I purchased a few new Anderson hook plugs last month and got the newer version with blue plastic wing nuts. After using them a few weeks I purchased more plastic nuts to install on my old plugs. I found that the plastic wing nuts require far less effort to tighten thus making a better seal if you do crank down on them. While installing the new nuts on some old extender inducer plugs I had to heat the top nuts and handle(handle is threaded too) with a plumbers torch to break the thread lock compound. I removed the pvc and rubber before heating.

I have all brass hook plugs. The brass on brass wing nuts make tightening hard. The old economy hook plugs do not have this problem due to different metal types.
hap

I am with you on the difficulty of tightening brass on brass plugs, however I've found that a little maintenence with some mechanics grease goes a long way and lets you "nut down" when needed without worrying about cross threading or breaking the plastic wing nuts.