While working with my lathe on the weekend, I inadvertently ran the carriage too far while power feeding. I should have been paying more attention, but the setup I was working with had the tool post to the opposite side of the carriage so I was expecting there to be more travel left judging by the distance from the tool to the chuck. Ooops.
After getting everything unjammed, a bit of a task there, I was happy to discover that the damage was limited to the spring/roll pin that connects the drive to the lead screw. It sheared off, though not as cleanly as I would have liked, leaving the inside bore for me to clean up.
I checked my odds and ends and I don't have the right size replacement. Does anyone have suggestions for something else I could cobble together (without a lathe) that would still shear under too much load? Or should I just suck it up and buy one of those 1000 pin assortments, of which I would expect to use 5 pieces in my lifetime. ;) The hole is about 5mm but could be enlarged slightly.
