caseythompson•2mo agoProlific Poster

My old way to check crane level on a soft site almost cost me a job in Houston

I used to just eyeball the bubble on the outriggers and call it good, especially on those soft Texas sites. Last spring on a Houston build, I set up like that and my load chart was off by a solid 10 percent on the first pick. Now I break out the laser level every single time, no matter how flat the ground looks. Anyone else have a simple tool that saved their bacon?

4 comments

4 Comments

paulw532mo ago

Wow, what laser level do you trust on site?

nguyen.blake2mo ago

Hey Paulw53, I saw a tool review last week that stuck with me. The guy kept saying the real test is if a level can take a drop onto concrete and still hold its line. He wasn't pushing a brand, just that one feature. My old one would lose calibration if you looked at it wrong. So now I only look at models that specifically advertise their durability against bumps and falls. It seems like that's the main thing that separates a site tool from a home use gadget.

angelarivera2mo ago

Remember when we used to just eyeball everything?

sanchez.mary1mo ago

You got a point, but I gotta say eyeballing everything never worked for me. My eyes just aren't that good, especially when I'm trying to be quick on a simple shelf job at home. A quick check with a level beats squinting at a line and hoping it's straight. Still, I get why some folks miss that old way - less stuff to carry and worry about.