Superintendent in Port Arthur set me straight on cutter teeth

Ran a 20-inch dredge for two seasons and always swapped cutter teeth when they looked worn. Last spring a superintendent from Port Arthur watched me stop the swing and said I was burning money pulling them early. He showed me to measure the wear flats against the ring gauge, so now I get about 140 more hours per set. Has anyone else had a similar callout on maintenance timing that actually paid off?

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1 Comment

wade_hall1mo ago

Tell that super he owes you a steak dinner for all the money he just saved you. I ran a cutterhead for years and thought worn teeth meant we were getting a better bite, turns out I was just donating metal to the river bottom. Now I check the flats every time we swing and my wallet feels a whole lot fatter. Funny how the guys who sit in the office see the wear pattern better than the ones sitting in the seat.