LOVE your threads man! Please keep it up.
Thanks, I will!
IDK- locking tab washer is a $dollar or two, to me downsides far outweigh any reason to reuse unless its a trail repair and you dont have a spare. These are stamped metal, get fatigued and the tabs can chip or break off- not worth it.
There is a locating spur these to hold in place on the spindle and tabs are always same position, I generally find orientation of adjusting and outer locking nut are often close to the same position after torque procedure. So to reuse, you would have to turn the adjusting nut more and the outer locking more than the torque you just set to use a different tab.
Good points and absolutely best practice to just replace. Thanks for pointing that out, I should have stated that. I'll edited to make that clear. I actually have a bag of them on the shelve in my wheel bearing box. They're inexpensive and easier to just replace.
I'm just showing that if reused, it needs to pass certain inspection test. Kind of what I'm doing throughout the thread.
The one you see pictured above, is a new one I install a few months ago, when I was just resetting wheel bearing preload until we could get to full wheel bearing service. The lock washer that came out at that time, looked like it been reused a few time and spur was nearly gone.
There is a video on YouTube, where the guy has very large following. He is pounds the bent tabs flat and reuses them, without any warning not to reuse previously bent tab. So I wanted to make clear do not re-bent.
I know you know this AB. But to be clear to anyone reading this,
never turn either nut to fit the lock wash new or used, NEVER under any circumstances. That is what I meant they must be in "usable spot" Lock washer must be fitted to where adjusting and locking nut ends up based on preload setting and torque, not the other way around.
As far as fatigue, yes any bent tab is unusable for that reason. I'm not really concerned with metal fatigue of unbent tabs, as I just don't see sings of that.
The spur (keep) must also be in; like new condition.
FSM list this part as non reusable if removed. Other parts are also listed as non reusable (if removed). That most everyone reuses anyway, best practice no! But if done those too must at least pass inspect. I'll be pointing out what I look for with them also. I like when all non reusable are replaced, but that's rarely done by anyone.
@cruiseroutfit has a kit that comes with new lock washer, and carries most any part you'd need or will get.
In a wheel hub that was recently posted in mud, where wheel hub broke loose of rotor disk and walk off. It appeared and I suspect, the lock washer was put in wrong location. But I don't think we'll ever know this. As it was half gone and up against the wall of hub, so hard to say where it was. I suspect it was installed between small bearing and claw washer, which makes no sense. But would explain why nuts walked off in short time. I suppose, it's possible they reused a bent tab or spur gone. But I've seen many were they did not bend any tab, and near nothing left of spur, those didn't walk off but could have!
I've never actually seen a busted tab during disassembly. You can tell when a tab has been bend once or bent a second time. They're smooth in the bend first time. Second time bent they have a ripple.
My 01LC which had Toyota Dealership wheel bearing service done before I bough it at 59K miles in 2003. I found DS lock washer had not been locked by the lock washer (not bend over any nut), they forgot just that side, PS was bent. I found this on my first wheel bearing job, which was shamefully more than 30K miles later. Bearings were loose, claw washer very scored, spindle dis-color from heat, and lock washer had previously bent tabs (a re-used one). In-fact I've find most lock washers are used. Not a good practice, but very common.
Here something else I've seen done by " indy shops" that is wrong. They'll bend all 5 tabs over adjusting nut and not one over the locking nut. They seem to think the spur is the lock, it is not. It's the locking of the two nut together after torquing, that is lock.
WRONG install; all tab were bent inward. I see this all to often.
