Blog
Field stories, lessons, and technical insights from the WarriorWL wireline team.
Small Part, Big Problem: Preventing Misfires in Shorty Firing Heads
You can prep every sub, torque every joint, and verify every detonator, but sometimes it’s the smallest components that bring everything to a halt. This was one of those jobs—everything ready for plug setting during a wireline and perforating operation. Logging cable was good. Wireline truck dialed in. Pressure control equipment steady. Then came the
When the Line Snapped Back — A Hard Lesson in Surface Tension
Some lessons in the wireline world arrive softly, buried in data logs or minor tension swings. Others? They come crashing through the windshield. It was a typical day on a cased hole logging job. We were already past the first perforation well depth and preparing to reposition for the second shot. The downhole tools were
When One Spark Isn’t Enough: Setting Plugs the Right Way
You never forget the sound of silence when you’re expecting a bang. We were running a standard job in a cased hole wireline setting—deploying a mechanical plug using a familiar setting tool. The gear was prepped, the wireline truck humming, pressure control equipment tight, and all downhole tools configured. I had done this many times
The Unexpected Cut That Reinforced the Basics
You don’t forget the moment you lift a lubricator and see that your wireline has been cleanly severed. Not pinched. Not tangled. Cut. We were wrapping up a wireline well logging job, a typical run in a cased hole wireline setup. The job was going smoothly. All safety and pressure control protocols were in place.
The Retainer Nut That Stalled the Job
There’s a saying in the wireline business: the little things will get you. And on one particular run, a single nut almost cost us a full day of work and, potentially, a whole lot more. We were deep into a wireline and perforating job—standard cased hole logging in a high-activity zone. The downhole tools were
The Hidden Twist That Nearly Ruined Our Wireline Run
Some jobs punch harder than others—not because the pressure control fails, or the formation collapses, but because of something that seems so small it slips right past even the sharpest crews. For me, that lesson came on a wireline logging run that nearly turned into a disaster, all thanks to a set of crossed armors.
When Depth Wasn’t on Our Side — A Shallow Well Lesson in TCP Ball Drop
Shallow wells have their own unique challenges—and I learned that firsthand during a TCP squeeze perforation job that didn’t go quite as expected. We were called out for what was meant to be a routine wireline perforating operation using a ball drop firing head. The target: a relatively shallow formation, less than 700 feet deep.
The Day a Bit of Debris Stopped a Detonator
There are jobs that teach you about tools, and then there are jobs that teach you about failure. This was one of those days—the kind that stays with you and ends up becoming part of your personal wireline safety SOP. It happened on what was supposed to be a straightforward cased hole well services run.
When We Had to Download a Loaded Gun in the Field
There are days in the wireline world when things don’t go as planned. One particular job still lingers in my memory—not because of what we ran, but because of what we didn’t. We were on-site for what should have been a routine cased hole wireline perforation run. The tools were rigged, pressure control equipment was
A Wireline Engineer’s Approach to Ensuring Safety in TCP Operations
As wireline engineers, we deal with critical operations every day, and safety is always our top priority. One operation that carries inherent risks is downloading explosives from the toolstring, particularly when dealing with misruns, canceled operations, or any unexpected issues that require us to safely remove the explosives from the wellbore. Recently, we encountered an
The Importance of Correct Pinning in Ball Drop Firing Heads
As a wireline engineer, the smallest detail can make all the difference between a smooth operation and a costly mistake. During one of our recent jobs, a routine TCP (Tubing Conveyed Perforation) operation took an unexpected turn due to issues with the ball drop firing head. What we thought was a simple misstep in the
Lessons Learned from a Failing Firing Pin in Wireline Perforating
As a wireline engineer, there are moments that define your approach to safety, operations, and equipment maintenance. One such moment happened during a routine perforation operation, which turned into a valuable learning experience. It all started with a misrun during a TCP (Tubing Conveyed Perforation) operation on stage one. The firing pin failed to initiate