Talked to an old-timer at the dock last week who changed how I think about my cutterhead

I was swapping out a worn cutterhead on the barge and this guy who's been dredging since the 70s walked up. He said he never runs his cutter faster than 20 RPM no matter what the manual says. That hit different cause I've been pushing 30 RPM for years thinking I was getting more done. He explained how slower speeds actually let the material flow better and save on wear parts. Has anyone else heard this trick from the old guys or am I just behind the times?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_vera23d agoTop Commenter

he never runs his cutter faster than 20 RPM no matter what the manual says" - yeah I've heard that one before but I dunno if it's that serious. I mean sure slower could save some wear but 30 RPM ain't that crazy for most materials I deal with. Maybe that guy's just stuck in his ways from back when parts were made different. I pushed 30 for years too and never noticed a big difference in how long stuff lasted or how fast I got through the job. Could be he's right for certain mud or sand but I doubt it's some universal rule. I'd say try 20 for a week and see if you actually notice anything before you go rewriting all your habits.

tylerw9223d ago

Man honestly I'm right there with you. I've been running my rigs at 30-35 RPM for like the last 8 years and I've never had a single issue with wear or tear. People act like it's some magic number but in my experience the material type matters way more than the exact RPM. I've cut through all sorts of stuff from wet clay to rocky sand and the only time I slow down is when I hit something real gnarly. That guy's probably stuck on advice from like 1985 when bearings and bits were way softer. But these days? Tbh I'd say run whatever gets the job done fastest without shaking your teeth out. I tried 20 for a week once and honestly it just felt like I was wasting time.