385C L Powerstripe loading off a high cliff

Trying not to kill the truck drivers while I'm throwing dirt down at them off our high cliff. Originally we were going to doze it off the top but for whatever reason they changed their minds, so here I am trying to reach the trucks from 50ft up.

[@fuddmethen]

I had flashbacks of , well today, and the day before, and before that...of trying to get the truck to come over to you, and having them listen to where you want them! drives me CRAZY! great vid, I run a PC1250 LC-7...very similar, I'd like to try the 385 for comparison

[@MrBiggreedy]

Cut a bench from the top, and gopher your way through the cut loading out your bench as you move back. But I will say (dough!!, I just herd you say your benching down, good job). Good smooth operator.

[@bigdav123456]

I tell ya what bud you are a very Brave man ..lol I get dizzy on a think carpet never mind all that way up in the air.!Good job buddy you are a very talented operator..:)

[@JimBruce42]

SKY BOMBS hahah... glad I'm not in those trucks, but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do to get from point A to point B. Definitely a good day to have the long stick instead of the ME. Nice video as always.

[@CATMUSCLE]

Haha looks like fun, think you might need your vandal guards on by the end of the day to sheild you from all the rocks the truck drivers will be throwing up at you...lol, great vid!! =D

[@lue1975lue]

damn, was getting exciting, then stopped!! AH!! the suspense! Thanks for the vid.

[@maxottobell]

nice video!!! the truck drivers must be happy LOL!!

[@JimBruce42]

R.G. Griffith was "aquired" about 10 years ago by American Infrastructure, two years ago in conjunction wtih the openning of the Richmond branch office, RGG name was dropped and became AI-VA.

[@Powerstrokekid1]

I will give you props for this vid, haha good vid, good operating

[@25mfd]

OK. I was waiting for the next vid entitled, "angry shop guy fixes busted truck".

[@vantagetes]

Don't know much about the company, the vest was a gift (along with a nice cat hat).

[@HeySlowPokes]

Dear Vantagetes, Thank you for your response and information. . I bought a manfrotto clamp which was the equivalent of US$180. to fix onto my mobility scooter; I'll check out the gripper you mention, on eBay. . Thanks for the tip; work safe. Cheers.

[@webs37]

awesome video!

[@vantagetes]

It's been parked since I got promoted. I noticed they moved it to a new site earlier this week but no operator yet, however someone left the door open so now instead of an amour-alled sparkly clean inside there is a good 2 inches of powder.

[@vantagetes]

First scoop always moves the truck the most as the shocks are uncompressed. Once you get a scoop or two in there you can just whip it in and the truck will barely move.

[@vantagetes]

Yes two HD 605-7s and a Cat 773B. 825G packing and a D10R spreading/ripping.

[@fuddmethen]

yup its a 10yd water level bucket....it just fits into the trailer dumps I'm loading with little more than 1-2 inches on either side of the dump body. Three buckets fills them up!...I'd trade anyday with ya! We kinda look alike, maybe no one would notice!

[@HeySlowPokes]

Dear Vantagetes, Nice HD video ! . What sort of camera did you use to make this video? please. . Well mounted; vibration is well managed. Cheers. from del-boy.

[@jorgefonseca9225]

in your company have a lot CAT 385C much equipment i make over 45.000hours on CAT245B and now i use some times the same like you use now CAT385C now have around 14.000hours without big problems nice vedeo and keep going mate you are good on it cheers

[@vantagetes]

It's a pain, but the radios were causing more trouble then they were worth so we got rid of them a while ago.

[@vantagetes]

@HomebrewCigarsmoker Why thank you! I'm just on my way to Mexico to sit on the beach before I head back to work but I wanted to wish you a good holiday and hope you don't rampage my videos too much while I'm gone! :p

[@lawnboy1010]

I know R.G Griffith had an office in va somewhere because a few years ago they built houses up my street

[@TheDev0]

Watched a bunch of your videos. You do a few things slightly different, but for the most part I agree with almost everything. In this particular situation your assessment is right - there's no fast way to start moving dirt. Get the machine lower right away and maintain a bench cut to your left so you have somewhere to move to. Most newer operators don't bench to the left and end up in the same mess they started in on the second cut.

[@vantagetes]

Thanks Popcorn.

[@bengermac]

cool video thanks for posting !

[@vantagetes]

I used a Panasonic DMC-TS1, it has amazing quality and is also water, dust and shock proof. I purchased a "gripper" suction cup mount from filmtools a company in California that makes specialty items for Hollywood.

[@vantagetes]

@HomebrewCigarsmoker It's actually 57 loads an hour, we bill for BANK cubic meters which means that a truck holds 16m3 (21yds) at 30% swell factor. 8400/21=400/7=57 per hour. Still needed one truck but I was cutting grade at the same time (we dont run cleanup dozers just run a grader over to smooth the tooth marks) so it gave me time to tool around with my slope etc.

[@vantagetes]

@FUCKINROCKIT The dozer was instructed to push the mud away from the loading area while I was climbing up. Turns out he pushed the mud INTO the loading area so the packer was fixing it.

[@vantagetes]

@HomebrewCigarsmoker So where should I put the dirt that I dig while the trucks sit for 10 min? At a minute and a half per load that's 5 loads. As you can see I'm digging beside me so I can then sit on the lower area as soon as it's ready then do the split like you said. The difference is that I have 5 loads and your trucks would have sat for 10 min with zero. Like I said I probably already thought of everything you can tell me and tried to pick the best solution for the situation.

[@69rd96]

Holy shit that's high!

[@vantagetes]

@pw160 Were you not paying attention to what I explained in the video, or do you mean somehow make a ledge from the bottom on a cliff that is higher than the excavators reach?

[@Ghostrider2999]

have got to love upper management

[@vantagetes]

The last machine was an ME (Mass Excavator) so it's a very short stick and boom for power. This one is a GP setup (General Purpose) so the stick and boom are way longer (more reach but alot less brute power).

[@vantagetes]

@FUCKINROCKIT It's called a split bench. Half of it is higher than your track level so you pull it down, and half is "sub grade" or below your tracks so you dig it as normal. You lose a little time digging the top, but can make up for it using some material from the lower bench all the time. Check out "Komatsu PC 5500 Loading 300t Haul Trucks " and you'll see some awesome video (not mine) of how trucks should be set up.

[@vantagetes]

@FUCKINROCKIT Depends on the situation, position of the moon and if you ate cheerios or wheaties for breakfast. The cool thing about heavy equipment is there are millions of ways to do the same thing! A good operator just picks on that is the quickest and best for the situation, and is able to modify the plan as they go in case things change.

[@69adrummer]

I think his granny has bowel movements about like that! lol

[@wrapper097]

haha man thats a long way down do u have any vid form the outside by any chance?

[@vantagetes]

Except how do I start the bench? If I have the trucks to my right doing a drive by from this height I can't reach them. The right side isn't straight up and down, there is a slight slope to prevent the bench from collapsing. Once I'm benched down I'd be low enough to reach, but in the meantime doing it your way I'd have no way to put that dirt into the trucks.

[@lawnboy1010]

I noticed on the back of your vest it says American Infrastructures.. Isnt that a R.G Griffith ?

[@vantagetes]

Well you know how in demo you'll pull stuff down into a pile, then climb up on top and use it as a working area to reach higher? Same idea in earth works. Usually you dig down in steps or "benches" as you can only reach down so far. Usually you try to set it up so the trucks can be on the bench below you (makes for faster cycle times). If you're still not sure just shoot me a private message and I'll explain it a bit better and show you a picture.

[@vantagetes]

1250 is definitely bigger (most places are running a 10yd bucket on their 1250s vs my 8 yd), I'll trade you sometime!

[@Rondilis]

sou instrutor e utilizo os videos para treinamentos muito obrigado .dessa forma e mas pratico e facil para os alunos absorve o conhecimento

[@vantagetes]

@25mfd Needed 3 loads to bench myself down so I could reach them. In the meantime I dumped slow for the first couple until the shocks were compressed.

[@vantagetes]

@TIGERCAT660 50ft up is pretty high and that edge was vertical. When I have to hang my idlers off the edge, boom down all the way and I'm still dropping the dirt a good 10-15 feet into the box I'll be wearing my seat belt cause there's no good way to fall off that!

[@vantagetes]

You should make some videos, I can give you a couple tips on making camera rigs if you'd like.

[@robby844]

on newer machine the arm wont drop unless the cylinder is damaged.they have check valves in them.and he needs to put you under it incase it did fully fail

[@vantagetes]

@gtprix99 Long climb up it's a 50' vertical wall! I already warned them the first couple loads until I bench myself down were gonna be rough. They just put their mouth guards in and braced their foot on the windscreen! ;)

[@waults]

When you're getting shaken around in a machine, the seatbelt actually makes it more comfortable, as well as it could save your ass if something goes wrong. I miss the old sinch up belts that you could pull down tight instead of the spring loaded auto retracting belts everything comes with these days.

[@kangawallafox666]

double benching was the answer to your problem!! ;-)

[@vantagetes]

@HomebrewCigarsmoker Benching from the bottom with an excavator is a bigger safety risk, check out the "385C L Powerstripe Pioneering a Bench". The foreman had the same idea you had and trust me undercutting a highwall and pulling down large lumps of clay until your bench is made is NOT safer. I did do the job to the best of my ability and did not break anything but if I had misdirected one of those lumps it would have been right in the front window crushing me.

[@jtonguam]

Had no idea you used to work for AI. Lol such a small world

[@jimbo10003]

who has got your old machine now then?

[@vantagetes]

@FUCKINROCKIT I was cutting down beside me to load the truck (keeping swing to 90*) and then digging behind me and bailing beside me between trucks (again just a quick 90*). Eventually the only high dirt around me would be what I was sitting on and I'd just jump to the side and load that out. At that point I'd have my split bench started! Alternatively I could put a truck beside me like you mentioned. Your imagination (and cycle time) is the limit.

[@vantagetes]

@HomebrewCigarsmoker I dont mine mate everything we do it grade work, we pulled the pin on our road job Dec 17th this year and still had three other projects going.

[@vantagetes]

Yes I have a couple more to upload first, then I have one from outside.

[@vantagetes]

Once I'm benched down I can have the trucks do a drive by rather than backing in and I'd be swinging 60-30*. I'm in an excavator not a front shovel and with a face that high I would be undermining the wall creating an unsafe condition.

[@vantagetes]

@HomebrewCigarsmoker It looks worse than it is, shovels rock the truck much harder than that on their first scoop. All day. Every day. Where's the safety risk? I'm not gonna fall off, the truck isn't going to run into me, nothing is going to break and I benched down on the left in 2 loads to a more comfortable height then shuffled over.

[@vantagetes]

@yukondude3 Mining gravel out then building a new landfill cell in the hole.

[@vantagetes]

@HomebrewCigarsmoker Why are you sitting at home instead of working? I haven't had a day off since the 3rd week in Nov...

[@vantagetes]

I assume you mean depth? 9.4m or 30'10"

[@fox13z400]

i cant c a diffrenece in this vid. wen u said u got a diffrent boom wat part is diffrent?

[@vantagetes]

@Vapor300 That's what they told me they were going to do, but never did.

[@ebpierce55]

what are you loading? 773's?

[@vantagetes]

@LordEthan2 How so?

[@willingtowork]

I am assuming you have no radio contact with the truck drivers. That must be a pain in the ass.

[@vantagetes]

I sent you a video of the fuck around involved with starting at the bottom, and as I've already said there's no other way to dig the dirt and get it into the trucks except for building the step on my left and getting lower.

[@MrBiggreedy]

@doggystarful Listen to what he is saying in the vid. He is doing exactly what you are saying dont be to hasty with the critisism.

[@2009deerejohn]

I got a hell of a laugh reading all the comments and "advice" you got on this one, a quick poll of 'em says there's some dance armchair operators in there. Sure, you're in a less then ideal spot, but a smart man once told me it costs $1 every time you move a yard of dirt, so starting in a shitty spot and loading out the trucks to build you a better road to load off as you go is a fuck of a lot cheaper then moving a mountain only to move it again back on the trucks

[@andreasgrillnberger5890]

nice

[@lawnboy1010]

Oh I thought that was your company you work for

[@vantagetes]

@FUCKINROCKIT Yup thats correct.

[@vantagetes]

If I have music on sometimes I can't hear the horn, and that thing is deafeningly loud.

[@fox13z400]

o gotcha

[@LordEthan2]

Dangerous much?

[@Yamahayz85125]

where do u work

[@vantagetes]

You hold a full bucket of dirt where you want the trucks to back in, they use it to line up. If you wanna know why things are done a certain way I'd be happy to answer and questions, however I suggest you actually know how to do something before you start criticizing.

[@alansmith7321]

take your time and talk to the camera, it's not like there are other trucks waiting to be loaded or you need to somehow work your way down eventually...

[@vantagetes]

Ran out of room on the card =/ Right after I loaded him he got stuck in the mud that the packer pushed in there and I was half falling off trying to reach down to push him haha.

[@25mfd]

@HomebrewCigarsmoker With our crappy economy if jason came to the states he'd be out of work. From jasons videos, looks like U.S. operators should go to canada. Does canada have an off season????? These canadien guys are working through the winter. I keep hearing from guys in the states,even after the stimulus passed, they are STILL out of work. Some stimulus.

[@vantagetes]

@Lolipoplee Come again?

[@vantagetes]

@HomebrewCigarsmoker Minute and a half for a 60 ton truck genius. Check out "Retro Videos - 385C LME Bombing 40 ton Trucks" I'm getting 24 seconds from wheels stopped to wheels rolling again on a 40 ton truck. Wet loam is cheating a bit so I discounted my load count from that day. 400 loads in 7 hours was a mix of sand and blue clay while pulling grade in a pond +/- 15cm (6"). While you have hot air, I have videos to back me up.

[@vantagetes]

@Lolipoplee When your granny can move 8400 cubic yards in 7 hours you tell her to give me a call, I have a job for her!

[@Gasteraner]

I think, that was your last vid LOL The truck drivers allready killed you LOL Ha Ha Ha Next vid is from truck drivers - yes !!

[@sun-bq5zd]

man wtf was that..

[@25mfd]

That's a lot of weight CRASHING down in those trucks from 50ft up. Any worries about breaking anything or are you just relegated to being a "FRIEND" of the drivers??? Rattle their teeth right outta their heads with this operation.

[@earltash2152]

Just reach down a bit

[@Bemon_666]

??

[@vantagetes]

Check my channel, I just put one of me starting a bench on that face.

[@vantagetes]

Not bench down 50ft dumbass, bench down the 385 so I can reach the trucks. If you notice in the video I am digging a step to my left so I can jump over there and be low enough to reach the truck. The first couple loads are always a shit show anyway and there is always some prep work expected starting a new cut. Once stepped down I would cut off the piece I'm sitting on in the video, then turn around and eat my way into the face with the trucks doing a drive by. 10 loads and I'd have production.

[@user-vc5gu3yh6g]

ه

[@vantagetes]

@HomebrewCigarsmoker Hey dumbass learn to read. 21 yards in a 40 ton truck, 400 loads on in 7 hours. I even broke the math down for you. Second I just told you I don't mine, everything is in town and grade work. Go watch the video and see how I can hit wheel stop to wheel rolling in 24 seconds. I have videos showing what I claim. You got laid off almost two months before I got shut down. The best part? Every time you come on here and look like a fool I get a fat cheque from youtube.