Safety Wire Bolt Application: An Overview Of Safety Wire And Safety Wire Bolts

Safety Wire Bolts

Lock wire is used as a safeguard against loosening bolts, especially in applications where there is a high level of vibration, and the bolt cannot fail—applications such as brakes and safety rails. Lock wire is often referred to as “safety wire” because of the high-stakes applications in which it is employed.

How is Safety Wire Installed?

Safety wire is threaded through a hole in the head of the bolt and twisted for tensile strength. It is then threaded through the head of another bolt, within 2 feet of the original bolt, and secured in a similar manner. This process provides additional tightness to both bolts and mitigates the risk of either bolt loosening or causing a potential hazard.

Safety wire can be twisted by hand, with pliers, or by using a special tool called a “twister.” This tool resembles a screwdriver but with a bored hole at the end to hold the wire in place as it is twisted by the technician.

How Do Safety Wire Bolts Work?

The tension created by twisting the wire must always be in the clockwise/tightening direction. The opposing force on each safety wire bolt means that there is equal restriction on both bolts, keeping them locked together tightly.

Safety wire bolts have a hole drilled through the head of the bolt with which to thread the wire through. There are two options for safety wire bolts: site-drilled or manufactured. Often, when just a couple of bolts are needed for an application, they can be drilled on-site with a bit that is a close match to the gauge of wire being used. The drawback with this is that it takes extra time to drill the holes, accurate placement of the holes can be difficult, and the integrity of the bolt can be compromised if the hole is not drilled accurately. Manufactured safety wire bolts are common and affordable, and they avoid all the shortcomings of site-drilled bolts.

What are the Advantages of a Safety Wire Bolt?

There are many safety advantages to using safety wire bolts:

• The fasteners themselves are inexpensive. This is important when a task involves multiple safety wires and safety wire bolts, and especially cost-effective when fasteners and spools of wire can be bought in bulk.
• Installation is straightforward. There is a degree of skill involved in the installation and proper twisting of safety wire, but for a proficient and experienced technician the process is fairly simple.
• There is not much waste. With precut lengths of wire there is additional wastage, but bulk spools produce almost none.
• Safety wire bolts are effective. There are many applications for safety wire and safety wire bolts, from infrastructure to transport to aviation, and this fairly simple solution is effective at preventing serious and life endangering malfunctions from loose bolts.
• They provide immediate visual proof of a tightened bolt. Not only is it obvious when safety wire bolts that remain tightly fastened, but the mere presence of safety wire can also alert an inspector to critical areas of a machine or site where they should pay close attention.