by someone outside the shop?

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miller.eva17d ago

Ray over in Huntsville set me straight on the same deal with the C-130 nose gear. I was about to pull my hair out chasing torque readings that kept slipping, then he showed me how I was canting the bolt with my socket angle. Felt like a total rookie for ten years of doing it wrong.