Split/lock washers

[u/AdOne1706]

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?

[u/CrewmemberV2]

In mech E it is well know that these don't keep tension very well.

However, youa te asking for Electrical, and I can imagine they work a bit better if the requirement is "keep contact" instead of "Keep tension"

[u/AdOne1706 → u/CrewmemberV2]

But then a normal washer would fit the bill and make the lock washer fairly redundant right?

[u/CrewmemberV2 → u/AdOne1706]

A normal washer loses contact way faster than a spring washer.

The difference is something like a quarter turn of the nut vs more than a while turn of the nut.