That afternoon the cutterhead chain snapped on me near Baton Rouge

I was working a tight spot on the Mississippi about three weeks ago, maybe a mile past the old grain terminal. The cutter was chewing through a mix of clay and old timber just fine, then I heard this nasty pop and everything went slack. Turns out the drive chain had a hairline crack that I missed during the morning inspection. I had to shut down for four hours while I waited on a tow boat to bring a spare from the yard. Now I run a flashlight over every link before I start, but that kind of downtime still stings. Has anyone else had a chain let go in heavy material like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

ryanj609d ago

Ain't that what training and spares are for, though?

owens.willow9d ago

Think about how much time it takes to get good enough to rely on those spares in a high stress moment. Training is great but it usually happens in controlled conditions where you're not dealing with adrenaline dumping your fine motor skills. Most people don't realize that even with practice, swapping a part in the field when you're exhausted and scared is totally different from doing it in a shop. The margin for error gets real small real fast.