Boulder Buster

In the past 12 months we have had 2 safety issues, both involving unauthorized changes of parts on the Boulder Buster machine.

 First Case:

A contractor sent a Boulder Buster machine to his machine shop for a general clean up.   In the process the machine shop operator, not a Boulder Buster operator, decided that the surface of the firing pin guide was a bit rough and uneven and needed skiming to make it look good.

Result - With the reduced thickness of the guide the firing pin now protruded out of the guide by a fraction.   When screwing the head down on a loaded machine, the protruding firing pin hit the primer and detonated the cartridge with the operator right on top of the Boulder Buster. 

Second Case:

A contractor decided to make their own firing pins and got the diamensions slightly wrong.   The "new" firing pin protruded from the firing pin guide and when screwing the head down the cartridge fired with the operator on top of the Boulder Buster.

Conclusions:   Fortunately, in both cases the operators were not injured, it could have been a lot worse.   In the first case it was just a lack of knowledge and a desire to do a good job that caused the problem.   In the second case it was a desire to save a few dollars.   Please remember that using unauthorized parts is dangerous to the welfare of your staff.   Is saving a few dollars on cheaper parts worth the risk of serious injury to a staff member?

Please email me with any comments you may want to make.   info@boulderbuster.ca