Blew a fuse on a big job in Denver and had to think fast

I was mid-run on a three axis mill cutting some aluminum parts for a custom furniture order about two weeks ago. Everything was going smooth until the spindle just stopped dead with a loud pop and the whole control panel went dark. Turns out a fuse blew because the coolant pump had a short and overloaded the circuit. I had to dig through my truck for spare fuses while the client was texting asking for an update. Found a 20 amp that fit after checking the manual on my phone and got the machine back up in about 20 minutes. The cut path was still good so I didn't have to scrap the part. Has anyone else dealt with a sudden electrical issue like that and had to MacGyver a fix on site?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_vera6d ago

Oh man, that's a classic! I had a similar thing happen with a table saw at a buddy's shop once. Blew a fuse right in the middle of cutting a bunch of dados for some shelving. Ended up having to swap in a spare from my old truck radio I had sitting in the glovebox. Felt like a genius for about five minutes until I realized the real short was in the wiring.

umaprice6d ago

Hold on @the_vera, are we really calling that a "classic"? It's a blown fuse, not a medical emergency. You found a spare and kept going, that's just normal Saturday stuff.