Abstract
AISI 8620 is a steel alloy utilized for its hardness and toughness properties. As a result, it is often used in high stress and high impact applications. An investigation into wear was performed on AISI 8620 steel parts from a WW2 era M1 Garand that have a potential of failure. The purpose is to discover the effects of op rod/receiver wear at high cycle life. Specifically, failure modes as it relates to this sliding wear. The tests performed on 8620 include a ware test on contact surfaces, and optical microscopic analysis (to examine surface after increasing cycle wear). Dimensional analysis was performed to determine critical dimensions and to examine galling. SEM analysis was used to gain insight into the effects of sliding wear. The wear test determined that failure occurs when the total wear between the op rod and the receiver surfaces equals 0.011in. All this information is brought together to predict the remaining cycle life of M1 Garand receivers based on current wear.