FAASTeam Maintenance Safety Tip
By
Western-Pacific FAASTeam
September 2010
Not All Grease is Equal
Grease is grease, right? WRONG! Yeah, it’s all greasy but that is where the similarity ends. If not otherwise approved, using the substitute lubricant is as unsafe as using substitute hardware. The damaging results for using the improper lubricants may not be immediate, but over time may lead to failure or damage. It may be long after the ink has dried in the maintenance records, but when the failure happens, it will still belong to you.
Aircraft manufacturers go to great lengths to determine the proper lubricants to use on their equipment. They establish the optimum application intervals as well as provide lubricant identification and instructions on how to perform proper lubrication. Where can you find this info? You got it! It’s in their maintenance manuals. Most manuals have a chapter dedicated only to lubrication. When is the last time you carefully read these instructions?
You work in a diverse aviation industry. Some technicians are employed by a major air carrier. Some work as independents competing for business from the small GA aircraft owner. Lubrication instructions are nevertheless available either on lubrication cards supplied by their employer or delineated in the small GA aircraft maintenance manual. Read them, use them, understand them and follow them.
If you don’t have the right stuff on hand to do the job, then get it. If you don’t, then you truly don’t have the “right stuff” to be a professional AMT. Ponder this. How would you feel if you knew that auto mechanic, who just re-lubed the wheel bearings on your family’s car, used petroleum jelly rather that the required hi-temp bearing lube?
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The FAA Safety Team (FAASTeam) is committed to helping you achieve the highest level of safety by providing "tools" and resources to enhance your knowledge and proficiency. For more information on maintenance safety, go to http://faasafety.gov/AMT/pub/mh.aspx
Send your suggestions for improving maintenance safety to AMT@FAASafety.gov
