hunt.rowan•24d agoMost Upvoted

Hit 500 hours on the cutter suction dredge this week...

Is there a big difference between raw hours logged and really knowing when to back off the cutter head before you clog the pump? I hit 500 hours this shift on the same machine and I still second-guess myself on certain material types. Anybody else feel like the milestone numbers don't mean as much as everyone says they do?

2 comments

2 Comments

margaret_nelson24d ago

Yeah, that comment about "knowing when to back off the cutter head" hits home. I've run those machines for years and 500 hours is barely scratching the surface of the learning curve. The clogging thing is all feel - you can hear the pump load change and see the vacuum gauge start to jump. If you wait for the visual signs, you're already too late. I still mess up on mixed clay and gravel, where the material changes quick. You learn more in one bad clog than a hundred clean runs, so don't sweat the second-guessing.

eric_ramirez6724d ago

The bit about "you can hear the pump load change" is exactly right. Once you start ignoring those audio cues and just watching the gauges, that's when you're cleaning out the head for the next 20 minutes.