Just realized I was wrong about the wind speed limit on my old truck crane

I always stuck to the manual's 20 mph cut-off for lifts... no questions asked. But last week, I heard a guy at the yard in Tacoma say he'll sometimes go to 25 if the load is light and the wind is steady, not gusting. He said the key is watching the trees, not just the gauge. I tried it yesterday with a small pallet of shingles... and he was right. A steady 23 mph breeze felt way safer than the gusty 18 we had last month. How do you all judge when to push that limit a little?

3 comments

3 Comments

faithwalker1mo ago

Oh sure, just ignore the manual and take safety advice from the guy at the yard, what could go wrong? Next you'll be telling us you judge your rigging by how it feels in your gut.

hollyg591mo ago

Wait, you were lifting shingles in 23 mph wind? That seems wild to me. Those things are basically big sails, even on a pallet. A steady wind can still catch them wrong and tip the whole load.

martin.paige22d ago

Right there with you, that's a recipe for a bad day waiting to happen. One good gust and suddenly you're chasing shingles across the jobsite or worse. A little wind goes a long way when you're lifting stuff that's basically a kite.