The Construction Thread

[neci]

lots of ideas

homestead

don't know it? learn it.

 

[rosco rathbone]

So Pete I'm working with one of your people.

An old stainless steel tig welder who looks exactly like Papa Smurf if he was a biker.

Doing architectural ornamental. I hate it but I'm not complaining right now, too many people are out of work.

Everything is lasers and tight tolerances. I actually used a 1/16th of an inch shim the other day!

So this guy is a total alkie and every day around 1:00 he starts getting more and more agitated and by 1:30, the slightest frustration is enough to start him howling and cursing like a maniac, and he gets shaky hands and starts dropping shit.

I was down on the floor aiming a laser up so that he could set this hanger on the ceiling from the man lift. He's tapping it this way and that, the whole assembly is held up with clamps and I'm thinking this is the wrong fucking place to be standing at 1:30 PM. He's going to drop a spud wrench or worse .

I have fun breaking his balls. After he's all "I want everything perfect!!!", then he gets up there and starts going "it's an eighth off, but I can live with that" and as soon as he says that, I'm like "after all this bullshit now we're ok with eighths????" and he has to admit I'm right.

 

[Saint Peter]

A sixteenth used to seem small. Now days, a tenth is small.

A tenth of a thousandth.

This job is twisting my brain.

 

[Saint Peter]

Got any pics of the job?

 

[rosco rathbone]

A sixteenth used to seem small. Now days, a tenth is small.

A tenth of a thousandth.

This job is twisting my brain.

Well I mean small for me. A couple months ago I was on tagline setting 80,000 lb bridge headers and driving one inch drift pins with a penumatic rivet buster.

Now I'm going tap tap"fuck, too far!" tap tap "Damnit, too far the other way now!"

But you're dealing with single atoms. That's a whole nother world of tight tolderances.

 

[rosco rathbone]

Got any pics of the job?

It's steel to hold some fancy floor to ceiling glass in a corporate HQ. Not all that exciting to look at but for some reason they want it perfect, like the glass guy never heard of shims. I think it might just be alcoholism. I'll try to take some pix though.

 

[Saint Peter]

Well I mean small for me. A couple months ago I was on tagline setting 80,000 lb bridge headers and driving one inch drift pins with a penumatic rivet buster.

Now I'm going tap tap"fuck, too far!" tap tap "Damnit, too far the other way now!"

But you're dealing with single atoms. That's a whole nother world of tight tolderances.

It is really about adjusting to the particular job. If the customer just wants it busted out, bust it out. It is common to see "0.001" on blueprints. Give me a fucking break. How many jobs really need to be that tight?

 

[Saint Peter]

It's steel to hold some fancy floor to ceiling glass in a corporate HQ. Not all that exciting to look at but for some reason they want it perfect, like the glass guy never heard of shims. I think it might just be alcoholism. I'll try to take some pix though.

Boozers are the worst to work with. Happy hour stretches into 4 in the morning and they come in smelling like a brewery.

Watch your ass.

 

[trysail]

Oops. Sorry about that— a slight miscalculation.

http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2011/09/07/HPcrane.jpg?t=1315437779&s=51
A 500 ton self erecting, truck-mounted crane

​

 

[blunt_trauma]

wow...

that's awesome!

 

[trysail]

Oops. Sorry about that— a slight miscalculation.

http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2011/09/07/HPcrane.jpg?t=1315437779&s=51
A 500 ton self erecting, truck-mounted crane

​

wow...

that's awesome!

Someone is very definitely not happy this morning.

I'd love to see how they're going to go about returning this thing to its upright position.

 

[blunt_trauma]

that's obvious.
they'll use a crane!

 

[trysail]

Oops. Sorry about that— a slight miscalculation.

http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2011/09/07/HPcrane.jpg?t=1315437779&s=51
A 500 ton self erecting, truck-mounted crane

​

that's obvious.
they'll use a crane!

Natch. It is not, however, going to be simple and will pose a real challenge for the riggers. They're going to have to figure out a way to both apply force to the truck chassis and then to control and lower it without exacerbating the damage.

It's a bit of a miracle that the only damage done was to the crane and 3 automobiles.

That's probably $2,000,000 worth of yellow iron you're looking at.

http://www.manitowoccranes.com/MCG_...../MCG_Downloads/MCG_GRO/EN/TMS9000e_0208.pdf

 

[thør]

http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL1390/5705868/19177456/398411995.jpg

Air drilling in Nome.

 

[rosco rathbone]

Oops. Sorry about that— a slight miscalculation.

http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2011/09/07/HPcrane.jpg?t=1315437779&s=51
A 500 ton self erecting, truck-mounted crane

​

My first thought was great photoshop work!

I guess they have to hook onto the chassis with one rig to h old it up and use another one to take the boom apart in sections.

Pretty embarrassing for the operator, if he got out ok that is.

 

[thør]

My first thought was great photoshop work!

I guess they have to hook onto the chassis with one rig to h old it up and use another one to take the boom apart in sections.

Pretty embarrassing for the operator, if he got out ok that is.

Let's hope so!

 

[trysail]

http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2011/09/07/HPcrane.jpg?t=1315437779&s=51
A 500 ton self erecting, truck-mounted crane
​

My first thought was great photoshop work!

I guess they have to hook onto the chassis with one rig to hold it up and use another one to take the boom apart in sections.

Pretty embarrassing for the operator, if he got out ok that is.

I agree with you; it is the goddamndest thing I ever saw in my life. I wouldn't have believed that photograph if it hadn't been attached to a wire service story. The crane was being used at D.C.'s National Cathedral to inspect and repair damage from the earthquake. The operator was hospitalized but the only real injury was mortification. Scale for the crane's size is provided by the green mobile crane that's adjacent. It is a mind-boggling image.

 

[rosco rathbone]

I agree with you; it is the goddamndest thing I ever saw in my life. I wouldn't have believed that photograph if it hadn't been attached to a wire service story. The crane was being used at D.C.'s National Cathedral to inspect and repair damage from the earthquake. The operator was hospitalized but the only real injury was mortification. Scale for the crane's size is provided by the green mobile crane that's adjacent. It is a mind-boggling image.

I wonder what happened...freak wind gust at high boom?

Now I'm trying to think how to get it down in one piece. The counterweights are on the bottom, so that's good. Those things have monster frame rails, but how to hook on to it? Hope someone YouTubes the process.

 

[Saint Peter]

I wonder what happened...freak wind gust at high boom?

Now I'm trying to think how to get it down in one piece. The counterweights are on the bottom, so that's good. Those things have monster frame rails, but how to hook on to it? Hope someone YouTubes the process.

"the equipment's balance upset"

Yeah. No shit.

 

[thør]

"The crane, which was at the cathedral to repair damage from the Aug. 23 earthquake, had been lifting supplies to the roof amid wind gusts of 40 mph to 50 mph. But it remained unclear whether wind caused the crane to topple."

 

[Saint Peter]

"Boom down."





"I mean up. Boom up."

 

[JohnnySavage]

The cathedral has a crack in its buttress.

hahah BUTTress.

Crack in it.

hahahaah

 

[thør]

"Boom down."





"I mean up. Boom up."

oops.....

 

[rosco rathbone]

Trysail's post led me on a roundabout search for the proper terminology for those heavy jib backstays on the telescoping boom, which we call "superlifts". I ended up at this forum which is pretty cool. (If you're a construction nerd).(But slow moving)

http://www.cranetalk.com/

I like one thread "I'm a union ironworker...can anyone tell me where to find the load tables for the Manitowak (sp) 888...plz email them to me"

Answer: "We don't ask to see the prints! WHy can't everyone just do their own job!"

 

[Saint Peter]

Operators walk on water.


Well, until they drop something.