Do lock washers work?

John, A lock washer puts tension on the nut and what its tightened onto. I've been told (and it makes sense) that if their is a washer under the lock washer, the whole assembly can turn and defeat the purpose of the lock washer.
Pete
 
Usually when you see a flat washer under the lock washer and nut, it's clamping some wood, or used over an elongated hole, such as an adjustment bar on generators and alternators, or elongated holes on fender mounting holes, where it gives added support to the thin metal and helps cover the hole.
 
johnbuckley ......................
Most automotive engineers, today, do not think that they really work. You will not find lock washers on any modern cars today. The nuts do not seem to back off. ???????
They have justified their cost savings.
MIKE :)
 
FL&WVMIKE said:
johnbuckley ......................
Most automotive engineers, today, do not think that they really work. You will not find lock washers on any modern cars today. The nuts do not seem to back off. ???????
They have justified their cost savings.
MIKE :)
Click to expand...


yes like mike says

they use bolts that are tappered, so they get bigger when the bolt goes in to the nut so it does not come loose,
if you notice that you can never turn off a nut off a bolt off a modern car, it becuase the bolt is probably tapered or has a top locking nut, or
"Lock-Tight" on them

I am a strong believer in lock washers and lock-tight, use the lock washeres to look good and origional and tight and lock-tight to keep it tight and hard to come off,

and i always use a washer on or before a lock washer, so the loch washer does not scar the meatle of pull though, and to give it more support
John
 
I have seen many places on modern cars that the hole is not threaded, the bolt is designed to cut it's own threads ---nor really cut them, but burnish the threads, the bolt is not round, but a tri oval and the coating is a 1 time lubricant.

When the steel bolt is in another metal and a little road salt water gets in they don't come loose.

The lock washer is useful for making ground connections on painted parts --think about your painted frame ----fender brackets,fender,headlight bar,headlight bucket ---the ground path to the headlight---too much paint, dull rusty used lockwashers = dim lights.
 
Lock washers do work-think of it as a spring holding force on the thread surfaces to inhibit movement. Modern liquid threadlockers have displaced most lockwasher applications.:cool:
 
John Duden said:
yes like mike says

they use bolts that are tappered, so they get bigger when the bolt goes in to the nut so it does not come loose,
if you notice that you can never turn off a nut off a bolt off a modern car, it becuase the bolt is probably tapered or has a top locking nut, or
"Lock-Tight" on them

I am a strong believer in lock washers and lock-tight, use the lock washeres to look good and origional and tight and lock-tight to keep it tight and hard to come off,

and i always use a washer on or before a lock washer, so the loch washer does not scar the meatle of pull though, and to give it more support
John
Click to expand...
Its is cheap insurance !
 
Often there just isn't room for a lock washer, so I use Lock-tight. Use the correct Lock-tight. I had mistakedly used the red locktight and in removing the bolts, even with using heat, the bolts twisted off in the holes. I didn't need them to be that permanent. There after I now use the blue lock-tight for most my bolts. At least I can get the bolts off when I use the blue Lock-tight.
 
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