I've been offered a grader job.

Sam · 11-05-2009, 01:07 AM

Am I in trouble?
I'm supposed to be a trucker, but haven't made a run in over a year. The motivation just sorta disappeared. FWIW, I expect the economic spiral to accelerate to the downside, before year end...

I know most of the board, of the road department, in this tiny community. They have asked me to run their grader, maintaining some rough back roads, through the hills of mid-South MO. This will be part time; maybe 10 hours a week.

Other than the truck, and loading and off loading equipment, the last piece of equipment I operated, was a dragline, in the late '60's. My truck was their main qualifier, in offering me the job.

They will provide a little training, but I'm not sure how much I'll get, before being turned loose. There is no doubt, that their knowledge is decidedly local. They may not be aware of many DOT requirements. Me neither, beyond OTR trucking.

I don't yet know anything about the grader, other than it is an old one. I'll update as I get time and more information.

Grader4me · 11-05-2009, 06:05 AM

Let us know if we can be of any help. Thats what we are here for..

tripper_174 · 11-05-2009, 09:24 AM

Here's a good resource Download the FHWA manual. It's very good. Good luck with the job.

http://www.mnltap.umn.edu/Publicatio...heRoadway.html

Sam · 11-05-2009, 09:31 PM

Thanks, tripper_174. That is a most excellent link.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grader4me

Let us know if we can be of any help. Thats what we are here for..

Thanks, Grader4me. After re-reading what I wrote, it doesn't make much sense, like it did when I wrote it...

That has to be due partly to the excitement of a paying job vs. the challenge of running a complex operation such as a grader.

From what little I've read on these forums, a grader seems to be about the toughest machine to learn, with a long learning curve.

I took to the dragline right away, and it didn't take long, to get good at it.

But, the grader seems to be more like a puzzle.

The unit is a Dresser 500, which I understand that they no longer make them. I don't know how old the unit is, but, Cat parts work on it. I saw it on the road, today, and it looked and sounded OK.

What are the rookie mistakes I need to be aware of, starting out?

Grader4me · 11-05-2009, 09:54 PM

Hi Sam, gee, I don't know where to start..If you have someone that can teach you the basics, then that's a start. Drive it around the back roads for a bit to get used to the shifting/steering etc. Learn the maintenance part of it, as that is really important.
Play with the controls, learning what each lever does. Better to just get off by yourself somewhere, on an old road or gravel pit and just play around. Its going to take time as you can understand. How fast you pick up will depend on you.
If you have an experienced grader operator that's willing to work with you then it would be a lot easier. If not, well.. you'll have to teach yourself. There is sooo much to learn but you can do it if you have an interest. I basically taught myself and it was a struggle but I did learn.
When you get started with your grader, give us a shout and we will help you along..

On edit...Also.. no speed grading mister man!..First tip for a rookie.. Lol

tripper_174 · 11-05-2009, 10:32 PM

I remember....a loooong time ago when I first ran a grader, a 1968 12 F Cat. I was just a kid. The foreman went with me for the morning and that was my training. However, my Dad had an old tow type Champion that he pulled with a John Deere D. He'd put me on the grader...I'd be about 10, then he'd point at which wheel to spin to lift or lower the moldboard. Because of that I had a decent understanding of how a grader worked and what it could and should do.

When I got on the 12 the first thing that got me was how long the nose was on it. After I got used to that it wasn't that bad. I'd guess some of the basic things that I learned was always lift the toe first then the heel. (toe is the leading edge of the moldboard). You'll find out why when you run it. When you're blading a road always get the windrow over the crown of the road. If you don't you'll end up with no crown or a mess where the gravel slops around under the leading edge of the moldboard. Hopefully you'll have a sixteen foot moldboard as that makes life a whole lot easier.

If you are blading up to asphalt, straighten the moldboard, bring up the gravel to the asphalt, then backblade it away, gradually lifting the moldboard. Actually, that is a weakness I see with lots of operators. They tend to lift the moldboard too quickly instead of feathering the gravel out when they have finished their pass.

At the end of the day go for a ride on the roads you've bladed. Things that look good from the grader seat might not be so good in the Civic! Oh, one other thing, when you lean your wheels, make sure you do it right...towards the heel and only as much as necessary to prevent side draft. One thing that irritates an old hand is seeing somebody running down the road with them leaned the wrong way. Says amateur all over it!

As G4M says, there is a lot to learn but hell, we managed so I'm sure you will too. I've been around them for forty years and every day I pick up something new. I'm sure we'll all be happy to pass on stuff to you. When you come in after your first go at it you'll have some more questions so ask away!

Sam · 11-06-2009, 09:41 PM

Thanks, Grader4me.
The current grader has his own business, and wants to focus more on that. Thus, the reason they were looking for a replacement.

He will give me an introductory training session, but I don't know how much more, beyond that.

And, I'm a slow hand. Mentally, too, but we won't talk about that... So, no speed grading, for me.

I appreciate them tips, tripper_174. I should be able to impress them, early on, with you guys helping me out.

nedly05 · 11-07-2009, 06:33 AM

We have a little old galion 503 grader, while its not as complicated as a regualr grader it still has a bunch of levers! I had never run one before, so I goofed around at the pit with it for an hour or so then went off to work. Go to the road with the least amount of traffic and fool with the lever for a few minutes to get an idea of what they do, then just dive in, and learn as you go. I'm no blade operator by any means, but I was in a similar situation and thats what worked for me, I bet you'll figure it out pretty quick! Good Luck!!

grandpa · 11-07-2009, 07:00 AM

to make your life alot easier dont raise your blade when backblading from asphalt. When your backblading use the rollback feature of your moldboard. Your blade stays at the same angle as the road surface... only one lever to use. this also works when you have to get out of a cut...ie...meeting a vehicle that cant pass without moving. Just start rolling the moldboard back without touching the lift cylinders let the vehicle get around , backup and get lined up again start forward and roll your board back down to position and your back in to the exact same cut as you started. Not many operator use this technique and ive never understood why. THIS WILL MAKE YOUR LIFE EASIER!!!!

tripper_174 · 11-07-2009, 10:41 AM

Yep grandpa, I use that lots on an even surface. If I'm filling a radius I'll probably use the blade lifts as I'm trying (accent on the trying)

to fill in the lower part of the radius without taking too much off the high side. Of course, all this is academic if you are using Sandviks!

Sam · 11-08-2009, 12:18 AM

nedly05, I've learned by teaching myself, too.
Thanks for the encouragement.

Quote:

Originally Posted by grandpa

to make your life alot easier dont raise your blade when backblading from asphalt. When your backblading use the rollback feature of your moldboard. Your blade stays at the same angle as the road surface... only one lever to use. this also works when you have to get out of a cut...ie...meeting a vehicle that cant pass without moving. Just start rolling the moldboard back without touching the lift cylinders let the vehicle get around , backup and get lined up again start forward and roll your board back down to position and your back in to the exact same cut as you started. Not many operator use this technique and ive never understood why. THIS WILL MAKE YOUR LIFE EASIER!!!!

I followed every word.
And, I understood it.

Thanks grandpa.