Analyzing NAS1675 Vibration Endurance Test using Accelerometers

The endurance test described in NAS1675 section 4.6.7 option 1, more commonly known in the fastener industry as the “boomer banger test”, has been a commonly accepted test to examine the vibration endurance of fasteners since its approval in 1964. This paper seeks to provide a better understanding of the vibration characteristics of this test apparatus by using accelerometers attached directly to the test plate. Details from this test were analyzed for possible ambiguous setup factors which were not well defined in the specification. Those factors were then used to evaluate their effect on the test. The results from the evaluation indicates that the inherent variations are larger than what the setup factors could produce. The data obtained from the accelerometers shows the test to be closer to a repetitive shock test, with large variation in G-force measured by the accelerometers.