Almost lost a finger to a worn torque wrench last Tuesday

I was torquing a cylinder base nut on a Continental IO-520 at the shop in Bakersfield when the handle slipped and my hand went right into the prop blade. I got lucky and only needed 4 stitches, but the torque wrench was off by like 15 ft-lbs from being beat up. Had that gauge popped while I was leaning on it, the bone woulda snapped. Anyone else ever had a tool fail on you mid-job like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

milam4815d ago

Jump right in with a smart remark about torque wrenches trying to kill people. @paul_taylor21 is probably still finding little metal bits from that ratchet explosion in his toolbox. Sounds like both of you were one bad tool away from needing some serious finger reattachment surgery.

paul_taylor2115d ago

MAN I feel this! Had a similar thing happen with a ratchet at my shop in Fresno last year. I was leaning HARD on it doing lug nuts on a Cessna 182 and the head just EXPLODED into pieces. Sent my knuckles straight into the gearbox flange and I was bleeding all over the floor like an idiot. Took 6 stitches and the wrench was only like 3 months old but the pawl just sheared off clean. Now I swear by Snap-on for anything that sees real torque, don't care if it costs double.

wilson.joseph15d ago

Leaning HARD on it doing lug nuts on a Cessna 182" - are you serious? That's an airplane we're talking about, not some pickup truck. I can't believe you were putting that kind of torque on aircraft lugnuts with a regular ratchet, that's terrifying. Glad your hand survived that one!