Changed my mind about using a cutterhead deflection gauge on the job

I used to think those cutterhead deflection gauges were just a fancy extra nobody really needed. For like 5 years I would just eyeball the cutterhead alignment before a job and call it good. Then last month a senior operator named Dave at the Port of Galveston told me he caught a 0.04 inch gap that way and saved a whole shift of downtime. I borrowed his gauge and checked my rig, sure enough I was off by 0.03 inches on one side. Now I use a Starrett dial indicator before every big job and it takes me maybe 3 extra minutes. It just makes the cutterhead run smoother and I don't burn through teeth as fast. Has anyone else had a similar wake-up call with a tool you thought was overkill?

2 comments

2 Comments

hugo375d ago

Yeah the Starrett is a solid choice, I've been using one for about two years now and it's night and day on wear patterns. What do you set your max deflection limit at before you start making adjustments?

noraj795d ago

Hard disagree. Been running cutterheads for 12 years now without ever touching one of those gauges. Eyeball method works fine if you know what you're looking at. Dave was probably just covering his own ass or showing off. That 0.03 inches you found might not even matter on most jobs.