I like plowing snow but this last seven days has been murder on my schedule. Most but not all of those days have been early morning starts and that really screws me up, leaving almost no ambition to take on projects. Check it out.
Later.
Showing posts with label snow plowing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label snow plowing. Show all posts
Sunday, January 26, 2020
There Is Still Hope
In todays video you will see a "double bullshit" rant about the way some dick heads park their cars while we are trying to plow a parking lot. I had pretty much given up hope for mankind and was just about to declare war on parking lot stupidity but then something amazing happened. After I made this video I was plowing a lot and a guy walked out of the building, moved his vehicle to a plowed stall, and went back inside. This almost never happens and I can't think of the last time it did. This act of decency has renewed my hope for the future of mankind but remember, it only takes one dick head to get me in a pissy mood. Don't be a dick.
I like plowing snow but this last seven days has been murder on my schedule. Most but not all of those days have been early morning starts and that really screws me up, leaving almost no ambition to take on projects. Check it out.
Later.
I like plowing snow but this last seven days has been murder on my schedule. Most but not all of those days have been early morning starts and that really screws me up, leaving almost no ambition to take on projects. Check it out.
Later.
Sunday, February 24, 2019
Revisiting The John Deere 5100
Some of you that have been following this blog for a while may remember three years ago when I talked about making a plow mount for one of our tractors.
This is the actual mount that is removable.
I like to follow the rule that you can never build something too heavy so when coworker Matt told me my mount was "all broke to shit" I was curious. The machine has three seasons on it now so I suppose we could start seeing some cracks. When I inspected the mount here is what I found:
This crack is entirely in the factory push arm and not in my mount. That made me feel better but the way I have it mounted may have been a contributing factor. On trucks a lot of times we see the mount loosen from the frame or flex in other spots but here the plate I made doesn't give at all. The weight of the blade twists on that push arm and it eventually cracked. No problem, we'll just make it stronger.
Cutting these 1" thick pie slice shaped gussets wasn't easy. The oxy/acetylene torch tip was all jacked up. The plasma cutter had no good tips and the plate of steel I was cutting these from was too big to fit in the band saw. Eventually enough cussing and throwing shit around got the job done.
I don't think this mount will be giving us any more problems unless theres an accident that causes major damage to the plow or tractor. If it does crack again I'll just weld more gussets on it. There is a small crack on the back side of the push arm but I'll weld that when the whole mount comes off this spring.
The tractor has been a great unit for us. The front blade has power wings on it and when they are extended the blade width is 11 feet. On the rear we can run a snowblower but the tool of choice has been the 16 foot Ebling back blade.
Its been a busy year for us plow jockeys. Lots of little stuff and a couple of bigger events along with an awful lot of salt usage. In a perfect world we'd get a few decent snow storms in march then a big thaw and be ready to start lawn work by April 1st.
Later.
This is the actual mount that is removable.
I like to follow the rule that you can never build something too heavy so when coworker Matt told me my mount was "all broke to shit" I was curious. The machine has three seasons on it now so I suppose we could start seeing some cracks. When I inspected the mount here is what I found:
I'll include a pic of the actual crack.
Cutting these 1" thick pie slice shaped gussets wasn't easy. The oxy/acetylene torch tip was all jacked up. The plasma cutter had no good tips and the plate of steel I was cutting these from was too big to fit in the band saw. Eventually enough cussing and throwing shit around got the job done.
I don't think this mount will be giving us any more problems unless theres an accident that causes major damage to the plow or tractor. If it does crack again I'll just weld more gussets on it. There is a small crack on the back side of the push arm but I'll weld that when the whole mount comes off this spring.
The tractor has been a great unit for us. The front blade has power wings on it and when they are extended the blade width is 11 feet. On the rear we can run a snowblower but the tool of choice has been the 16 foot Ebling back blade.
Its been a busy year for us plow jockeys. Lots of little stuff and a couple of bigger events along with an awful lot of salt usage. In a perfect world we'd get a few decent snow storms in march then a big thaw and be ready to start lawn work by April 1st.
Later.
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
Snow and Cold and Wind
It seems like every winter we get at least one decent snow storm and hopefully the one we just got is the biggest for the season. Don't get me wrong, I like plowing snow but a foot or more of the stuff dragged out over twenty four hours is bullshit to deal with. Maybe not for the home owner doing their own drive once or twice for the whole event but for us plow jockeys that need to babysit factories it can be challenging.
I got in the truck at 1am when there was only threeish inches on the ground. We knew a lot more was coming but the plan is to plow with the storm and not let any one area get too deep. I had about four hours before the early birds arrived followed by the bulk of first shift and hundreds of cars that would fight for good parking in about a dozen lots associated with this factory. When one of these workers sees a spot they want its like they have blinders on and can't see the plow truck they just cut off to get it. Screw em, they can walk through the snow. If they would have had 10 seconds of patience the spot would have been clean.
I'd been at it for a while and was starting to get lonely. What I mean by that is all the big iron in my crew was MIA. When I can, I like to plow with the window down and just as I was about to call and find out where they were I heard a loud noise.
No it wasn't a train but was just as loud. The three pieces of equipment I was waiting for just went rolling by heading toward the shop. The big tractor was towing the big loader and that was being pushed by the smaller loader. Right then I knew it was gonna be a long day.
At about four hours in I just gave up on parking lots and we started cleaning production areas. What I mean by that is areas where truck and forklift traffic has to happen or plant production stops. This factory goes way back and there are many buildings joined together and a lot of outside forklift movement and foot traffic. Also because of the layout and the three separate locations in the city there is a lot of truck traffic moving product around. I'm sure the bean counters wish it was all under one big roof. Oh and to keep things interesting theres an active set of train tracks splitting the main plant in half.
Eight hours in and I'm finding that this 16' back blade works wonders in deep dry snow. I'm easily doubling production. This is the third year for me running this blade and I still find new ways to use it. The rear blade has down pressure but because its snowing so hard and its too cold for salt the truck traffic is really packing it down and the blade can skid over the top. The hydraulics on the blade won't lift the rear of the truck with 3 tons of salt in it but I've found a way to help it along. Eventually the extra pressure broke the 3/4" bolt holding the lift ram. No problem, I have a spare in my pocket.
Nine and a half hours in I heard another loud noise. This time I immediately recognized it as my stomach growling. Time for snow plowers brunch.
A gas station sammich and a bag of donuts. Wash the whole thing down with Red Bull and get back to work.
The snow is stacking up pretty good anywhere it hasn't been touched. Temps are pretty cold and the salt in my truck has been in there from the start. All that its good for is adding weight and traction so I can plow mostly in 2wd in flat areas. The wind is blowing so salting is really only done where absolutely necessary.
The eleventh hour caught me off guard. I got a call that they just announced shutting down for the day due to blizzard conditions. Normally the plan is to have parking lot lanes open so workers can easily walk to their cars and drive off once out of their parking space. That wasn't gonna happen but I did have time to scrape a few main employee exits. I then went and found a remote area to work in for a while till exiting traffic diminished.
The funny thing is that it stopped snowing just about the time they shut er down. Oh sure a good handful of people (cars) remained but for the most part the lots were empty. Now it was just a race to clear as many lots as possible in the next five hours. That was the planned quitting time for our shift with a return time of 1am again. We were having so much fun that we ran an hour over.
By the time I got home, cleared the end of the driveway and ate dinner there was time for a three hour nap. Overnight winds weren't as bad as expected. While everything had a good dusting on it from wind blown snow, many of them didn't need service. Thats a good thing because the ones that needed it took a while. I told you this old factory was pieced together and that means there are areas that are like cubby holes where the snow drifts in and there is no place to put it. I suppose in the big city you either truck it out or maybe melt it. Our plan is to push, pull or drag all that snow down the road to empty lots owned by the factory. Some of these lots are a few blocks down the road but this plan is easy and inexpensive. Its also quieter and that matters because this place has residential neighborhoods on three sides.
We were able to get all the lots done before first shift arrived. This is the only account I'm responsible for and when I'm done with the big iron operators I send them off to help elsewhere. That leaves me to run around and do inspections and cleanup. Usually that means cleaning empty semi trailer stalls, pushing back piles or just detail work. This time there was a lot of detail work that needed attention and I spent three hours putzing around.
So thats my plow story. Eighteen hours in the truck followed by three hours of sleep and then another eight hours in the truck. I then worked around the shop till noon and called it a day. I much prefer a two inch snow. Everything gets done once and I can be home like it was a regular work day. The weather liars messed up on the timing of the event as usual but their 10-14" estimate came in right around 12 or 14. Now we need to push piles back and make room for the next storm.
Later.
I got in the truck at 1am when there was only threeish inches on the ground. We knew a lot more was coming but the plan is to plow with the storm and not let any one area get too deep. I had about four hours before the early birds arrived followed by the bulk of first shift and hundreds of cars that would fight for good parking in about a dozen lots associated with this factory. When one of these workers sees a spot they want its like they have blinders on and can't see the plow truck they just cut off to get it. Screw em, they can walk through the snow. If they would have had 10 seconds of patience the spot would have been clean.
I'd been at it for a while and was starting to get lonely. What I mean by that is all the big iron in my crew was MIA. When I can, I like to plow with the window down and just as I was about to call and find out where they were I heard a loud noise.
No it wasn't a train but was just as loud. The three pieces of equipment I was waiting for just went rolling by heading toward the shop. The big tractor was towing the big loader and that was being pushed by the smaller loader. Right then I knew it was gonna be a long day.
At about four hours in I just gave up on parking lots and we started cleaning production areas. What I mean by that is areas where truck and forklift traffic has to happen or plant production stops. This factory goes way back and there are many buildings joined together and a lot of outside forklift movement and foot traffic. Also because of the layout and the three separate locations in the city there is a lot of truck traffic moving product around. I'm sure the bean counters wish it was all under one big roof. Oh and to keep things interesting theres an active set of train tracks splitting the main plant in half.
Eight hours in and I'm finding that this 16' back blade works wonders in deep dry snow. I'm easily doubling production. This is the third year for me running this blade and I still find new ways to use it. The rear blade has down pressure but because its snowing so hard and its too cold for salt the truck traffic is really packing it down and the blade can skid over the top. The hydraulics on the blade won't lift the rear of the truck with 3 tons of salt in it but I've found a way to help it along. Eventually the extra pressure broke the 3/4" bolt holding the lift ram. No problem, I have a spare in my pocket.
Nine and a half hours in I heard another loud noise. This time I immediately recognized it as my stomach growling. Time for snow plowers brunch.
A gas station sammich and a bag of donuts. Wash the whole thing down with Red Bull and get back to work.
The snow is stacking up pretty good anywhere it hasn't been touched. Temps are pretty cold and the salt in my truck has been in there from the start. All that its good for is adding weight and traction so I can plow mostly in 2wd in flat areas. The wind is blowing so salting is really only done where absolutely necessary.
The eleventh hour caught me off guard. I got a call that they just announced shutting down for the day due to blizzard conditions. Normally the plan is to have parking lot lanes open so workers can easily walk to their cars and drive off once out of their parking space. That wasn't gonna happen but I did have time to scrape a few main employee exits. I then went and found a remote area to work in for a while till exiting traffic diminished.
The funny thing is that it stopped snowing just about the time they shut er down. Oh sure a good handful of people (cars) remained but for the most part the lots were empty. Now it was just a race to clear as many lots as possible in the next five hours. That was the planned quitting time for our shift with a return time of 1am again. We were having so much fun that we ran an hour over.
By the time I got home, cleared the end of the driveway and ate dinner there was time for a three hour nap. Overnight winds weren't as bad as expected. While everything had a good dusting on it from wind blown snow, many of them didn't need service. Thats a good thing because the ones that needed it took a while. I told you this old factory was pieced together and that means there are areas that are like cubby holes where the snow drifts in and there is no place to put it. I suppose in the big city you either truck it out or maybe melt it. Our plan is to push, pull or drag all that snow down the road to empty lots owned by the factory. Some of these lots are a few blocks down the road but this plan is easy and inexpensive. Its also quieter and that matters because this place has residential neighborhoods on three sides.
We were able to get all the lots done before first shift arrived. This is the only account I'm responsible for and when I'm done with the big iron operators I send them off to help elsewhere. That leaves me to run around and do inspections and cleanup. Usually that means cleaning empty semi trailer stalls, pushing back piles or just detail work. This time there was a lot of detail work that needed attention and I spent three hours putzing around.
So thats my plow story. Eighteen hours in the truck followed by three hours of sleep and then another eight hours in the truck. I then worked around the shop till noon and called it a day. I much prefer a two inch snow. Everything gets done once and I can be home like it was a regular work day. The weather liars messed up on the timing of the event as usual but their 10-14" estimate came in right around 12 or 14. Now we need to push piles back and make room for the next storm.
Later.
Wednesday, December 12, 2018
More Brine
The forecast today was for maybe an inch of snow and temps just below freezing. Right now it looks like we'll be lucky to get anything. That means its gonna be a good opportunity for us to squirt some salt brine and see what kind of results we get. If it doesn't snow we won't have rock salt laying everywhere.
This week has been busy and I haven't been able to calibrate our application equipment but I was able to get a good pattern and lay down a test strip in our parking lot at work.
Actually this pic is of four passes with our sidewalk machine. Each pass is six of those wet strips with a total width of 42" from outside strip to outside strip. This is done with only two triple jet nozzles. They're the tiny green spots in the two pictures below.
I had built a boom with three nozzles but couldn't get the pattern right. I really think this pattern will work good but thats really just me hoping all my efforts weren't a waste of time.
This was about two hours after application. At this point I'm pretty sure my application rate is too high for pre treating but probably good for post treating. All those lines of brine bled together into one even coat and stayed looking wet like this for eighteen hours.
Twenty four hours later this is the same area. The water has all evaporated and left the salt. So thats where all those dissolved bags of halite went.
Today our sidewalk crew will treat about a mile of sidewalk and various high traffic areas at a local factory. I'm sending them out with enough product to do five miles so theres some fudge factor built into my guess work. It won't be cold enough to get into trouble with brine freezing and we're not adding calcium chloride yet. If we don't get dumped on I should be able to get some before and after pics using brine and using rock salt.
If it does snow today we will also test another project I've been working on and thats a pre-wet system for one of our truck mounted salters. Basically its a system that wets rock salt before it hits the spinner and then the ground. I'll post more details in a separate blog.
If this works the way everyone says it will then we should be able to provide the customer with not only a safer environment but a cleaner building interior as people won't be dragging rock salt in on their shoes. All this while using less product. We'll see.
Later.
This week has been busy and I haven't been able to calibrate our application equipment but I was able to get a good pattern and lay down a test strip in our parking lot at work.
Actually this pic is of four passes with our sidewalk machine. Each pass is six of those wet strips with a total width of 42" from outside strip to outside strip. This is done with only two triple jet nozzles. They're the tiny green spots in the two pictures below.
I had built a boom with three nozzles but couldn't get the pattern right. I really think this pattern will work good but thats really just me hoping all my efforts weren't a waste of time.
This was about two hours after application. At this point I'm pretty sure my application rate is too high for pre treating but probably good for post treating. All those lines of brine bled together into one even coat and stayed looking wet like this for eighteen hours.
Twenty four hours later this is the same area. The water has all evaporated and left the salt. So thats where all those dissolved bags of halite went.
Today our sidewalk crew will treat about a mile of sidewalk and various high traffic areas at a local factory. I'm sending them out with enough product to do five miles so theres some fudge factor built into my guess work. It won't be cold enough to get into trouble with brine freezing and we're not adding calcium chloride yet. If we don't get dumped on I should be able to get some before and after pics using brine and using rock salt.
If it does snow today we will also test another project I've been working on and thats a pre-wet system for one of our truck mounted salters. Basically its a system that wets rock salt before it hits the spinner and then the ground. I'll post more details in a separate blog.
If this works the way everyone says it will then we should be able to provide the customer with not only a safer environment but a cleaner building interior as people won't be dragging rock salt in on their shoes. All this while using less product. We'll see.
Later.
Wednesday, April 18, 2018
April Showers Bring Snow Plowers
Its not unusual to get snow in April and I enjoy plowing snow at work but this close to the riding season is a real punch in the gut. Just when the weather was hovering above freezing and the roads were almost salt free, we get the biggest storm of the season. Here we got a foot of snow while just north in Green Bay I heard they got their second largest snow accumulation on record at two feet. That's not lake effect snow, no sir that's good old fashioned precipitation.
For me this event meant an eighteen hour tour of duty in a plow truck. That was preceded by an all day run by the first shift and will be followed up by a clean up shift. I spent the better part of the next day in a truck cleaning loading docks and trailer parking stalls. We won't be done before the next predicted storm of 3-5" arrives. The wind has been strong and with the ice buildup we had the result was a lot of downed trees and branches. Its good to be busy and have work available but we really would rather doing spring-like activities.
The delivery man was at my house and dropped off some stuff I can play with in the spray booth. Some of the stencils are cool but the narrow masking tape will likely be the answer to finishing the sportster tank. We'll see, because I still haven't settled on a design yet.
Later.
For me this event meant an eighteen hour tour of duty in a plow truck. That was preceded by an all day run by the first shift and will be followed up by a clean up shift. I spent the better part of the next day in a truck cleaning loading docks and trailer parking stalls. We won't be done before the next predicted storm of 3-5" arrives. The wind has been strong and with the ice buildup we had the result was a lot of downed trees and branches. Its good to be busy and have work available but we really would rather doing spring-like activities.
The delivery man was at my house and dropped off some stuff I can play with in the spray booth. Some of the stencils are cool but the narrow masking tape will likely be the answer to finishing the sportster tank. We'll see, because I still haven't settled on a design yet.
Later.
Wednesday, February 21, 2018
Ice Storm
A lot of moisture pushed through the state Monday and Tuesday. The weather liars were calling for a half an inch of ice and power outages for our area and people were scrambling. We sold a lot of salt and applied an awful lot to our accounts. By 4:45am I thought we were caught up and ready for workers to start pulling into parking lots, then it started raining hard.
One minute I had these docks melted and wet but temps were below freezing and a few minutes later ice was building up on them.
As far as ice storms go, this wasn't much but the roads were treacherous for a while. One coworker claimed it took him an hour to travel about ten miles but he drives a Chevy so that might just be how long it normally takes. Bazinga!
Of course when you have ice build up on trees you get some interesting looks. These trees looked cool enough for me to stop and take a pic. If you squint just right that bright light in the background almost looks like the moon. Squint harder and those storage silos look like a majestic mountain range. Keep squinting and those trucks look like grazing cattle along the edge of a river. Go ahead, most of my pics require some sort of imagination to make them any good and squinting at this one is the closest thing I have to a bike ride out west. Ya, I'm ready for spring.
Later.
One minute I had these docks melted and wet but temps were below freezing and a few minutes later ice was building up on them.
As far as ice storms go, this wasn't much but the roads were treacherous for a while. One coworker claimed it took him an hour to travel about ten miles but he drives a Chevy so that might just be how long it normally takes. Bazinga!
Of course when you have ice build up on trees you get some interesting looks. These trees looked cool enough for me to stop and take a pic. If you squint just right that bright light in the background almost looks like the moon. Squint harder and those storage silos look like a majestic mountain range. Keep squinting and those trucks look like grazing cattle along the edge of a river. Go ahead, most of my pics require some sort of imagination to make them any good and squinting at this one is the closest thing I have to a bike ride out west. Ya, I'm ready for spring.
Later.
Sunday, February 18, 2018
General Bullcrap
Its Saturday night, I've had a few beers and now I'm writing this blog so its a crap shoot on what you're gonna get. What should we talk about? Well its come to my attention that many of you are reading this blog while sitting on the toilet. First, that's a visual I didn't need and second I suppose its fitting that you're reading crap while taking one. This also means you're reading on your phone and I'm pretty sure the mobile version doesn't allow you to see the list of blogs I follow. If this is really the case then get on a computer and follow some of the links. A lot of these bloggers use actual cameras and they know how to take great pics. They also are good writers and have some interesting things to say. Check em out.
What else do you want to talk about? Did I work on the tool hutch? Yes, but I'm tired of talking about it. I'll show you a pic when its done and in place.
Hey, I got a piece of "jewelry" from Terry!
Ya its a trekkie insignia. Science officer Scott reporting for duty. Remove that cap indoors and get a shave! Whatever. BTW, while I am a Star Trek fan, as far as you know this is the only time I'll wear it.
In work related news, my bench is a mess. If you say that's not news I'd have to agree. I'm gonna try to clean up my act a little bit. It just makes it easier to not overlook a screw if the only ones laying on the bench came out of the current project.
In other work related news we have finished the "tunnel" F550 project. The truck now has a new aluminum flatbed sitting on the tunnel. The hitch is ready to accept a back blade and next winter the bed comes off and the truck will get a salter.
In still other work related news, It seems James has become the second operator to bend a back blade wing. (I'm not the other one) When the first one bent I thought there was a one in a million chance of hitting the tip of the blade just right to get it to bend rather than bounce off or break the shear bolt. Now I'm thinking the odds are closer to one in ten. At least nobody will ever hit that post again as James has decided to bring it back to the shop as a trophy. I'm good with that.
Speaking of trucks, this is my old dodge.
My wife used to call it barbaric. She drove it to get lunch the other day and has now down graded it to "a hunk of junk". Its gettin kinda crude and we plan to replace it some time next year so I've been giving that a lot of thought. What do I want vs. what do I really need? Well, I need to be able to occasionally tow my 6 x 10 enclosed trailer with one or two bikes in it. I need to get to work sometimes after the county has pulled the plow trucks from the roads. I need to be able to haul some stuff once in a while. I want something with decent power and rust free. Not sure exactly where the budget is gonna be on this one but I got a feeling I'm gonna be right on the edge of rust free unless I buy something with really high mileage. I don't need a diesel or a quad cab long box or a one ton dually or any other small penis compensator. I see a lot of Chevy Silverados out there that seem to be good deals but I'm really more interested in a Suburban or Yukon. I like that they are basically half tons with permanent toppers. If I decide to go smaller then maybe a Jeep Grand Cherokee or even a BMW X5 would make me happy. I've always wanted to own a Cadillac so I'm not ruling out the Escalade or EXT. I guess it just depends on whats out there once I'm ready to buy. Until then I'll just keep borrowing my wifes car on the weeks she is working from home and car pooling with her the rest of the time.
Later.
What else do you want to talk about? Did I work on the tool hutch? Yes, but I'm tired of talking about it. I'll show you a pic when its done and in place.
Hey, I got a piece of "jewelry" from Terry!
Ya its a trekkie insignia. Science officer Scott reporting for duty. Remove that cap indoors and get a shave! Whatever. BTW, while I am a Star Trek fan, as far as you know this is the only time I'll wear it.
In work related news, my bench is a mess. If you say that's not news I'd have to agree. I'm gonna try to clean up my act a little bit. It just makes it easier to not overlook a screw if the only ones laying on the bench came out of the current project.
In other work related news we have finished the "tunnel" F550 project. The truck now has a new aluminum flatbed sitting on the tunnel. The hitch is ready to accept a back blade and next winter the bed comes off and the truck will get a salter.
In still other work related news, It seems James has become the second operator to bend a back blade wing. (I'm not the other one) When the first one bent I thought there was a one in a million chance of hitting the tip of the blade just right to get it to bend rather than bounce off or break the shear bolt. Now I'm thinking the odds are closer to one in ten. At least nobody will ever hit that post again as James has decided to bring it back to the shop as a trophy. I'm good with that.
Speaking of trucks, this is my old dodge.
My wife used to call it barbaric. She drove it to get lunch the other day and has now down graded it to "a hunk of junk". Its gettin kinda crude and we plan to replace it some time next year so I've been giving that a lot of thought. What do I want vs. what do I really need? Well, I need to be able to occasionally tow my 6 x 10 enclosed trailer with one or two bikes in it. I need to get to work sometimes after the county has pulled the plow trucks from the roads. I need to be able to haul some stuff once in a while. I want something with decent power and rust free. Not sure exactly where the budget is gonna be on this one but I got a feeling I'm gonna be right on the edge of rust free unless I buy something with really high mileage. I don't need a diesel or a quad cab long box or a one ton dually or any other small penis compensator. I see a lot of Chevy Silverados out there that seem to be good deals but I'm really more interested in a Suburban or Yukon. I like that they are basically half tons with permanent toppers. If I decide to go smaller then maybe a Jeep Grand Cherokee or even a BMW X5 would make me happy. I've always wanted to own a Cadillac so I'm not ruling out the Escalade or EXT. I guess it just depends on whats out there once I'm ready to buy. Until then I'll just keep borrowing my wifes car on the weeks she is working from home and car pooling with her the rest of the time.
Later.
Wednesday, January 17, 2018
Echo Service School
Whats up? Business as usual here. Yesterday I attended Echo service school with coworker Trent. The class was pretty much as expected with some service updates, new model discussion and tear down of their new top handle chainsaw. Trent did the wrenching and I sat there and looked interested.
Not that I was bored but except for the fact that it is the lightest gasoline powered chainsaw in North America, it isn't a revolutionary new design. That's probably a good thing as far as reliable saws go but not so exciting if you're sitting in a classroom.
Winter is the time of year that I get to plow snow. I say that because I like plowing. As long as things go halfway as planned without too many breakdowns or pissed off customers, its decent work. I've told you about the Ebling Back Blade on my plow truck. They are real time savers and we now have three more Eblings on the crew. Having a back blade and knowing when and how to use it has been a learning curve. Do I take advantage of the 16 foot width all the time? Do I use it to collect spillage from the front blade. Whats the fastest way to move snow with it? How much abuse will it take?
What I have found is that it works well for pulling docks. I can get snow out from under the trailers easily. I also know it will carry a lot of snow. I have one lot about five acres with a push over a thousand feet and the back blade in combination with the front blade will clear it in good time. But where this blade really shines is when we get under an inch of snow where the blade will carry all the snow from one pass without spillage. On long passes I pull the snow in both directions. In lots that are large and square, I find myself driving around in circles. This is faster than conventional methods of pushing forward then backing up and setting yourself up for another pass. We tried it side by side so I know this is true. Its also safer than backing up hundreds of feet and is easier on the trucks transmission. I was in the truck for about ten hours on Monday and much of it went like this video. Please excuse the raw unedited footage from my phone. I need to get that GoPro back into action.
The wings with their rubber edges squeegee the asphalt better than the center steel cutting edge but it still does a fine job. Round and round I go. If the snow is deep then I drop the front blade as well to carry more snow. Where I lift the blade and let the snow spill off is where I'll stack it. So easy a monkey could do it.
Later.
Not that I was bored but except for the fact that it is the lightest gasoline powered chainsaw in North America, it isn't a revolutionary new design. That's probably a good thing as far as reliable saws go but not so exciting if you're sitting in a classroom.
Winter is the time of year that I get to plow snow. I say that because I like plowing. As long as things go halfway as planned without too many breakdowns or pissed off customers, its decent work. I've told you about the Ebling Back Blade on my plow truck. They are real time savers and we now have three more Eblings on the crew. Having a back blade and knowing when and how to use it has been a learning curve. Do I take advantage of the 16 foot width all the time? Do I use it to collect spillage from the front blade. Whats the fastest way to move snow with it? How much abuse will it take?
What I have found is that it works well for pulling docks. I can get snow out from under the trailers easily. I also know it will carry a lot of snow. I have one lot about five acres with a push over a thousand feet and the back blade in combination with the front blade will clear it in good time. But where this blade really shines is when we get under an inch of snow where the blade will carry all the snow from one pass without spillage. On long passes I pull the snow in both directions. In lots that are large and square, I find myself driving around in circles. This is faster than conventional methods of pushing forward then backing up and setting yourself up for another pass. We tried it side by side so I know this is true. Its also safer than backing up hundreds of feet and is easier on the trucks transmission. I was in the truck for about ten hours on Monday and much of it went like this video. Please excuse the raw unedited footage from my phone. I need to get that GoPro back into action.
The wings with their rubber edges squeegee the asphalt better than the center steel cutting edge but it still does a fine job. Round and round I go. If the snow is deep then I drop the front blade as well to carry more snow. Where I lift the blade and let the snow spill off is where I'll stack it. So easy a monkey could do it.
Later.
Wednesday, December 13, 2017
Snow Day?
If things had gone as planned, I would not be posting this right now. Not because I didn't want to but because I forgot to write something last night. The weather prediction was for snow overnight and continuing all day. I was to come in early and start relocating the white stuff so people could better get around with their daily business. The storm tracked different and here I sit waiting for my regular start time to roll around on the clock. As I made my way around the internet as I usually do before leaving for work I remembered it is Wednesday and I need to make a post. The need to make a post is about me not wanting to slack off with this blog. I feel if I get lazy about doing it then maybe it will go away and I don't want that because its kinda fun to keep this journal of some of the crap I've been up to. My memory can be selective and sometimes I go back and read this and think "oh ya, I remember doing that" or "I could have done that a lot better". I realize nobody is gonna have a bad day if they don't get a Wednesday or Sunday edition of The Greasy Shop Rag.
Look what came in the mail the other day. How long do you think I can go without removing the cellophane? That's the question I asked myself as I pondered what secrets might be written on the pages within. My curiosity got the best of me and I whipped out my pocket knife and sliced open the wrapper. The first thing I wanted to know was how many quarts of full synthetic I would need to purchase for my first oil change. It looks like I need seven of them and thats not a number I was expecting. The other day I was tagged on facebook with a chart of the most expensive vehicles to maintain and BMW was on the top of that list. I'm starting to see why.
So far it has been a good car and the one day my wife drove "the ultimate driving machine" to work in slippery conditions she claimed it handled better than her "confidence of AWD" Subaru Outback. Maybe today she'll get another chance to try out its winter driving capabilities. She hates winter driving so I try to come up with vehicles that make that task easiest. I hope this one is a winner.
Later.
Look what came in the mail the other day. How long do you think I can go without removing the cellophane? That's the question I asked myself as I pondered what secrets might be written on the pages within. My curiosity got the best of me and I whipped out my pocket knife and sliced open the wrapper. The first thing I wanted to know was how many quarts of full synthetic I would need to purchase for my first oil change. It looks like I need seven of them and thats not a number I was expecting. The other day I was tagged on facebook with a chart of the most expensive vehicles to maintain and BMW was on the top of that list. I'm starting to see why.
So far it has been a good car and the one day my wife drove "the ultimate driving machine" to work in slippery conditions she claimed it handled better than her "confidence of AWD" Subaru Outback. Maybe today she'll get another chance to try out its winter driving capabilities. She hates winter driving so I try to come up with vehicles that make that task easiest. I hope this one is a winner.
Later.
Sunday, December 10, 2017
Project List Update
Based on the title of this blog entry I should just leave the body of this one blank. Because this blog doubles as my personal journal and your go to source for literary wit, I'll document it. Lets start with the BSA. No progress although I did get word from Dave, our nut and bolt supplier, that he found an oddball size bolt for me that I plan to use for an engine mount. He's still trying to find the acorn nuts I requested.
The toolbox hutch I'm building is inching along. Although its still just the frame you saw in my last post there has been progress in the design...meaning I thought about it a bit and changed the roll up door track design. You should have just interpreted that as meaning "he didn't do shit on that project either".
I told you about the bedroom remodel in the post called "Texture". Last weekend I borrowed a spray texture machine and blasted the walls in a second bedroom and a hallway. Because those walls are old school lathe and plaster and looked pretty rough I decided to open up the nozzle on the sprayer and not just texture the walls but actually blast them with a layer of plaster. Some areas look great and some look like ass but all the walls look 100% better than they did. The fact that I'm not posting a pic of them should tell you a lot. Its entirely possible we could meet our completion goal of Christmas for this project. That reminds me of something. I ordered a mattress from Amazon. I can just hear the delivery guy cussing about all the packages he has to deal with this time of year and some schmo orders a freakin mattress. I really prefer to buy local but it can be hard to find the time and its just way too easy to order crap from my recliner.
Project Subaru is at a standstill but as you'll see in a later post I actually did work on it a few weeks ago. I won't tease you any further and you'll just have to wait on the edge of your seats for an update.
The sportster fuel tank paint job hasn't happened yet. I still don't know what I want it to look like. Because my airbrush sprayer tank project hasn't moved forward either it may be a long time before we see any progress on that one.
I still haven't gone back over to the other side of the garage to look at the Ultra and see if there are any more scratches from when I tipped it over. I'm too sick about that whole deal to even think about it.
In other news, it snowed yesterday. First that means my riding season is officially over due to salt on the roads. Second, it means I got to plow snow for the first time this year. I like plowing and this light snow was a good chance to work out some bugs. The truck I run is an F550 with a SnowEx front blade that has power wings that extend to eleven feet. The truck also has an Ebling sixteen foot back blade that makes short work of these light snows. We removed the bed of the truck for winter and installed a Hiniker four yard spreader. Its not the ultimate plowing machine but its a pretty nice setup and I enjoy running it. There's talk of more snow on Monday. Bring it. If I can't ride I might as well be plowing snow.
Later.
The toolbox hutch I'm building is inching along. Although its still just the frame you saw in my last post there has been progress in the design...meaning I thought about it a bit and changed the roll up door track design. You should have just interpreted that as meaning "he didn't do shit on that project either".
I told you about the bedroom remodel in the post called "Texture". Last weekend I borrowed a spray texture machine and blasted the walls in a second bedroom and a hallway. Because those walls are old school lathe and plaster and looked pretty rough I decided to open up the nozzle on the sprayer and not just texture the walls but actually blast them with a layer of plaster. Some areas look great and some look like ass but all the walls look 100% better than they did. The fact that I'm not posting a pic of them should tell you a lot. Its entirely possible we could meet our completion goal of Christmas for this project. That reminds me of something. I ordered a mattress from Amazon. I can just hear the delivery guy cussing about all the packages he has to deal with this time of year and some schmo orders a freakin mattress. I really prefer to buy local but it can be hard to find the time and its just way too easy to order crap from my recliner.
Project Subaru is at a standstill but as you'll see in a later post I actually did work on it a few weeks ago. I won't tease you any further and you'll just have to wait on the edge of your seats for an update.
The sportster fuel tank paint job hasn't happened yet. I still don't know what I want it to look like. Because my airbrush sprayer tank project hasn't moved forward either it may be a long time before we see any progress on that one.
I still haven't gone back over to the other side of the garage to look at the Ultra and see if there are any more scratches from when I tipped it over. I'm too sick about that whole deal to even think about it.
In other news, it snowed yesterday. First that means my riding season is officially over due to salt on the roads. Second, it means I got to plow snow for the first time this year. I like plowing and this light snow was a good chance to work out some bugs. The truck I run is an F550 with a SnowEx front blade that has power wings that extend to eleven feet. The truck also has an Ebling sixteen foot back blade that makes short work of these light snows. We removed the bed of the truck for winter and installed a Hiniker four yard spreader. Its not the ultimate plowing machine but its a pretty nice setup and I enjoy running it. There's talk of more snow on Monday. Bring it. If I can't ride I might as well be plowing snow.
Later.
Sunday, October 29, 2017
Tunnel Vision
This year we decided to put a bigger salter on my plow truck. Instead of leaving the flat bed on the truck, we remove it and bolt the salter directly to the frame rails. This allows for better vision of the back blade and also saves the aluminum bed from corrosion. Speaking of corrosion, any spilled salt lands on the fuel tank, drive shaft and frame rails. Despite being undercoated, this could lead to rust issues. For that reason we decided to dress things up a bit and prevent spilled salt from getting there.
We had Ripon Truck Repair bend a piece of steel for our tunnel. This was a job worth farming out. We just don't have the equipment to bend such a piece and they were able to do it the same day and to our exact specs.
Mocking things up. Yes, that salter is freakin huge. The F550 will handle it but it still looks huge. In fact the only problem I foresee is whether or not our skid loader will be able to dump into it.
The rear valance. I have it bolted on so it can be easily removed to service the multitude of wires and connectors back there. The holes are for a trailer plug, flatbed lighting plug, back blade control plug, back blade power, and salter wiring to include a vibrator, strobe lighting and a camera. Last year all these wires were just zip tied to the frame and it was an ugly mess but it was worth it. We learned a lot about the back blade and fitting a salter to work with it. So much so that this year we tooled up another truck with that combo.
Ya theres a lot going on back here. Another issue we addressed was the fuel filler. We had some problems with slow filling and decided to fix that by creating a new permanent mounting spot for the hose. Last year it was pretty long and we just used a bungee cord to secure it. You can kinda see it under the license plate.
This is so much cleaner looking than last year. As a selling dealer for the salter and back blade, this project is something that can be justified not only for function but what is possible for custom applications.
I'm anxious for some snow so I can get back behind the wheel of this rig. I like plowing and this truck with its 11 foot front blade and 16 foot back blade is a treat to use. The extra size of this salter allows me to carry twice the volume of salt which equals less trips back to the shop to refill.
We had Ripon Truck Repair bend a piece of steel for our tunnel. This was a job worth farming out. We just don't have the equipment to bend such a piece and they were able to do it the same day and to our exact specs.
Mocking things up. Yes, that salter is freakin huge. The F550 will handle it but it still looks huge. In fact the only problem I foresee is whether or not our skid loader will be able to dump into it.
The rear valance. I have it bolted on so it can be easily removed to service the multitude of wires and connectors back there. The holes are for a trailer plug, flatbed lighting plug, back blade control plug, back blade power, and salter wiring to include a vibrator, strobe lighting and a camera. Last year all these wires were just zip tied to the frame and it was an ugly mess but it was worth it. We learned a lot about the back blade and fitting a salter to work with it. So much so that this year we tooled up another truck with that combo.
Ya theres a lot going on back here. Another issue we addressed was the fuel filler. We had some problems with slow filling and decided to fix that by creating a new permanent mounting spot for the hose. Last year it was pretty long and we just used a bungee cord to secure it. You can kinda see it under the license plate.
This is so much cleaner looking than last year. As a selling dealer for the salter and back blade, this project is something that can be justified not only for function but what is possible for custom applications.
I'm anxious for some snow so I can get back behind the wheel of this rig. I like plowing and this truck with its 11 foot front blade and 16 foot back blade is a treat to use. The extra size of this salter allows me to carry twice the volume of salt which equals less trips back to the shop to refill.
I did something different on this project. I didn't over analyze every decision and just went with the flow. I accepted things without thinking about the outcome. That experiment failed and I'm going back to my old ways. The few minutes I usually spend looking off into space is a lot less time than having to redo something because I wasn't looking at the whole picture. Thinking is working and just because it looks like I'm on break doesn't mean I'm not actually saving time and money. That wasn't aimed at anyone, its just the way I feel. Something else done different on this one was that I had a lot of help. Not in decision making but in the physical labor. Having the young guys crawling under the truck and doing the heavy lifting, welding and cutting was much appreciated.
Later.
Wednesday, March 15, 2017
Another Back Blade Update
The GoPro camera that I monster trucked while trying to get some Back Blade footage has been replaced with a Gopro Hero 5 Black edition. This camera is a bit different than the version I had before. There is now a video touch screen that makes changing settings a breeze and allows for instant playback. I'm not sure if the case/mount is as nice but it hasn't failed yet so I shouldn't complain.
I put together some footage to show what the back blade can do. You'll notice in some of the scenes that the blade has down pressure and can really lift that hard packed snow without gouging the gravel lot. Well, check it out for yourself...
I wanted to get a few more angles and a full width view in daylight but when I got to work I discovered that wouldn't be possible.
It seems the night shift had an encounter with an immovable object. The outer edge of the wing took a direct hit that made it buckle. This was the only way it could have bent without busting the shear bolt. Shit happens and we'll fix it. The good news is that my welds on the plow mount all held. Gotta be happy about that.
Does this change the way I feel about these back blades? Hell no. That wing is built heavy enough for what it was intended to do. If it were stronger the rest of the plow mount may have bent.
The other day when it snowed throughout the day it was my mission to keep a certain large factory clear of snow and ice so trucks and forklifts could keep moving and employees could safely get in and out of the lots. When I've done this in the past with just a front blade I always struggled to keep up. Not with the back blade. The wider path and down pressure to scrape cleaner make a big difference.
I know this blade isn't for everyone. I don't do residential drives on my route but I can see how the down pressure would be helpful. Then again you can add down pressure to some front blades. In fact the kit came in to convert my front blade to have down pressure. This will help in certain back dragging situations for sure. I look at it like this. If you have a toolbox, you don't just put a leatherman in the top drawer and hope for the best. You fill the box with tools you may need for different jobs. A full box doesn't make a professional but a professional doesn't just carry a leatherman.
Later.
I put together some footage to show what the back blade can do. You'll notice in some of the scenes that the blade has down pressure and can really lift that hard packed snow without gouging the gravel lot. Well, check it out for yourself...
I wanted to get a few more angles and a full width view in daylight but when I got to work I discovered that wouldn't be possible.
It seems the night shift had an encounter with an immovable object. The outer edge of the wing took a direct hit that made it buckle. This was the only way it could have bent without busting the shear bolt. Shit happens and we'll fix it. The good news is that my welds on the plow mount all held. Gotta be happy about that.
Does this change the way I feel about these back blades? Hell no. That wing is built heavy enough for what it was intended to do. If it were stronger the rest of the plow mount may have bent.
The other day when it snowed throughout the day it was my mission to keep a certain large factory clear of snow and ice so trucks and forklifts could keep moving and employees could safely get in and out of the lots. When I've done this in the past with just a front blade I always struggled to keep up. Not with the back blade. The wider path and down pressure to scrape cleaner make a big difference.
I know this blade isn't for everyone. I don't do residential drives on my route but I can see how the down pressure would be helpful. Then again you can add down pressure to some front blades. In fact the kit came in to convert my front blade to have down pressure. This will help in certain back dragging situations for sure. I look at it like this. If you have a toolbox, you don't just put a leatherman in the top drawer and hope for the best. You fill the box with tools you may need for different jobs. A full box doesn't make a professional but a professional doesn't just carry a leatherman.
Later.
Sunday, February 26, 2017
GoPro Tough!
I told you about the Ebling back blade we put on my plow truck at work. My goal was to get some footage of this blade in action and put it on our company web page. Sometimes things work out as planned and sometimes they go to crap. The first video recorded just fine. Here is the second video I took. There is nothing wrong with your video, there are a few blank pauses in the clip.
I ended the video "gopro tough" but the fact of the matter is the camera is shot. I'm sure the designers didn't plan on their product being monster trucked numerous times by a Ford F550 with two blades and a couple tons of salt on board, but it actually held up better than it should have. The camera powers up but the display is half blank, half burnt. That means I can't change any settings. I thought maybe I could connect via the remote app on my phone but the camera no longer syncs with it or with the smart remote. And, the real killer, the camera gets suspiciously warm as soon as I put the battery in it. Yikes! Rest in peace (pieces) GoPro.
Later.
I ended the video "gopro tough" but the fact of the matter is the camera is shot. I'm sure the designers didn't plan on their product being monster trucked numerous times by a Ford F550 with two blades and a couple tons of salt on board, but it actually held up better than it should have. The camera powers up but the display is half blank, half burnt. That means I can't change any settings. I thought maybe I could connect via the remote app on my phone but the camera no longer syncs with it or with the smart remote. And, the real killer, the camera gets suspiciously warm as soon as I put the battery in it. Yikes! Rest in peace (pieces) GoPro.
Later.
Sunday, February 5, 2017
Back Blade Update
A few posts back I reported the addition of an Ebling Back Blade to my plow truck. I've really only had a few chances to play with it but I can see it will be a big time saver and a very useful weapon in the battle against accumulated snow.
In true greasyshoprag fashion, I have provided you with a craptacular picture of the truck the way it sits today.
The front blade is a SnowEx power plow that extends from 8'6" to 11 feet. I talked about how I hate handheld controllers and that I was gonna permanently mount the one that came with this blade.
I had an old bracket from the car-phone days that worked perfectly for mounting the plow controller to the door panel. I can comfortably lay my arm on the arm rest and operate the snow plow. I'm liking it. In this pic you can also see the back blade controller in the front center of the seats. It is mounted to the bottom of the bench seat and moves with the seat. Above that is the salter controller mounted to the lower dash panel.
When we told the manufacturer of the back blade that we wanted to mount a salter on the same truck as their blade, they basically just wished us luck. In very early custom designs they used a dual cylinder lift to raise the back blade. This made it possible to use whatever salter they were working with at the time. We didn't want to reinvent the wheel here and wanted each piece of this puzzle to work independently as they were intended. That is, if the blade comes off of this truck it can be mounted on another without any problems. Same for the salter. Everything has to be plug n play. This is what we came up with.
If the plow comes off it will not change anything with the salter. Right now the salt drops between the rear hitch of the truck and the power unit mount for the back blade. We replaced the short spinner shaft with the optional longer one and it now just clears below the mount and back blade. We're gonna make a new shaft about two inches longer to get things "just right". You can see the spread pattern is decent but we don't have the spinner mounted correctly. There are two holes in the bottom of the spinner shaft. The top hole is where the spinner bolts through the shaft. The bottom hole is for a cotter pin and catches the spinner if the top bolt shears. We have the spinner bolted in the bottom hole right now and need to lengthen the shaft to fix this. It's just one of those things you have to deal with when trying to make your own rules. The salter can only mount so low before resting on the plow mount and changing the length of that shaft was the easiest answer.
About the electric salt spreader. This unit is a dual electric motor setup. One motor spins the auger and one runs the spinner. Back in the day we ran gasoline powered spreaders and thought we had the world by the balls. Never mind that remote controls for gas engines always had issues or were froze if cable operated, or that you had to roll down the window and try to listen if the engine was cranking or that batteries went dead or the problem of running out of fuel. I don't miss any of that shit. Sure, my first reaction to the idea of an electric spreader was that they would be weak and not stand up to the abuse a commercial snow relocation technician would throw at them. I was wrong. These units are simple, reliable and plenty strong. The squeaking sound in the video is coming from the spreader but it's because I added a thick piece of rubber to the spinner shaft above a pillow block bearing. This was to protect the bearing from salt. I need to open the hole in that rubber as it's too dang tight right now.
I plan to take some video footage of the blade in action. I have the camera, mounts and such. I just need mother nature to provide some decent snow.
Later.
In true greasyshoprag fashion, I have provided you with a craptacular picture of the truck the way it sits today.
The front blade is a SnowEx power plow that extends from 8'6" to 11 feet. I talked about how I hate handheld controllers and that I was gonna permanently mount the one that came with this blade.
I had an old bracket from the car-phone days that worked perfectly for mounting the plow controller to the door panel. I can comfortably lay my arm on the arm rest and operate the snow plow. I'm liking it. In this pic you can also see the back blade controller in the front center of the seats. It is mounted to the bottom of the bench seat and moves with the seat. Above that is the salter controller mounted to the lower dash panel.
When we told the manufacturer of the back blade that we wanted to mount a salter on the same truck as their blade, they basically just wished us luck. In very early custom designs they used a dual cylinder lift to raise the back blade. This made it possible to use whatever salter they were working with at the time. We didn't want to reinvent the wheel here and wanted each piece of this puzzle to work independently as they were intended. That is, if the blade comes off of this truck it can be mounted on another without any problems. Same for the salter. Everything has to be plug n play. This is what we came up with.
If the plow comes off it will not change anything with the salter. Right now the salt drops between the rear hitch of the truck and the power unit mount for the back blade. We replaced the short spinner shaft with the optional longer one and it now just clears below the mount and back blade. We're gonna make a new shaft about two inches longer to get things "just right". You can see the spread pattern is decent but we don't have the spinner mounted correctly. There are two holes in the bottom of the spinner shaft. The top hole is where the spinner bolts through the shaft. The bottom hole is for a cotter pin and catches the spinner if the top bolt shears. We have the spinner bolted in the bottom hole right now and need to lengthen the shaft to fix this. It's just one of those things you have to deal with when trying to make your own rules. The salter can only mount so low before resting on the plow mount and changing the length of that shaft was the easiest answer.
About the electric salt spreader. This unit is a dual electric motor setup. One motor spins the auger and one runs the spinner. Back in the day we ran gasoline powered spreaders and thought we had the world by the balls. Never mind that remote controls for gas engines always had issues or were froze if cable operated, or that you had to roll down the window and try to listen if the engine was cranking or that batteries went dead or the problem of running out of fuel. I don't miss any of that shit. Sure, my first reaction to the idea of an electric spreader was that they would be weak and not stand up to the abuse a commercial snow relocation technician would throw at them. I was wrong. These units are simple, reliable and plenty strong. The squeaking sound in the video is coming from the spreader but it's because I added a thick piece of rubber to the spinner shaft above a pillow block bearing. This was to protect the bearing from salt. I need to open the hole in that rubber as it's too dang tight right now.
I plan to take some video footage of the blade in action. I have the camera, mounts and such. I just need mother nature to provide some decent snow.
Later.
Sunday, January 29, 2017
Ebling Back Blade
It started out innocent enough one day when I decided to mount the snow plow controller in my work truck in an unconventional location. I'm a "head hanger". I like to crank the heat, roll down the window and watch the snow roll off the end of my blade. Ya, it doesn't take much to amuse me. My truck has a hand held electronic controller rather than a permanent mount like we had back in the day. In fact way back I had a jeep that just had a hydraulic hand pump mounted between the front seats. pump, pump pump on the handle till the blade raised. Turn a relief knob to lower it. "Hydro turn" used to mean you got a wet foot when you got out of the truck to manually pull a pin and turn the blade.
The rest of the guys in the shop were giving me crap because I told them I leave the controller hanging on it's hook while I'm plowing. I hate fumbling with the controller and muscle memory allows me to always find the correct switch in an emergency situation. Trust me, when you plow for 8-12 hours or more in one sitting, you run into emergency situations whether real or self induced. So anyway, to get them to shut up I told them I've seen how slow they plow and if they ever advance to the next level they would know what I'm talking about. That started it and of course it didn't shut anyone up, but we now joke a lot about what level someone is plowing at. When I learned Greg had a break down during a sanding mission, I immediately sent him a text telling him losing a wheel drops you back a few levels from commercial snow fighter to mere plow jockey.
The boss has decided to upgrade my plow truck. The old dodge I'm running has a power plow that extends from 8.5 feet to 11 feet. It also has a v-body salter/sander. The replacement Ford F550 will get those same type units installed plus an additional blade hanging off the back of the truck. We wanted something that would reach under the front of parked semi trailers and our choice was the Ebling back blade. This blade is 8 feet wide with a pair of 4 foot wings for a total width of 16 feet. Ya, thats a whole lotta blade!
Of course when we decide to do something it never seems to come easy. Ebling doesn't make a quick attach mount for our model of truck so we had to order universal pockets that we welded to the truck.
Worn steer tires on the back and we were still able to pull a full box of wet snow. I think I'm gonna like this truck.
Back on the topic of controllers. This blade has its own, plus the one for the front plow and the one for the salter. We're also adding a rear facing camera. It's gonna be pretty busy in that cab and I'll show you how I dealt with it in a future post.
Also, stay tuned for a post about how in the heck I'm gonna mount a salt spreader on this truck and not have the spinner jammed up in that box full of snow. We have to figure this out because failure to mount that salter is not an option and right now I only have a few unproven ideas.
Later.
The rest of the guys in the shop were giving me crap because I told them I leave the controller hanging on it's hook while I'm plowing. I hate fumbling with the controller and muscle memory allows me to always find the correct switch in an emergency situation. Trust me, when you plow for 8-12 hours or more in one sitting, you run into emergency situations whether real or self induced. So anyway, to get them to shut up I told them I've seen how slow they plow and if they ever advance to the next level they would know what I'm talking about. That started it and of course it didn't shut anyone up, but we now joke a lot about what level someone is plowing at. When I learned Greg had a break down during a sanding mission, I immediately sent him a text telling him losing a wheel drops you back a few levels from commercial snow fighter to mere plow jockey.
The boss has decided to upgrade my plow truck. The old dodge I'm running has a power plow that extends from 8.5 feet to 11 feet. It also has a v-body salter/sander. The replacement Ford F550 will get those same type units installed plus an additional blade hanging off the back of the truck. We wanted something that would reach under the front of parked semi trailers and our choice was the Ebling back blade. This blade is 8 feet wide with a pair of 4 foot wings for a total width of 16 feet. Ya, thats a whole lotta blade!
Of course when we decide to do something it never seems to come easy. Ebling doesn't make a quick attach mount for our model of truck so we had to order universal pockets that we welded to the truck.
 |
| This is the Ebling back blade in box configuration. We will pull loading docks with this. |
 |
| A piece of C channel was bolted then welded to the side of the draw bar mount. |
 |
| The other unpainted piece is the universal pocket that is the actual plow mount. It will be welded to the C channel. |
 |
| Here is the blade mounted to the truck. It doesn't just drag behind, it also has down pressure. |
 |
| Raised position |
 |
| Fully extended to 16 feet. |
Worn steer tires on the back and we were still able to pull a full box of wet snow. I think I'm gonna like this truck.
Back on the topic of controllers. This blade has its own, plus the one for the front plow and the one for the salter. We're also adding a rear facing camera. It's gonna be pretty busy in that cab and I'll show you how I dealt with it in a future post.
Also, stay tuned for a post about how in the heck I'm gonna mount a salt spreader on this truck and not have the spinner jammed up in that box full of snow. We have to figure this out because failure to mount that salter is not an option and right now I only have a few unproven ideas.
Later.
Sunday, January 15, 2017
Bumpy Ride
We had a few days of snow, rain, sleet and general crap this past week and that meant I spent time in a plow truck. At times the snow was coming down pretty heavy and many people claimed they haven't seen flakes that big in a long time. I'd say the largest were sized anywhere between a poker chip and a bar coaster. For those of you that don't drink or gamble, that would be about the size of a key fob and a sport bike drive sprocket. For those of you that don't drive or fix sport bikes, they were bigguns. Ya I stretched the truth but it's my blog, I can do that. Call it fake news if you want.
Visibility was crap but that really didn't seem to keep people off the roads. I think for the most part people got caught in it. We had a few 10 minute bursts that would produce an inch of snow for a total of three or four inches on top of the rain we had for the previous eight hours. It was a huge problem that still exists in gravel lots that are built up with ice, but I think we'll be able to clean those up this week as the temps are supposed to get into the 40's. I wonder if that will be some kind of record?
During all this snowfall excitement we have to keep trucks moving in the loading docks at a nearby manufacturer. Sometimes it can be like a carnival ride.
The asphalt is rutted from the trucks moving in and out of the same spots for years. This makes a pretty bumpy ride for the first few passes. Still, I wouldn't trade it for a desk job. In fact, it could snow every day this winter and I'd be fine with that.
Later.
Go Pack Go!
Visibility was crap but that really didn't seem to keep people off the roads. I think for the most part people got caught in it. We had a few 10 minute bursts that would produce an inch of snow for a total of three or four inches on top of the rain we had for the previous eight hours. It was a huge problem that still exists in gravel lots that are built up with ice, but I think we'll be able to clean those up this week as the temps are supposed to get into the 40's. I wonder if that will be some kind of record?
During all this snowfall excitement we have to keep trucks moving in the loading docks at a nearby manufacturer. Sometimes it can be like a carnival ride.
The asphalt is rutted from the trucks moving in and out of the same spots for years. This makes a pretty bumpy ride for the first few passes. Still, I wouldn't trade it for a desk job. In fact, it could snow every day this winter and I'd be fine with that.
Later.
Go Pack Go!
Wednesday, January 11, 2017
Workshop Wednesday-Did You Lose This?
I know its not mine. I looked all over for a key switch or starter rope but found nothing. Musta fallen off someone elses truck cuz I can't seem to make it work efficiently.
I might be willing to run this if we can find a cab and heater for it. Actually this isn't a real thing. We just pushed this lawn mower attachment in front of the fertilizer spreader to see if this was feasible. It's not but we're always looking for ways to multi purpose our equipment from season to season.
This last "storm" really sucked. We only got a couple inches of snow but it was followed by rain that lingered on all day. Ground temps were below freezing and the ice layer kept building. Gravel lots turned to ice skating rinks or more accurately, bumper car arenas. Trying to keep up was frustrating.
In other shop news, this appeared on the wall in the rest room.
It's sad that we need directions for ass wipe but we must be employing a bunch of neanderthals that either have no sense of decency or have someone else wiping their back side and never have to worry about where the paper comes from. Perhaps they can't figure out how that roll is magically fitted over the roller. Either way, upper management is on the case and I trust this problem is over.
Later.
Sunday, December 18, 2016
Snow
Unless you've been hiding in a warm room with no windows or access to media, you're aware of the cold blast and snow that just hit us. I've been plowing snow for what feels like forever. I just did the math and "forever" is 25 hours in the truck for Friday and Saturday. We rotated shifts so we could be on the job around the clock and that worked out pretty good. In the past we had times where we tried to push right through and that left everybody wasted for a whole day afterwards. With only seven hours of sleep in the last two nights I feel fine. I hear some of you don't get much more sleep than that anyway with your weak bladders and fears of what the stock market will do.
This was my view for quite a few hours. Pulling loading docks. Drag snow out, back in and salt, repeat. Keeping a factory moving during snow storms isn't like keeping a gas station open. If some dick head in a rusty chevy gets a wet foot cuz the pumps weren't clear then he gets pissy. There's a special kinda of pissy that comes if you're paying hundreds of factory workers to wait around while truck tires spin for traction trying to move trailers.
I had a broken a tranny line. Had to dump some oil in to get back to shop for the repair. We had a big tractor get stuck in a retention pond. Another truck had a seized brake caliper. Pretty much a normal snow event. Stuff happens and this was all fixable. On a good note, the mystery electrical problem in the wheel loader was cured with our last repair effort.
I need to wrap this up and go snow blow my own driveway. It's nine below zero out there. Brrr.
Later.
This was my view for quite a few hours. Pulling loading docks. Drag snow out, back in and salt, repeat. Keeping a factory moving during snow storms isn't like keeping a gas station open. If some dick head in a rusty chevy gets a wet foot cuz the pumps weren't clear then he gets pissy. There's a special kinda of pissy that comes if you're paying hundreds of factory workers to wait around while truck tires spin for traction trying to move trailers.
I had a broken a tranny line. Had to dump some oil in to get back to shop for the repair. We had a big tractor get stuck in a retention pond. Another truck had a seized brake caliper. Pretty much a normal snow event. Stuff happens and this was all fixable. On a good note, the mystery electrical problem in the wheel loader was cured with our last repair effort.
I need to wrap this up and go snow blow my own driveway. It's nine below zero out there. Brrr.
Later.
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