Changed my mind about using lube on the hook block after a job in St. Louis last fall
I always thought it was a waste of time. Grease the hook block bearings, sure. But putting lubricant on the sheaves themselves? Sounded like extra work for no reason. Then I was on a site downtown St. Louis, running a 150 ton crawler, and the load line started chattering real bad on the boom tip sheave. The foreman came over, an old guy named Walt, and just said 'when was the last time you hit those sheaves with some spray lube, kid?' I told him I never did. He just shook his head, walked to his truck, and handed me a can of white lithium. Told me to give the hook block and the boom tip a quick shot. After I did, the chattering stopped in less than a minute and the line ran smooth the rest of the day. Has anyone else had that fix a weird vibration on a load line?