For engineers who already know the math—but still lose projects. For the last few years, I’ve been sharing technical guides here on Mechanical Design Handbook —how to size a motor, how to calculate fits, and (as you recently read) how to choose between timing belts and ball screws. But after 25 years in industrial automation, I realized something uncomfortable: Projects rarely fail because the math was wrong. They fail because: The client changed the scope three times in one week. A critical vendor lied about a shipping date (and no one verified it). The installation technician couldn’t fit a wrench into the gap we designed. University taught us the physics. It didn’t teach us the reality. That gap is why I wrote my new book, The Sheet Mechanic . This is not a textbook. It is a field manual for the messy, political, and chaotic space between the CAD model and the factory floor. It captures the systems I’ve used to survive industrial projec...
Figure 1: Buckling always occurs about the "Weak Axis," which is determined by the minimum Radius of Gyration. What is a Column? In the definition of mechanical engineering, a column does not have to be a vertical pillar like in architecture. A column is defined as any structural member that carries an axial compressive load and tends to fail by elastic instability ( buckling ) rather than by crushing the material. This includes connecting rods in engines, hydraulic piston rods, and even truss members in a bridge. Search for Strength of Materials Books Advertisement The Phenomenon of Buckling Buckling (or elastic instability) is a dangerous failure mode. It occurs when the shape of the column is not sufficient to hold itself straight under load. Unlike "crushing," where the material yields because the stress exceeds its limit, buckling is a geometric failure . At a specific "Critical ...