Tech Tips

 

The importance of tightening fasteners to their required preload cannot be emphasized enough. If a fastener is not tightened properly, the fastener will not apply the required preload on the application it is being used for and may become susceptible to failure.

There are six types of metallurgical failures that affect fasteners. Each type has unique identifying physical characteristics. The following examples are designed to be used like a spark plug reading chart to help analyse fastener failures.

For builders using ARP products, the company has been very clear in its written policy: “ARP provides torque specs for our fasteners based on using ARP Ultra-Torque. If you’re not using our specs and our lube, you have no real idea what pre-load you’re getting.” 

Every component in your engine is held together by fasteners designed for a specific purpose. The quality of those fasteners is your insurance against poor performance and RUD; Rapid Unintended Disassembly.