Loading…
27
The ramp guy in Wichita told me to stop fighting the safety wire, and I finally got it
Two years ago I was doing my first solo safety wire job on a nose gear in Wichita, and this older mechanic named Dale watched me break three pairs of pliers without saying a word. I was twisting clockwise, pulling hard, getting angry. He finally walked over, took the pliers out of my hand, and said 'you are fighting it, let the wire tell you where it wants to go.' He showed me how to start the twist with just finger pressure, keep both pliers close, and let the pigtail stay short so it does not whip around. Took me 4 tries that night but it finally clicked, and now I can do a whole panel without one break. The thing that stayed with me is he did not make fun of me or walk away, he just waited until I was done being frustrated. Anyone else have a guy like that early on who showed you one small thing that made the whole job make sense?
1 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In1 Comment
emmaclark1mo ago
Dale sounds like my old lead in Tulsa, Sam, who watched me strip a clamp screw and just said keep your wrist straight and let the pliers do the turning. Being patient with the new guy costs nothing and saves everybody a busted knuckle later.
0