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Working the National 1300A

Natman

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Dec 19, 2016
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After a long wait, I got my NCCCO written test results, I passed, what a relief to get that out of the way. No grade, all I know so far (or care) is it was over 70, the cutoff point and all that matters. I did get the grade on my practical (operating) test, 99 out of a possible 100, and that was a hoot. Now I am HOPING I get asked for a cert card by the super when pulling into a jobsite, instead of dreading it, of course that means I'll never get asked, but it was still worth doing. They tell me I am now certified (but NOT qualified, as least in my mind) to operate up to a 200 ton crawler crane. That's nuts, they ought to have lesser cert tickets, say for up to 50 ton boom trucks.
 

CM1995

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Jan 21, 2007
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13,250
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Alabama
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Running what I brung and taking what I win
Congrats on the cert!

Agreed on the certification, there is a world of difference going from a 25 ton boom up to a 200 ton crawler. Oh well I guess they have to start somewhere.
 

crane operator

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 27, 2009
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8,275
Location
sw missouri
They tell me I am now certified (but NOT qualified, as least in my mind) to operate up to a 200 ton crawler crane.

Not likely. Crawler is a different specialty than swing cab telescopic, so unless you took the separate specialty test, and separate practical, you can't run a crawler. You could run a 200 ton all terrain though. :)

Congrats though, my renewal was this winter. The ones that get me are the stand off distances for power lines. So many feet for x number of Kva. Like I can look at a power line and know how many Kva it is? Nope, I'm calling the power company. And then (if I have to call the power company anyways) the idea that I should have the standoff distance memorized is somewhat stupid. There is also a separate chart for clearance driving under vs. working beside.

Table-A.jpg
Table-T.jpg
 

Camshawn

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 25, 2017
Messages
585
Location
Langley BC
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retired
Count the bells in the insulators. The more bells, the higher the voltage. I have a chart somewhere if I can find it. Used to live in my shirt pocket when I was working……
It’s not handy tonight. May be in the shop somewhere. I will look tomorrow morning .
Cam
 

Natman

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Good tip Camshawn, but it wouldn't have helped in the test! Not only the power line stats, the amount of allowable broken strands in different types of wire rope, before it has to removed from service, was a mind bender also. Some answers were to be in how many rope diameters, some in how many lays. Some for RR rope, other for standing versus running, it was not a cakewalk by any means. I was really surprised by how tough it was, maybe because I went thru OSHA classes before that were basically, if you showed up you passed, this was a real test.
 

skyking1

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 3, 2020
Messages
7,467
Location
washington
Not likely. Crawler is a different specialty than swing cab telescopic, so unless you took the separate specialty test, and separate practical, you can't run a crawler. You could run a 200 ton all terrain though. :)

Congrats though, my renewal was this winter. The ones that get me are the stand off distances for power lines. So many feet for x number of Kva. Like I can look at a power line and know how many Kva it is? Nope, I'm calling the power company. And then (if I have to call the power company anyways) the idea that I should have the standoff distance memorized is somewhat stupid. There is also a separate chart for clearance driving under vs. working beside.

Table-A.jpg
Table-T.jpg

That would be the LBC on my card for the lattice boom crawler.
PXL-20210830-031603361-2.jpg
 

Natman

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Dec 19, 2016
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More 80' light poles, the type that fit on a tapered concrete pier. Seems our school district has a surplus of COVID related funds and is throwing money around big time. These are a bit tricky as the light fixtures are above the boom tip, so once over the pier it's not just winching down, but retracting, booming down, winching up etc. All why trying not to get the thing jammed up as the Sparky is rotationally aligning it while it's coming down, I had one spotter who sole job was to stand back and eyeball the boom tip and keep me out of the fixtures.IMG_20210823_085935756_HDR.jpg Had to short jack the side towards the running track, tight quarters all around.
 

Natman

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They came with rigging instructions, we used 20' slings shackled to the welded pad eyes about 30' up, then a 6' wire rope sling and shackles that went around the pole. Once in place the wire rope slid down to where a guy on a lift could unrig it. First one we used a round sling up top, and it choked up and didn't want to slide down but finally did, so we wised up and went to the cable. Out of 4 poles, the first one took us a couple hours, the last one half an hour, by the time we were done, we had it all figured out!
 

skyking1

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Nov 3, 2020
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7,467
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washington
with the street lights, we would loop a 4' nylon through the wiring port at the bottom to carry the weight. Then we would attach a long nylon to that, and put a loop around the pole at the height we wanted to control it. I'd tape that spot so it would stay at the point we wanted, and then attach a light tag rope slightly above that point.
It would break the tape and choke up, and when done setting I lined down, the rigger would tug now and then to keep the loop moving down the tapered pole as it got larger.
 

Camshawn

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Joined
Jan 25, 2017
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585
Location
Langley BC
Occupation
retired
Sorry guys, I can not find my little chart with the number of bells for each voltage range. In my service truck, it was on a clip on the bulkhead. When I moved out ( retired) of my service truck, it went into the black hole known as a box filled with important things that is now stored in a safe place. Cam
 

hvy 1ton

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Joined
Jul 24, 2006
Messages
1,943
Location
Lawrence, KS
Sorry guys, I can not find my little chart with the number of bells for each voltage range. In my service truck, it was on a clip on the bulkhead. When I moved out ( retired) of my service truck, it went into the black hole known as a box filled with important things that is now stored in a safe place. Cam

This look somewhat correct? Pulled it from a manual on substations from the USDA of all places.
upload_2021-9-1_21-40-38.png
 

Natman

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Dec 19, 2016
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I have 3 trees to remove at my crane yard in town, one very near powerlines. I have decided to coordinate (rather then rent a man lift and use my general all around helper, who was relieved) with an experienced tree guy, yet to be selected. The first outfit never called me back, when I left a message talking about how I wanted to do the removal using MY crane. No one in tree work around here uses cranes, and this removal would be much more difficult (and expensive) without one. I am going to modify my approach to the next tree guy I approach, and not even mention I have a crane......I need the right guy willing to work outside his box (assuming I can't find one who has used a crane before) who will respect my knowledge and experience in running my equipment, while I also respect his. In my town of 60,000, there are a dozen or so "tree guys" advertising, I think most of them don't even have a bucket truck, we'll see how it goes.
 

CM1995

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Jan 21, 2007
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13,250
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Alabama
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Running what I brung and taking what I win
Interesting about your local tree guys. Any reputable company here has a tandem boom truck like yours, bucket truck, CTL and tri-axle grapple truck. Hired a local company a few months ago to take a couple of trees down and they had one of those rubber tracked single man lifts - slicker than snot on a door knob, those guys know how to make money.

One of the largest tree companies here will cut the smaller trees whole in back yards and fly them over the house with a large boom then chip whole on the street.
 

John Griffin

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Joined
Apr 8, 2018
Messages
264
Location
Huntsville, AL
I have 3 trees to remove at my crane yard in town, one very near powerlines. I have decided to coordinate (rather then rent a man lift and use my general all around helper, who was relieved) with an experienced tree guy, yet to be selected. The first outfit never called me back, when I left a message talking about how I wanted to do the removal using MY crane. No one in tree work around here uses cranes, and this removal would be much more difficult (and expensive) without one. I am going to modify my approach to the next tree guy I approach, and not even mention I have a crane......I need the right guy willing to work outside his box (assuming I can't find one who has used a crane before) who will respect my knowledge and experience in running my equipment, while I also respect his. In my town of 60,000, there are a dozen or so "tree guys" advertising, I think most of them don't even have a bucket truck, we'll see how it goes.

You should go see if any one locally is listed at the isa.

https://www.treesaregood.org/findanarborist

Most of the really good tree guys belong to the isa and are certified arborists. Not all of them will be well versed in working with cranes but most of them know each other. They will know who in your area does crane removals.
 

Natman

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Got the right guy....doing it the weekend after next, we hit it off and seem to be on the same page re using my 30 ton rig where appropriate, and not, where it ain't. Should be fun for both of us, maybe even educational.
 

John Griffin

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Apr 8, 2018
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Huntsville, AL
Tree work rules with a crane are different than construction rules. Ansi z133-17 is what governs tree work procedures. One big difference is arborist can tie into the crane above the ball with their climbing rope system using a wired shut shackle.
 

Natman

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The tree work at my crane yard went great, it was boring instead of exciting, with no surprises. The tree guy was perfect, we got along great, and it opened his eyes to what having even a 30 ton rig on some of his jobs could do for him in future work. He estimated the weight of every cut, and then after I had ahold of it I told him what the LMI indicated...and with our picks all being 900 to 1300 pounds, he was within 2 or 3 hundred every time. I did have to give him the "I'm not sideloading my boom, blah blah blah" speech, which he immediately understood and didn't try and subject me to again. He was quite cautious and got his man lift clear out of the way before I'd apply the final pull to break it free, but I never had any bouncing boom or load shock, boring like I said. With a bit more experience working together, we'd get to the pint probably of making clear thru cuts and lift offs all at once, his way was slower but safer.IMG_20211002_114847510_HDR.jpg

I did all the cleanup, using my tractors PTO mounted wood chipper, and stacked all the wood up for next years supply for my home shops wood boiler. The only surprise was how much work it all was, and time consuming, even with plenty of equipment (forks on the tractor also), and a new Husky chain saw. That, and the fact that the tree guy is also a raccoon whisperer, and had two critters in his pickup plus a few more at home, I didn't see that coming, that's one on his shoulder.
 

Natman

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I knew better, but I trusted the guy who said I wouldn't have any problem! Setting a 4500 pound swimming pool, which never got set, as the days work turned out to be just getting me outa there. Level ground, but for unknown reasons parts of the hayfield much slicker than the first part, so I happily drove way in, over 1/4 mile, before running out of steam. 80 miles from home, I was sure I'd be leaving it there overnight, and hoping it froze up. The CAT mini saved the day, never spun a track, but it was still nip and tuck the entire way, especially the two 90 degree turns we had to make. The plan now, near as I can tell, is wait for this early snow to melt and the ground to dry. Either that, or a crane big enough to set the pool from an estimated 130-150' away.

Saw this, and had to see what it was. NOT a self erecting mini tower crane with a fancy paint job, but a carnival ride of some sort. Impressive nonetheless, taking 1.5 hrs for full operation I was told.IMG_20211013_142716856_HDR.jpg
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