a good one for you troubleshooters

[reppy007]

I know that this doesnt happen too often,and I know the feeling a guy can get when this happens,but i wanted to ask anyway.....it makes me laugh thinking of some of the stuff that can be found when working alone like going up a pole at night cause the customer had flickering lights.....you cant see the connections from the ground so you decide to get up there and have a look when you see this you think to yourself(just my luck) the connections cant be seen cause a tree or a tree limb has grown in or around the spot your looking for....maybe even around some hardware like bolts.some of these limbs can be huge,so that means you might have to fetch a hand saw,anyone seen that lately?

[lewy]

I have to ask what happens at night if while your up there & you get yourself in trouble. Do they find you there the next morning or if they know your in trouble is help hours away. I just don't get doing this kind of work alone.

[T-Man]

I have to ask what happens at night if while your up there & you get yourself in trouble. Do they find you there the next morning or if they know your in trouble is help hours away. I just don't get doing this kind of work alone.


Lewy you may not get it but that's the way trouble was handled back in the day. I'm not bragging just saying it was expected you go back there take a look, get the gear you need go up with the proper PPE and get the job done.( on secondary problems only) Now a days anytime you need rubber gloves and sleeves on there should be a second person to make a rescue, but back then it wasn't the way it worked we didn't even have cell phones to call for help if we needed to or could. Evolution I guess.

We used a man aloft system. You would call the troubls clerk and let them know you would be off the air for 20-30 minutes and they would set an alarm on their pannel and it would go off in the precsribed time then they would call you. If you answered OK if not they would try to find a guy to go look for you. . . .

I can remember tying a pipe hitch to a phase of downed secondary main, Putting a #2 jumper on a bare spot near the end but enough room so a sleeve and a permanent jumper could be installed.
Coil the short jumper and tape it to the down line. Then take the other end of the line up with me. wearing rubber gloves and sleeves put the rope over the secondary cross arm and hoist the down wire up close enough and high enough off the ground to tie off and grab the jumper. Then cut the tape and install the jumper to the hot main to pick up the customers temporary, in the dark alone and it was expected we do it that way. Things have changed time marches on.

[lewy]

We did stuff in the past that is not allowed now also, I got the impression that he was talking about today.

[reppy007]

I am still talking about today,,here if you need help all you need to do is call for it,otherwise if you feel like you can handle it ,theres nobody thats going to stop you......Its not that we have he/men here it just comes natural to anyone that was brought up that way.........kind of like an older lineman climbing,we never would let someone older climb if there was someone younger that could do that same job..............it was simple....like get your tools on and get your a$$ up that pole......but never did let someone older climb.

[Lineman8641]

I Like the way you think Reppy. However, if I'm on the job and ask for help, I insist I do the work even if I'm the oldest one on the job. Climb or bucket work. I tell them I didn't call you to "bail" me out. Just to give me a hand. I'm sure you're the same way.

[reppy007]

yea Im the same way,I dont need to be hearing somebody repeatedly saying that they bailed me out,lol its ok if I say it to someone else.........guess thats nationwide,the bailing out saying......when you need help you need help,but I remember being a young apprentice,and it was a respectful thing that you would tell a older lineman that you would catch the pole,we took care of the older hands.........now days everyone is the same age,so its old man bailing out another old man,laugh.

[Lineman8641]

Well if I call you for help, we'll flip the coin for who does the work!!

[reppy007]

Well if I call you for help, we'll flip the coin for who does the work!!

my backs hurt.

[Hebrew]

I am a troubleman but we don't work alone.I am one of the youngest guys working trouble though,at 48.At what age are you guys not required to climb?A workmate told me the supervisor told him not to climb,he's 58.I asked him if the supervisor tells him what he can do or the other way around.So are you told not to climb or do you decide you've had enough?

[reppy007]

You brought up a good subject....start a thread on that Hebrew....it used to be normal here for a supervisor to tell the older lineman to take it easy,not to climb....let the young ones do that....but theres not many younger ones anymore....or ones with experience.....I remember when I was 47 and we built a line....I had to catch 8 poles ...all 55s.....that is when my body missed its youth and I thought it was crazy....Companies should have the money and common sense to hire youngsters.....Back in the day as apprentices and young Jys...it was natural tto catch a pole for the older guys....expected is the correct word....but times have changed,people have changed....and now climbing has changed with the squeeze and all.:nightmare:

[Hebrew]

I will start it in the linework forum.Thanks for the tip.