02-08-2013, 07:55 AM
(02-08-2013, 01:44 AM)Tony Wells Wrote: It wasn't today, but I got the shop's attention once by running over an open steady rest on a Pro 60. It's a nice mid sized CNC lathe with pulse generator handles so you kind of get the sense of a manual lathe. I had an 8" OD part in the steady and was sneaking up on the face to qualify the tool, but I didn't realize there was a large boring bar in the back turret (flat bed lathe). Well, it was lined up perfectly with the opened steady, which was laid open about 180 °. Kind of dark in the enclosure, and with the pulse generators, one thing missing is force feedback. Those servomotors are pretty stout, especially when you can't feel a thing when they run up against something. It snapped the casting like a twig, and the top half of the steady hit the pan like a rock. Probably weighed 60 lbs. Fortunately, everyone knew what it was, because I wasn't the first guy to break it. I was just filling in for the regular operator, who was the original wrecker. To the weld shop it went, but it shut the machine down for half a day. And embarrassed me a good bit. But them we all laughed about it.
Tony,
That would be embarrassing for sure. Those are the types of lessons one seldom forgets though.
Ed