 Are you still using “lock washers”?, They are worse than useless |
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| Superhawk996 |
 Sep 24 2026, 10:10 AM
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#1
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914 Guru  Group: Members Posts: 8,084 Joined: 25-August 18 From: Woods of N. Idaho Member No.: 22,428 Region Association: Galt's Gulch 
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Food for thought.
Split ring lock washers were abandoned by the auto industry as well as aviation long ago and for good reason. They are worse than useless. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/stirthepot.gif) It is well documented that they don’t provide any locking function. I say worse than useless because one of their failure modes is cracking. When this happens the joint loosens, the remnants of the cracked lock washer fall out, and now you have a loose joint. Here’s a few I found recently that had been cracked and were on the verge of falling out. You will also notice that even the ones that aren’t cracked are flattened and have lost any spring effect.  The inability of a split ring lock washer to provide any locking is documented in NASA literature.   https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/19900009424 As well as Naval Ships Technical Manual Chpt. 75 that recommends other solutions.  https://maritime.org/doc/nstm/ch075.pdf |
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| Retroracer |
Sep 24 2026, 11:30 AM
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#2
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 667 Joined: 7-July 13 From: Bend OR Member No.: 16,100 Region Association: Pacific Northwest
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Interesting data - thx for sharing
- Tony |
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| NARP74 |
Sep 24 2026, 12:00 PM
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#3
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 1,571 Joined: 29-July 20 From: Colorado, USA, Earth Member No.: 24,549 Region Association: Rocky Mountains |
I can say those are not my go to for anything anymore.
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| flxzcat |
Sep 24 2026, 12:08 PM
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#4
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Member Group: Members Posts: 131 Joined: 13-June 11 From: Lake Forest, So. Cal. Member No.: 13,188 Region Association: Southern California |
I hate washers that damage the base metal.
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| Root_Werks |
Sep 24 2026, 12:32 PM
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#5
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Village Idiot Group: Members Posts: 9,061 Joined: 25-May 04 From: About 15NM from Canada Member No.: 2,105 Region Association: Pacific Northwest
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That's really good info, thanks!
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| bdstone914 |
Sep 24 2026, 01:00 PM
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#6
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bdstone914 Group: Members Posts: 5,389 Joined: 8-November 03 From: Riverside CA Member No.: 1,319 |
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| Superhawk996 |
Sep 24 2026, 02:18 PM
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#7
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914 Guru Group: Members Posts: 8,084 Joined: 25-August 18 From: Woods of N. Idaho Member No.: 22,428 Region Association: Galt's Gulch
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QUOTE(bdstone914 @ Sep 24 2026, 03:00 PM)  Yup - good call those actually work - especially good for ground connections because of how they “dig in” the material. As long as you can tolerate the minor surface damage. Actually most other locking washers (Belleville, Schnorr, Nord-Lock, etc) work pretty well depending on application. Same for locking nuts like Nylock, and deformed thread prevailing torque nuts. Unfortunately the split ring lock washers are cheap and they just won’t go away because they are cheap and it makes people feel like they are doing something even if they actually contribute to failure. Getting rid of lock washers is also a good weight reduction too! No sense in carrying around useless weight. |
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| Superhawk996 |
Sep 24 2026, 02:41 PM
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#8
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914 Guru Group: Members Posts: 8,084 Joined: 25-August 18 From: Woods of N. Idaho Member No.: 22,428 Region Association: Galt's Gulch
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Tried to find a good description of the Junker Test that isn’t blatantly shilling for some fastening solution. Sort of amazing that it took until the 80s and 90s for automotive to finally ditch the split ring lock washers.
If you search YouTube you can find other videos of the Junker Test. The Junker test isn’t some be all end all test but it is a pretty decent test for doing a rock sort to understand how fasteners can loosen and how that varies by the type of fastener system. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jq38Oe6lMEg?is=8YaFJusWjyjR1gXz |
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| 914Sixer |
Sep 24 2026, 04:24 PM
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#9
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914 Guru Group: Members Posts: 9,573 Joined: 17-January 05 From: San Angelo Texas Member No.: 3,457 Region Association: Southwest Region
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My work around is WIZ (serrated)nuts and bolts. No lock washer needed. I consider these all in one solution.
Attached image(s)  
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| 930cabman |
Sep 24 2026, 04:45 PM
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#10
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Advanced Member Group: Members Posts: 4,834 Joined: 12-November 20 From: Buffalo Member No.: 24,877 Region Association: North East States
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Thank you Phil, very cool having an automotive engineer whose also a great guyand teener to boot
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| Root_Werks |
Sep 24 2026, 05:35 PM
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#11
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Village Idiot Group: Members Posts: 9,061 Joined: 25-May 04 From: About 15NM from Canada Member No.: 2,105 Region Association: Pacific Northwest
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I've used star washers before and like them. Mostly using the wavy washers. Those junk as well?
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