An old operator in Tulsa told me to stop booming down with a load on the hook, and he was dead right

Karen Wright · 2026-10-08T15:30:03.068524+00:00

I was spotting precast panels at a job in Tulsa last month and kept booming down fast to save time. A 30 year guy named Ray walked over and said, "You keep dropping that boom like that with weight on it and you're gonna shock the hydraulics one day." I brushed him off because the panel was only 2,000 lbs and the chart showed I had room. Three picks later the boom started drifting and the controls felt spongy, so we shut down and found a blown seal in the hoist circuit. Cost us four hours and a $600 mobile mechanic. Anyone else had a seasoned hand call something on your machine before you felt it yourself?

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An old operator in Tulsa told me to stop booming down with a load on the hook, and he was dead right | Crane Operators - Hub Chatter