Appreciation post: the old-timer who saved my day when my cutterhead jammed solid

Got a massive log wedged in the head on the Willamette last Tuesday, and nothing I tried would budge it. A retired operator on the dock saw me struggling and yelled up 'try reversing the suction for three seconds, then hit the cutter drive'... it popped right out. Anyone know other tricks for river debris that big?

3 comments

3 Comments

elliotm701mo ago

Heard about a buddy on the Columbia who got a whole telephone pole crossways in the ladder. Some old hand told him to swing the whole spud carriage hard port to starboard a few times to shake it loose. It sounded crazy but it actually worked, the thing just rolled out. Those guys have seen everything. Makes you wonder how many tricks like that get lost when people retire.

the_faith1mo ago

My uncle fixed a tractor by kicking it.

morgan8981mo ago

Read about old factory workers who'd fix a jammed conveyor belt by hitting the motor housing with a big hammer. The vibration from the impact would shake loose whatever was stuck. Same idea as the tractor kick. That kind of hands-on knowledge never gets written down in a manual. It just gets passed around until the last person who knows it walks out the door. Then you're stuck with a broken machine and a bunch of engineers scratching their heads.