To fail catastrophically, typically after a tooth breaks and passes through the mesh, wrecking the remaining teeth, bearings and sometimes the housing. Used as a verb, as in the box grenaded, or a noun for the event. It is usually the end of a chain that started with an ignored noise, low oil or a fatigue crack.
Heard on the job
Rear end grenaded on the dyno pull, there's ring gear teeth in the pan and a hole in the cover.
Also heard as
- grenaded
- blew up
- scattered
Related terms
Tooth breakage
A gear tooth cracking off, most often by bending fatigue starting in the root fillet on the loaded side.
Box
Shop shorthand for a gearbox, reducer or transmission, as in the box is whining or pull the box.
Fuzz
Shop word for the fine metallic paste that collects on a magnetic drain plug from normal gear wear.