ray363•3d ago

Shoutout to the old foreman who told me to stop babying the levers

Back on a job in Portland last summer, my foreman Jim watched me feather the swing so slow on a pick he said, 'You're gonna burn out the brakes treating it like a teacup.' He had me run a 10-ton test pick at full speed and the load settled fine. Anyone else ever get called out for being too careful and found out the rough way works better?

3 comments

3 Comments

cooper.phoenix3d ago

Ray's got a point, that load test was more about whether the thing would shift than the feathering damage. But I've seen guys run swing brakes feather-light for years without a hiccup, it's the constant in-and-out that really cooks the motor seals.

ray8013d ago

Haven't you got that mixed up a little? A 10-ton test pick at full speed wouldn't really tell you if the brakes are going to burn out from feathering. That's more about the swing motor overheating than stopping power.

riley_schmidt3d ago

Yeah I heard some guys talking at a shop about how continuous feathering just cooks the swing motor hydraulics over time.