# what  r those pins

**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-r-those-pins/3102
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [September 9, 1999, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-r-those-pins/3102 "1999-09-09T01:44:00Z")
**Posts on this page:** 4
**Page:** 1

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### Author: ![ginny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7ba0ec/32.png) [@ginny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ginny)
#### Post date: [September 9, 1999, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-r-those-pins/3102/1 "1999-09-09T01:44:00Z")

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hi, what are those pins called used on brakes on ford cars? Are they called cotter pins?

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### Author: ![UncaStuart](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uncastuart/32/404_2.png) [@UncaStuart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncaStuart)
#### Post date: [September 9, 1999, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-r-those-pins/3102/2 "1999-09-09T01:54:00Z")

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If it is a 1975-79 Ford, they are called Welcome Back Cotter Pins.

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### Author: ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)
#### Post date: [September 9, 1999, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-r-those-pins/3102/3 "1999-09-09T02:08:00Z")

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I thought she was asking about fnord cars, so I was unable to see the question…

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### Author: ![pluto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f08c70/32.png) [@pluto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pluto)
#### Post date: [September 9, 1999, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-r-those-pins/3102/4 "1999-09-09T03:29:00Z")

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ginny –

I don’t know about the Ford brake pins you want but a cotter pin is a particular type of fastener. It looks sort of like a bobby pin – you insert it through a hole and bend the legs back to keep it from sliding back out. It’s usually used to keep a part from moving along a shaft.

To find the name of the pins you want, go to the library and look at the Chilton’s manuals for your make/model/year of car. They are in the reference section, Dewey Decimal 629 something. Or take one with you to the auto parts store and tell them where you found it.

## p.s. Maybe you should just put it back where you found it! Does your dad know you’re playing with his car?

“non sunt multiplicanda entia praeter necessitatem”  
– William of Ockham