Wait, your instructor told you to ditch the torque wrench on small screws?? That sounds like a recipe for disaster and I can't believe it actually worked out for him. Six months of stripping screws would have me pulling my hair out before I figured out what he meant. The crush washer thing makes sense though, you can feel that little give right before it gets tight. I've always heard the rule is around 20 inch pounds is where you switch but I bet it depends on the screw size and what it's going into. How did you know the fuel door ones were actually tight enough and not just snug?

Went through the exact same thing when I left my big bank last year. The hold thing drove me nuts because a hotel or gas station hold would sit there invisible for days while I'm doing math in my head trying to figure out why my balance was off. My credit union shows that stuff right away and even labels it as pending so you know it's coming out. It sounds like such a small thing but it saves you from that awful moment at the register when your card gets declined over money you already spent. Big banks act like real time updates are some kind of rocket science when it's really just them sitting on your money a little longer. Glad you made the switch, feels like finally being told the truth about your own account.