Had a cable twist on a 150-ton lift in Tacoma last month

Honestly, we were setting a big steel beam on a new warehouse, about 80 feet up. The tag line got caught on a corner of the steel and the whole load started spinning. I stopped the hoist right away, told my ground guy to back off the line, and had him guide it with a pole hook instead. We got it settled after maybe ten tense minutes. Anyone have a better trick for stopping a spin when the tag line jams?

3 comments

3 Comments

foster.tessa2mo ago

I read about a crew using a second, lighter tag line just for anti-rotation. They keep it slack until the main line binds, then they can pull on the backup to stop the spin without putting a guy right under it. Might be overkill for some jobs but sounds smart for tricky picks.

the_leo2mo ago

That idea about a second tag line from foster.tessa is solid. I heard of a crew doing something similar, but they used a rope with a weight on the end, like a heavy knot, hung a few feet below the load. If the main line binds, the weight keeps swinging the opposite way and can kill the spin. It's a simple trick that doesn't need another guy on the ropes. Sounds a lot safer than having someone try to pole hook a spinning beam at height.

mary_nelson712mo ago

Seems like extra gear for a problem that rarely happens. @the_leo, maybe the old school pole hook is fine if your guy knows what he's doing.