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The ins and outs of milling .

milling_drum

Senior Member
Joined
Aug 19, 2008
Messages
725
Location
out west lately
Occupation
asphalt mill operator (ret)
I'd be interested to know what they would say at Wirtgen about this question John C mentioned here.
 

Toegrinder

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 14, 2009
Messages
131
Location
CO
Occupation
Milling Foreman
Hey Guys, this is my first post on this forum so I hope I'm in the right place. I've been milling for a couple years now and started of with an older w500. As the company I've been working for expanded they purchased a Wirtgen 1200ft. We started getting into smaller road patches and have been getting teared up about the quality of the passes. The right rear track of the 1200 sits right infront of the drum which is the side I can see. Whenever I go over an uneven surfaces so does the machine and I find myself manually adjusting. I've tried pulling out the track which is a great option on the machine and driving it along the gutter of the curb which is usually level and it works. The only problem with this is that it leaves about a foot of unmilled pavement which the boss gives me sh*t for. Is this the right machine for the job or am I just doing it wrong. Would an ultrasonic system work?

John, why don't you cut along the curb when the track swung out? The curb will hold up and the machine is designed to do just that. As far as the grade jumping around, wirtgen probably can't help much unless they see it in action since it is a machine specific problem.

I can tell you that when I had that problem two things were causing it. The first was material coming out of the cutter box because the lower conveyor want all the way down, which in turn went under the side/sensor plate and threw the grade off

The second was the side plate was bent out and the track would rub it and lift the plate just enough to raise the machine, then it would free up and drop back down and so on.
 
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milling_drum

Senior Member
Joined
Aug 19, 2008
Messages
725
Location
out west lately
Occupation
asphalt mill operator (ret)
Some of the curbs in Canada are alot different then down here. The gutter pans measure out completely different. In many parts of New England they have no gutter pan at all and the ski rides on long piece of granite which they call a curb.

The folding in Track/Leg barrel has its purpose but it also has huge downsides....easy to flip a 1200 if you run to fast and turn the wrong way with the leg folded in.
 

Johnc

Member
Joined
Jan 15, 2011
Messages
15
Location
Toronto
When I drive with the track folded outwards i ride it along the gutter of the curb. This works great for keeping the grade in place aslong as the gutter is level. But it usually leaves about a foot of unmilled roadway from the edge of the cutter to the first drum pass which needs to be done with the 500. If its a short run its not a big deal but when theres a long stretch it takes a fair bit of time to grind and sweep it up. Im just trying to avoid as much work as possible for the cleanup. It seems to me that it takes the most time out of my day. Thanks for the tips guys.
 

milling_drum

Senior Member
Joined
Aug 19, 2008
Messages
725
Location
out west lately
Occupation
asphalt mill operator (ret)
Upon first seeing a W1200 it was understood that if on a curbline the folding legbarrel/track should always be Folded in for two main reasons.

1. Insure the edge of the drum stays as close as possible to the curbline at all times as required To avoid trimming. Trimming means more cleanup because the smaller mills do not have adjustable mouldboards meaning that costs more time sweeping and/or loading out material. Generally in milling its always been about how far your cleanup operation is behind the mill which dictates how far the big mill goes per day.

2. Gutterpans sometimes have soft spots under them and the weight of the track/legbarrel can break the concrete.

That being what it is, if your having problems understanding how to get the machine to react on grade, take some time to stay on the ground with it. Cut the drum on and set it down in the yard and play with the sensor skis. You should be able to watch the legbarrels react when you pull the wire (oops). From up top dial in your desired grade or depth of cut and set an obstacle in the way of the sensor or ski and practice keeping the cut where you want. Ask those Wizards at Wirtgen about how to CALIBRATE your specific unit. Give them the serial number. Calibration controls how fast the machine reacts to a command on grade....and a few other functions.

Your lucky the 500 operator isn't cussing you out :)
 

Jiujitsustudent

Active Member
Joined
Dec 7, 2009
Messages
25
Location
Las Vegas
damn dude that loooks horrible. why in the world would you use gps for milling. kmakes no sense to me. anyways, i need to move to texas, and if you got along well with those guys from tex-op, i may need a job there next year..depending on how things go with valentine ie money hours yada ydada.
 

milling_drum

Senior Member
Joined
Aug 19, 2008
Messages
725
Location
out west lately
Occupation
asphalt mill operator (ret)
Texop wont pay an operator anything over $14 an hour. They are without a doubt the only people I've ever worked for that know what they are doing in all situations.
 

Jiujitsustudent

Active Member
Joined
Dec 7, 2009
Messages
25
Location
Las Vegas
for 14 an hour they know what they are doing?? did u work for them in the spring summer of 2010 ? i saw them milling in corpus christi i think...with wirtgen mills...idk not sure. I woukld not mill for 14 an hour ill get a warehouse job bro **** that too many idiots will get you kiled
 
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