Appreciation post: A veteran operator in Mobile told me I was running my cutterhead too fast

He saw me working a sandbar last spring and said, 'Kid, you're chewing through teeth and fuel for no extra mud.' I was running at 22 RPM thinking more speed meant more cut. I dropped it to 18 and watched my production actually go up while my wear parts lasted almost twice as long. It was a simple fix that changed my whole approach. Anyone else have a piece of advice that seemed wrong but saved you money?

3 comments

3 Comments

blakem822mo ago

Honestly that "chewing through teeth and fuel for no extra mud" line is perfect. Tbh I ran into the same thing with my old truck, kept pushing the RPMs thinking it helped until a mechanic set me straight. Saved a ton on gas and repairs just by easing up a little.

cameron3182mo agoMost Upvoted

How many of us have done that exact same thing, just hammering the gas because it feels like you're getting more done? I swear there's some weird part of a guy's brain that thinks louder engine noise equals better work. My buddy did it with his lawnmower, revving the thing to death on dry grass. Turns out you just burn gas and wear stuff out twice as fast for literally zero benefit. Why does the wrong way feel so right at the time?

markl754d ago

Yeah that line about chewing through teeth and fuel really hit me too. I had the same problem with my old Ford, I thought revving it high was just the way you had to do it. A buddy finally told me to just back off the gas and let the torque do the work, and it was night and day difference. My fuel bill dropped like crazy and I stopped breaking little things left and right. It felt weird at first because I was used to the noise, but once I saw the savings I never went back. It's wild how much we overthink simple stuff when just taking it easy does the job better.