ross.felix•1mo agoProlific Poster

I finally learned how to read a load chart from an old timer in Tulsa

Last summer I was on a job in Tulsa setting AC units on a warehouse roof. I kept guessing my picks and getting nervous about tipping. An old operator named Jim walked over and told me to stop eyeballing it. He showed me how the load chart changes based on radius and counterweight. He said "the paper doesn't lie, your gut does" and I never forgot that. Now I check the chart every time even if it's a lift I've done a hundred times. Has anyone else had a mentor break down something simple like that for you?

2 comments

2 Comments

ben_nguyen1mo ago

I get what that old timer was saying, but I wonder if it's really that deep. I've been lifting stuff for years and I check the chart maybe half the time if the load looks iffy. Most of these cranes have built in safeties and overload alarms now, so it's not like you're gonna flip over just because your gut was off by a few hundred pounds. Plus those charts are assuming worst case scenario stuff like wind and ground conditions that aren't always relevant. Not saying the guy was wrong, but maybe we don't need to treat a load chart like it's a sacred text.

abby_wilson511mo ago

So you're saying you check the chart maybe half the time. What did you do the other half when your gut was wrong?