What washers do within a bolt and nut joint
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Published 2024-07-30
All Comments (21)
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Back in tradeschool they also told us 2 other purposes behind flat washers, friction reduction and replacement. You have a rotating bolt head into a stationary surface, by having a plated piece between them you reduce the friction between the 2 and require less torque to achieve the same clamping force. On a similar note the rotating bolt head wants to chew into the surface under it, a flat washer is much easier to replace when it gets chewed than the entire workpiece.
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I had a job for 2 years working as a washer designer. It's a real qualified engineering job.
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The first thing I did when I watched this was identify some washers in your small washer bin that were larger than those in you large bin - happily I kept watching and enjoyed the video. Looking forwards to seeing what's next.
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The washers on the left are often referred to as (anti) Vibration washers. Washers are also to keep apart some materials for corrosion (electrostatic) and to prevent bolts "digging in" to softer materials. Good article, thanks
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Washers also prevent the area under the bolt from being damaged during tightening, for example tightening on a painted surface.
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During my aviation apprenticeship we were taught a bolt has a plain shank, otherwise it is a machine screw. The bolt washer and nut assembled correctly would see the plain portion through hole and enough thread was when 1.5 threads were showing past the nut. Only fine thread bolts are used in aviation for better vibration resistance.
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Another function of washers is as a spacer. When bolting two plates together one, or more, washer(s) can be placed between the plates to get some separation. At one of the factories I worked at we bought Washers for $10 per pound (about 10 cents each), and had apprentices file of any burrs and write a part number on them. They then became Spacers at $3 each.
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Really helpful as this has been a burning question of mine for a few years. Now I know why. Thanks for sharing!
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Great vid ty. Always had to guess what washers were for 💀💀💀💀 great info
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One thing I’d like to mention is how some materials of washers can also be used to stop fluids
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I find that nail polish makes excellent locking , and shatters when removing fasteners.
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The washer goes under the nut to reduce friction when tightening.
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Don't forget: cup washers - usually decorative; washers used to more easily allow the bolt to rotate and tighten - often nylon or similar material; crush or sealing washers - used to seal a gas or liquid port such as oil pan drain; ...
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Interesting and informative. Thank you. Btw. good job with your thumbnail. Just as i was refreshing the feed page i got a glimpse at it and it's caption "What Washers Do?", and could instantly find it again via the search function, since it's also in the title of your video. Some times i'm just too trigger happy with the F5 key. ;)
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Not one of the spring washers is useful for high vibration environments. If there's a genuine vibration loosening problem Nord Lock style serrated washers or actual mechanical retention such as the wiring used in aerospace, castle nuts with a cotter pin or anti rotation washers that are folded against the flats of the nut after it is tightened are needed. Usually if a joint vibrates loose it means it wasn't designed correctly or tightened sufficiently though.
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Excellent video
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@ 3:08 this type of washer is known as a spring washer in Australia.
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One more function of a washer is separation of torque twisting between screw and the part. For example on your bicycle the brake calipers are screwed through washers. And it is done to prevent the screw from rotating calipers out of alignment as you tighten them down to torque spec.
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Washers also help to not damage the mating surface as you wrench it down (a bolt alone will scratch off the metal/plating as you tighten).
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I have been 2 that town where the Bellville washers are from.
