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Old timer told me my cutter head spacing was off and it messed me up for a week | Dredge Operators - Chatter Central

Old timer told me my cutter head spacing was off and it messed me up for a week

Back in 2019 I was working a dig on the Mississippi near Baton Rouge and this 30 year veteran walked up. He said my cutter head was chewing too deep into the bank and I was just throwing mud around instead of pulling it up. I argued with him for a bit (I was stubborn, you know) but then I tried his method of keeping the head closer to the surface. Pumping got way more efficient after that - we went from 400 cubic yards an hour to nearly 550. Have any of you guys dealt with a tip that turned out to be totally right even though you doubted it at first?

4 comments

4 Comments

alice2693mo ago

Shit man, 400 to 550 cubic yards an hour? That's a massive jump just from adjusting the angle of the cutter head. I would've argued with the old timer too, probably called him a boomer under my breath and everything. But that kind of efficiency bump is the difference between getting done on time and having to explain to the boss why you're two weeks behind. Crazy how something that simple can flip the whole job upside down.

lee.drew3mo ago

Totally agree with you @alice269, that kind of jump is insane. I had a similar thing happen on a job where we were digging sand, and this old guy came by and told me to change the swing speed. I thought he was full of it, but after he left I tried it and we went from like 300 yards to almost 500. I felt stupid for a week. The thing is, those little tweaks are exactly what separates a crew that comes in under budget from one that's always playing catch up. You learn fast that the old timers didn't get old by being wrong about everything. Now I just shut up and nod first, then try it later.

jamesm383mo ago

Take it from a stubborn guy who learned the hard way. Sometimes the old timers just know stuff that isn't in the manual. Saves you a week of headaches if you just listen first.

scott.miles3mo ago

Buddy of mine runs a dredge crew up in Minnesota, told me a similar story. He was fighting with the suction line, getting nothing but water and pebbles, couldn't figure out what was wrong. An old cutterhead guy they brought in for a two week job watched him for one morning and said he had the ladder angle too steep, that he was basically just skimming the bottom instead of burying the head. My friend told me he almost laughed in the guy's face. But after that old timer went home, he tried adjusting it a little bit, almost flat, and sure enough production jumped right up. He said he felt like a damn fool for a week after that. Sometimes those guys have seen every problem twice over.

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