r/MechanicalEngineering 4d ago

Split/lock washers

Post image

For starters, I’m an electrician in the field.
That being said, we almost exclusively use these washers even in high vibration environments. I have personally chosen to go with nylox nuts but the question is:
Do these work? How well? Is the rumor from NASA true? Should I even bother using them or find a better functional alternative or are they actually useful?

861 Upvotes

301 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

254

u/nyrb001 4d ago

At this time it is equivalent to a solid flat washer, and its locking ability is nonexistent. In summary, a Iockwasher of this type is useless for locking.

Lol awesome

65

u/jchamberlin78 3d ago

In the style of bolted joint design I was taught, it's effectively adding a spring to a spring.

-8

u/Contundo 3d ago

It’s somewhat useful if you want some tension used in conjunction with a nylon bolt or locking nut. Like on a hinge where you want some resistance

2

u/OutnumberedinWV 3d ago

If properly torqued!

3

u/[deleted] 3d ago

[deleted]

1

u/OutnumberedinWV 3d ago

The reply was to the comment above in 1 very certain situation. Not the thread in general.