That time a QC inspector told me my rivets looked like 'spider webs'

I was working a night shift at a regional hangar back in 2021, replacing a section of skin on a CRJ. This new QC guy walks over, shines his light at my row of rivets, and says 'those look like spider webs, man'. I had been doing this for 8 years at that point, and nobody had ever called my work anything close to that. He said the edges were too rough and that I needed to ream them out more before driving. Has anyone else had a QC inspector nitpick something that felt totally unfair?

2 comments

2 Comments

sam_wood6023d ago

It's funny how we spend years getting good at something and then one person's opinion makes you question everything you know.

black.amy23d ago

The thing nobody mentions is how that one opinion often sticks because it hits on something you secretly already worried about yourself. Like when I spent three years perfecting my pie crust recipe and someone said it was too dry, the reason it stung is because I always thought maybe it was a bit crumbly but ignored it. That outside voice just confirms the doubt you already had hiding in the back of your head. It's not really about their opinion being more valid than your years of work, but more about it matching that little voice you've been trying to talk over.