Three years ago a senior operator in Seattle told me to 'listen to the machine' and I finally get it now

Last Tuesday I heard a weird groan from the boom during a pick and shut it down. Turned out the turntable bearing was dry. Has anyone else caught a problem just by paying attention to the sound?

3 comments

3 Comments

murphy.abby1mo agoTop Commenter

So when you heard that groan, what exactly were you listening for? Like, did it sound different from the normal grumble of the turntable, or was it something totally new to your ears? I had a similar thing last year with a crawler crane. The final drive started making this ticking noise that was barely there. I shut it down and found a gear chipped in two spots. The shop guys said it would've locked up mid lift if I hadn't caught it. But here's my real question: how long did it take you to trust that feeling enough to actually stop a job? Because for me, the first time I did it, the operator gave me so much crap about wasting time. It's hard to push back when everyone thinks you're just being paranoid.

jamesroberts1mo ago

Probably took me about three or four times of being the guy who stopped the job and then finding something real before I stopped caring what anyone thought. The operators can bitch all they want but they're not the ones signing the paperwork when the gearbox ends up in the mud.

-1

the_jessica1mo ago

Nah, sometimes you gotta let em run and learn the hard way.