Machine Shop Fail
Posted by FirmWarez on 3 Mar 2012 in Blog | 0 comments
I was machining a custom short para-flare carrier for a 40mm grenade launcher. Yes, that’s what I said. The standard carrier is about 6″ long, so this workpiece is short, and as always on such things it was too short to use a live center and still have room to work.
There is a radius on the carrier that I cut by hand, since my lathe is an old fashioned human operated machine and not CNC. The radius really isn’t hugely difficult, but it can be tricky. I felt like I had cut it perfect on this one, and was feeling rather proud of my mad machining skillz.
One of the last operations was to cut the boss where the carrier goes in to the cartridge. One slip, and I cut too deep. The workpiece hung up on the cutting tool, and was pulled in to a chuck jaw and then slung out of the machine. The result is as pictured. Keep in mind the “hung up on cutting tool/pulled in to chuck jaw/slung from machine” sequence can be measured in milliseconds. That is the para-carrier became a projectile long before being loaded in to an M203. That sort of thing in a machine shop tends to get your attention.
I keep these things — this one is a pencil holder — because I know that if I don’t have an epic fail every now and then, I’m not trying hard enough.
