Had to pick between a luffing jib and a fixed jib for a tight site downtown...

I was setting up for a job on a 6-story building in Austin last month... alley width was only 30 feet. I went with the luffing jib because I figured I'd need the extra reach to clear the adjacent building. Turned out I made the right call, got the steel up without any swing radius issues. Anyone else ever second-guess their jib choice on a cramped urban site?

2 comments

2 Comments

lisat608d ago

Man, tight spots make you second guess everything until the boom is up!

gavin_clark8d ago

Did you catch that one article about the crane operator who had to thread the needle between two buildings in Chicago? Something about the wind tunnel effect made it sketchy even after he got the boom up. I remember thinking, man, that's the kind of thing where you feel every inch of clearance in your gut. At least when you're finally level and stable, that sick feeling goes away pretty quick. Still, there's no worse feeling than being halfway up and second guessing your rigging.