Question about those swing-free dampeners for tower cranes

I always figured those fancy swing-free dampeners were just an upsell from the sales guys. But our crew got a new Liebherr last month with one built in, and I ran a few loads with it toggled off and on. The difference was night and day, especially on a 150-foot radius pick in a gusty 15 mph wind. That thing cut the load sway down to maybe one gentle rock instead of a full pendulum. Has anyone else tried one of these on an older crane, or do they only really work with new electronics?

2 comments

2 Comments

lisa_murray2d ago

Was that Liebherr swing control actually tuning itself to your specific boom length and load weight?

felix_jones2d ago

Hah, I wish it was tuning itself because my manual tuning sounds like a washing machine full of rocks.