Spring Lock Washers

[60 acre hillside]

I was taught , perhaps incorrectly, In power mechanics class that a spring lock washer is considered to to be considered to be a one time use device. With some doubt in mind of their effectiveness, I seldom use them. I hear that Henry Ford, being considered to be an eccentric, refused to use them. What is the opinion of true mechanics
 

[Dean]

Yes, indeed, a spring lock washer is designed for a single use but such practice is almost universally ignored.

Dean
 

[old]

I reuse them as long as they spring open when you take them off. If they go flat I use them but not as lock washer but as a washer in places you need to take up space. I hate to throw much away if I can figure out how to use it
 

[60 acre hillside]

I also hate waste but I have been afraid of the lock washers and I use Locktite in close places but if I have room i use double nuts,
 

[JRSutton]

They should just be used once - just like proper torque limits should be followed.

But most people ignore it.

... which is why when you take an old tractor apart you could fill a coffee can with all the broken lock washer bits and pieces.
 

[Glenn F.]

Theoretically, yes, but if they spring up and bite the nut they're still good.
 

[old]

I NEVER use locktite but I do at times use some silicone gasket maker on the treads of nuts and bolts to keep them from vibrating out. The nice thing about the silicone is it holds well but not so well as to make it hard to take them back loose if you need to
 

[DiyDave]

I use nylon locknuts, mostly. I don't want nuthin springin up and bitin my nuts!
 

[Jon Hagen]

If the washer is not bent and the tips still sharp, reuse it.

What I have read makes sense, a spring lock washer is of no value unless the parts being clamped are flexible enough to relax and allow the bolt or nut to get loose and unscrew.
A good deal on hollow flexible parts, useless when bolting thick solid parts.
 

[cd1]

I've pretty much quit using them, they really aren't doing anything, I'd rather see just a flat washer so you still get proper torquing. OLD- if you look around there are different grades of Loctite. Some applications you just gotta have it. Instead of lock washers I also use lock nuts (preferably the crimped type) and flange nuts (which have serrated teeth to keep from loosening.
 

[Mark - IN.]

I tore one up today pretty good, 5/8". Not sure what happened there, but destroyed it. A loader on one of my Deeres had a piece of 2" angle iron a 1/4" thick tack welded across the upper edge of the bucket with hooks welded to it on each end. It had popped, pulled off, and was a real nice edge until it did that. I don't weld, so today I remounted it by drilling through it, the bucket, and a piece of 2" flatbar, 1/4" thick inside of the bucket to sandwich/clamp the bucket between the flatbar and the angle iron. I used five 5/8" bolts spread out evenly from one end to the other, and all went well, except one nut that just destroyed that lock washer. They were not hardened bolts, so I really didn't crank down on them all that hard, but never saw a lock washer fail so easily.

Good luck.

Mark
 

[rusted nuts]

Yeah, Once you get them bite then they start to rust. btdt.
 

[Leroy]

Last batch of 3/8" I bought out of a hundred bolts I probably had 40 fail by spreading open.
 

[Allan in NE]

They work well on soft metals. Just about totally useless on the hard stuff tho.

Allan
 

[bill mart]

Henry Ford was also very frugal and would do anything to save a penny.(read his bio) That being said,here is a excerpt from Wiki.

A split washer or a spring lock washer is a ring split at one point and bent into a helical shape. This causes the washer to exert a spring force between the fastener's head and the substrate. Applicable standards are ASME B18.21.1, DIN 127B, and United States Military Standard NASM 35338 (formerly MS 35338 and AN-935).[8]

The use and effectiveness of spring lock washers has been in debate of late, with some publications advising against their use. Sources in reference are IS:3063,[9] and NASA Fastener Design Manual.[10]

did not know about the debate,have always used them and except for extreme vibration situations where i would use a nylock nut I will continue using lock washers. Bill