Oil Filter Safety Wire
 

What's the general consensus on safetying oil filters? Who does it and who doesn't bother? In all the years I've maintained cars and other vehicles, I've yet to see an instance where the filter even so much as slightly loosened from its initial installation. Is this one of those cases where we do it because it's always been done this way?

Heinrich Gerhardt

A should do thing.
 

:eek: Look at it this way, at least it will refresh your skills with safety wire.

This should be done. But what will help is to give yourself room around the filter and the tie off location for the safety wire process and it won't be a chore each time you change the filter. :cool:

Steve, you are right on!... :o

WOW! Why chastise a guy for asking legitimate questions? :rolleyes: Come on! That kind of attitude is what gives aviators a bad reputation.

I have no real opinion one way or the other on this type of question but am interested in hearing others opinions (on the reasoning behind doing so). Berating a guy for asking a question by ridiculing his notion of wanting to live or die is a little too crass for my taste. How about lightening up a little huh?

Mark Twain (Samuel Clements) once said something to the effect that "he had rather be wrong a 100 times than dead once".
talburt@uark.edu

Back to the original question....
 

Yes I do. I always did this with my Cessna. I think that it would have been a violation of the FAR/AIM to have not done what the A&P would have done. On my Cessna there was an inspection door that I could view the oil filter before each flight and I would check that the safety wire was still on secure.

On my RV, I don't know if is required by FAR/AIM, being that it is experimental. On the other hand, if I ever did loose oil pressure (emergency landing/damage), I would not want to explain to the insurance company that I had decided to cut corners from standard practices and not safety the oil filter.

Just my thoughts, Kent.

Why not?
 

Another one of those aircraft "belt and suspenders" things. But why not? It takes a couple of minutes and it sure can't hurt.

John Clark
RV8 N18U "Sunshine"
KSBA

The way that big lycosaur shakes and vibrates in front of me makes me think that you would be wise to safety anything you don't want to vibrate loose. I've always safteid my oil filter. In fact, I did it last Friday, and the safety wiring process took no more than three minutes.

Just my opinion,

Cheers

What amazes me is what is NOT safety wired on the lycos. Like, the "valve" cover screws. Plain 'ol nuts and screws abound in such locations as the exhaust, carb, mags, etc. What's up with that?

Your rocker cover screws don't have lockwashers? You have hardware on your exhaust/carb/mags without lockwashers? Really?

Built-In
 

As Dan says... the rocker box screws should even have the lock washers built-in (STD-1925) - with coarse "teeth"... :)



And my Tiger carb has nice small 0.020 safety wire on several fittings.... the only place I've found the small diameter safety wire.

gil in Tucson