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A pilot asked me why we call it 'snap ring pliers' and my brain short circuited
I was finishing up a wheel bearing job on a Cessna 172 last week, and the pilot, this older guy named Frank, was just hanging around the hangar. He saw my tool cart and pointed at my snap ring pliers. He goes, 'You know, I've always wondered why you folks call them that. Do they snap? Or do you snap them?' I just froze for a second, holding the pliers. I've used them for fifteen years, from my first apprentice job in Wichita to now, and I never once thought about it. I mumbled something about the ring snapping into a groove, but he just smiled and said, 'Seems like they should be called 'spread ring pliers' or 'open ring pliers.' It's been bugging me ever since. I've been calling tools by their names my whole career without a second thought. What other tool names are we just saying without really thinking about them?
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jakep242d ago
Wait, you were doing a wheel bearing on a 172 and the pilot was just hanging around the hangar? That's a huge safety red flag right there. Nobody should be in your work area while you're doing a job like that.
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simonl861d ago
Yeah, the "safety red flag" thing is spot on. I used to let pilots chill nearby, thinking it was fine if they were just watching. But one guy kept asking questions right as I was torquing a critical bolt, and I almost messed it up. Now I kick everyone out, no exceptions. It's just not worth the distraction.
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