Over the last few years I Have had several Kenterra foot bolts loosen from
the proximal attachment. It was an easy fix to reloctite and torque, but I
was having this issue frequently enough that I made a decision to
preemptively Change the blue loc-tite to red and that resolved the issue. But the
response from Freedom after reporting this problem was thae following:
An initial evaluation has been conducted. A few points:
* We do not recommend changing the torque to a higher value. The
value has been checked and increasing will likely lead to fatigue failure of
the bolt or female threaded components.
* We have had Qty: 1 primary return from the bolt coming loose in
our quality records.
* The Loctite we are using was selected primarily for its oil
tolerance capabilities which we have a need for with the hydraulic oil present
during the manufacturing process. It also aids with serviceability.
* Changing to a Red with less oil tolerance may be a higher risk
than the Blue with more oil tolerance. A change would also need to be
validated before we could implement it or formally recommend it.
* There is very little rotational force on that specific bolt. Very
interesting that his loosened.
I suspect that most of us are fixing the problem without reporting it. How
many of you out there have had a similar issue, and how many times?
SGT. James O. Young Jr., USAF (ret.), B.Sc., LP, CP, FAAOP
AMPUTEE PROSTHETIC CLINIC
Macon Tifton Albany
888FAKELEG
888fakeleg.com
