Which is better for tight spots: hydraulic or manual outriggers?

I ran a job last month where we had maybe 2 feet of clearance on each side. The hydraulic outriggers on the Grove were solid but the manual ones on the old Tadano let me inch exactly where I needed. What do you guys prefer when space is that tight?

2 comments

2 Comments

lopez.simon1mo ago

But aren't you wasting time with manuals when every second counts in a tight spot? I've been on jobs where I had to reset the outriggers three times with manual pads because the ground shifted, and hydraulics would've had me set in a fraction of the time. Sometimes speed and brute force beat finesse when you're between walls and daylight's burning.

max4151mo ago

What about the kind of mud or slope you were on though? For me it depends on the ground conditions. If the ground is sketchy, I'll take manual every time because you can really feel when it's solid. Hydraulic is fast but sometimes it tries to level itself in ways that don't match the ground. Manual outriggers win for tight spots where you need to finesse it.