Wasted $450 on a fancy load cell for my crane and it was totally unnecessary

I bought this high end load cell system from some online outfit last spring because I thought it would help me dial in my picks better. Spent $450 on it plus another couple hours wiring it up on my 30 ton Grove. Turns out my old mechanical gauge was just fine and this thing gave me readings that were all over the place. I swapped it out after three jobs and went back to the old setup. The guy I bought it from said it needed calibration every 90 days which is ridiculous for a crane on a job site. Anyone else get suckered into buying fancy gear that just made your life harder?

2 comments

2 Comments

lucas6319d ago

Hold on, is a load cell really that serious though? I mean, $450 stings, sure, but you're talking about a 30 ton Grove crane, right? That things probably cost more than my house, so a fancy gauge that needs a little TLC every few months doesnt sound like the end of the world. Maybe you just got a dud unit or the wiring was a little off, but swapping it out after three jobs seems kinda quick. I've seen guys throw way more money at dumb stuff that didnt work right and they just tinkered with it until it clicked.

sanchez.beth19d ago

Man, I hear you. I had the same headache with a digital pressure gauge on my excavator, finally just went back to the old analog one and never looked back.