The importance of the circle check

[Boomslang]

Had a little "oh shit" moment today. Was taking the chipper over to the mechanic and when I got there and went to unhook I saw this....



I had driven more than 8 miles. In town, over speed bumps, through construction zones, hitting potholes. How the chipper didn't jump off is beyond me.

I wasn't rushing hooking it up, but it was raining, mosquitoes were in my face, clearly I wasn't focused. I usually do a second take after hooking up to make sure I haven't missed a step. Obviously I didn't this time. Just glad nothing more serious came of it.

 

[Reach]

We have had that happen several times over the years. I’ve done it once, a former driver did it several times, and we’ve never lost a chipper, amazingly enough.

 

[flushcut]

I am glad nothing happened!

 

[Serf Life]

I appreciate you posting this, not a proud moment but it’ll probably save someone else spacing out.

 

[VenasNursery]

Unfortunately been their and done that
Fortunately no one got hurt and second didn’t destroy anything

 

[evo]

Always! It’s my preference to have someone else connect the tailer, and the driver to go over everything..

I had this a month or so ago…. Put the chipper back on and it looked a bit too saggy. Almost said f-it after double checking everything and jump in and run… the little voice told me to keep looking and SO glad I did

 

[deevo]

Had a little "oh shit" moment today. Was taking the chipper over to the mechanic and when I got there and went to unhook I saw this....

View attachment 82308

I had driven more than 8 miles. In town, over speed bumps, through construction zones, hitting potholes. How the chipper didn't jump off is beyond me.

I wasn't rushing hooking it up, but it was raining, mosquitoes were in my face, clearly I wasn't focused. I usually do a second take after hooking up to make sure I haven't missed a step. Obviously I didn't this time. Just glad nothing more serious came of it.

Least y’a had your chains on

 

[cory]

the little voice told me to keep looking and SO glad I did

The little voice is so key. It can take years to fully develop one's ability to hear it

 

[Steve Connally]

My MO is 100% secure for towing or not hooked up at all. Also the driver has to make that check. I lost a chipper exactly how your pic shows. Total loss.

 

[Richard Mumford-yoyoman]

I got distracted by a customer hooking up a goose neck dump trailer, when I finish the distraction and return to drive the Bobcat on to the dump trailer, it lifted and rolled into my toolbox and truck bed.
Who has not had an incident pulling a trailer?
Thank you for the post because it is indeed a very good reminder of how important and serious these these errors can be, people can die.

 

[VenasNursery]

So different but the same!
When we transplant a 90” Tree we most of the time have to tie it down to the truck and it has happened more than once when we go to plant and the customer comes out to talk Me my wife and my father have forgot to untie and have broken very expensive trees in half !
It sucks but we all are human and make mistakes

 

[Hammertime]

This is what happened the guy got distracted and forgot to close the latch and no safety chains. He had drove about 2 miles luckily nobody was seriously hurt. I have a backup camera in my truck and constantly looking to see if the latch is locked.

 

[southsoundtree]

I use a 5 point check(I always bring at least one hand) for trailers, and make a "Victory lap" before moving a vehicle.

1. Hitch from slug and pin to coupler and pin
2. Chains
3. Wires plugged (test the brakes when starting to drive by pedal and by brake controller)
4. Jack all the way up, chocks out, check for anything else in the drive path
5. Secured load, check for loose ratchet strap tails that can get caught under tires or around the wheels/ axles.



It's a failure to drive over something, so definitely not going to be a Victory by skipping the check.
Utility companies like Xfinity ( local internet, etc) have cones out around truck at each service location partially to force the walk around.


Anyone disallow putting things in the drive path?
I've had a quickly let-go employee want to put his backpack in the shade under the truck.
I've seen a saw run over.


If there is a passenger, a job expectation is to be ready to get out when we arrive somewhere and help the driver get parked in position.

15 years ago, when I was new in business, my employee was not ready, and I chose not to remind him of his job duty, backed the truck into the space at the saw shop and just barely broke the one neon tube of the sign with the ladder extending off the back of the truck box.
I definitely did not have a spare $600 at the time!

Could have been way more expensive, and been an insurance claim.

 

[WoodpeckerArborist]

I haven’t met anyone that has been in this business for any period of time that hasn’t witnessed or been involved with losing a trailer. On my third day on the job, we lost a chipper. Started to pass us on a residential street, foreman slammed it into the curb with the bucket truck as gently as possible. Lots of damage & a day off for the crew. Glad I learned that lesson on someone elses dime.

Pinned, Plugged, Chained, Safeties, Jacked…everytime. Started saying it backward, because I caught myself just going through the motions. Another rule we follow, trailers are either all the way on or all the way off. Nobody leaves until it is done, don’t care who you are or what ya gotta do. No in between and double check at any point is absolutely appropriate.

 

[Richard Mumford-yoyoman]

My MO is 100% secure for towing or not hooked up at all. Also the driver has to make that check. I lost a chipper exactly how your pic shows. Total loss.

Good MO!
Reminds me of a policy I used to tell my kids all the time, don't put anything on top of the vehicle, bumber etc., ever, that you don't mind losing.

 

[LordFarkwad]

I did not initially read the title correctly, and did a quick double take

 

[Stumpsprouts]

If one were to lose a chipper on a speed bump… ahem… and there is no bottle jack in the truck… you can get it back on the hitch using a maasdam. Or so I have heard…

That day taught me that if I am driving I absolutely must check my hitch, no matter who hooked it up for me.

 

[southsoundtree]

For me, it is absolutely the driver's responsibility to check the trailer and connection personally.

If it is always the driver's responsibility, the truck is never moved without it being checked, if everyone follows protocol.

When I first moved to Olympia, I remember the driver driving the chip truck and pulling the chipper forward by the chains, snapping the jack off the frame. The chipper had been raised to better fill the truck by unhitching the pintle ring, but not disconnecting the chipper chains and trailer wires.

Nobody (the boss or someone designated by the boss), put a cone on the driver's seat, or at least next to the partially hitched chipper. So simple to avoid.

I have a cone that lives on the chipper stabilizer foot. When the chipper is detached from a truck/ mini loader, the foot goes down, with the cone right next to it. Pretty hard to miss with a 'victory lap'. Cheesy, but I figured I might as well try to put a positive spin on a short name to lighten mood. I'm for positive spin over negative spin. Much better to say to Take a Victory Lap instead of Don't forget to do a walk around and check everything.

 

[Dan Cobb]

Got a text from my neighbor a little while ago. Her utility trailer came unhooked about half a block down the street and the tongue weight is too much for her. Fortunately, no damage or runaway trailer.

If she'd been reading the 'Buzz, she likely would have done a proper safety check.

 

[Bucknut]

Just gonna say it, we’ve lost several chippers over the years. Had a Mitts & Merrill break in half just outside the shop. Broke a weld at a notoriously weak spot on the frame where there’s a jog. Horrible design. This one was not really the drivers fault. Still embarrassing to watch half of chipper roll down the road.

Number two was a circa 2003 Morbark Model 13. Not a pintle, young guy failed to close the clasp around the ball which has the same effect. Made it about half a mile before it came off. Driver’s natural instinct was to hit the brakes when he felt the jerk from the safety chains, which of course resulted in the chipper slamming into the back of the truck. Dented the motor shroud badly and messed up the throttle. But still usable. And use it we did.

Last one was unique. Brand new Bandit 1390xp. Either the driver failed to insert the receiver hitch pin or it broke. (I have my suspicions) Result was chipper decoupling on the highway. Thankfully in the right lane. Here’s where it gets weird: safety chains just snapped. Had no effect whatsoever. So much so that the guys didn’t even know they lost the chipper for a few miles. Sounds unreal but I swear it’s true.

Driver was my brother who is an intelligent, competent, experienced guy. I was already at the job waiting on him to bring the chipper. He called and sheepishly told me he “lost the chipper”. “Uhhh…. Say again?” Literally had to backtrack to find it against a fence on the highway. Miracle the only damage was to the battery and battery platform. Couple of pics in case I haven’t embarrassed myself enough already: