You've got far more experience than me, and better credentials, too.
I agree with you; different conditions call for different techniques. If we don't understand what drove the original requirements, it's obviously safer to stick with established procedure.
But...
Many times, especially with highly structured projects, choices are made that might not be driven purely by safety, but by...well, for lack of a better term, convenience. As has been pointed out, it's a lot easier to ensure consistent results in a production environment if the tooling does it, instead of the random craftsman. For instance, some milspec/aerospace wire is surfaced with nickel, some with silver, some with tin, etc. The info I've seen (you'd probably have direct experience) says nickel surfaced wire can't be properly soldered, but it's great for crimps. Obviously, a tech who, for instance, tried to repair nickel plated wire with solder would be making a grave error. So in critical situations, the 'book' tells the tech exactly how to do every job, and he just does it, without question or variation. He doesn't even need to know why.
Now, the question is, does that apply to us? If we buy surplus milspec wire off ebay, as some of us {me} do, it might. Certainly, if we {I} don't do our homework.
On the other hand, if we know we're using the more common tin plated milpsec wire, I believe I have a bit more flexibility in the processes I choose, while still remaining safe.
Are we close to being on the same page?
Charlie