Debate: Is upgrading to a rockwell hardness tester worth it for pin testing or is the old file check still good enough?

I had a senior tech tell me last year that buying a $400 rockwell hardness tester for connector pin inspections was a total waste. He swore by just running a file across the pins to feel for hardness, been doing it for 20 years. I was skeptical at first too, thought it was just another expensive gadget they push on us. But then I failed a pin test on a landing gear harness on a Cessna 172 last month and the file check passed it fine. Turned out the pin was actually too soft but the file couldn't tell because of the plating. So now I'm leaning the other way, thinking the tester is actually legit. But a buddy of mine says the testers can give false readings if the battery is low or if the tip is worn. What's your experience been? Have you ever had a file check miss a bad pin or a tester give you a wrong reading?

3 comments

3 Comments

terryf6211d ago

Last month on a DC-9 door harness I had a brand new Rockwell tester give me a pass on a pin that was dead soft in the center. Filed it after and it grabbed like butter. @jamie_smith, I get what you're saying about numbers over feelings, but a number is only as good as the surface it hits. Plating can trick the anvil just as easy as it tricks your thumb. Calibration and battery checks help a little, but you still have to work the pin tip to the full depth or you're just pressing on chrome. I'll take the file every time, it tells you the whole story across the whole face, not just a spot.

hugo_bennett11d ago

Wait, dead soft in the center on a brand new tester?

jamie_smith11d ago

Jumped into the file check method myself back when I started, thought it was bulletproof since that's what the old timers all did. But I've noticed this same thing happening everywhere now, not just with pin testing. People get so used to doing something the simple way that they ignore when technology catches up and actually fixes a real blind spot. Same thing happened with my dad and digital calipers, he swore by his old verniers until he had a 3 inch measurement he kept getting wrong by a hair. The rockwell tester is like those digital calipers, it gives you a number instead of a feeling, and numbers don't lie about surface hardness like a file can when the plating throws off your touch. Just make sure you calibrate the thing and watch the battery, my buddy's tester gave him a wonky reading last month and it was just low on juice.