Career advice please - excavator operator

[headlesschicken]

I've seen quite a few threads around here with similar questions and you lot seem to be pretty knowledgable about these things.

I was lucky enough to be taken to the boys day out by my gf on the weekend and managed to get myself a spot in the seat of a big cat rentals digger
I've always thought it would be a cool job and now I absolutely love the idea. Unfortunately my optometrist has told me I can't get an H/T licence as I have a muscle imbalance causing me to use my right eye slightly more than the left. 99% of the time I don't notice it. I work on a farm driving all sorts of vehicles including large tractors and have never had any issues with it. I was quite surprised to learn that I could drive a tractor/trailer up to 18T combined weight on my full class 1!
So question number 1 is there any way to correct or get around my apparent eye trouble and question 2 how desired is the correct licence in the industry? (I'd be more interested in the rural contracting side than digging trenches in the city all day on a 2 tonner).

TIA Tim

[Headbanger]

Driven everything from 1t to 50t, Here and in Aussie, never had a truck license.

Personally I believe tieing an excavator to a truck license to be completely retarded and the work of some mighty dumb fuck people.

Luckily it is mostly ignored by nearly every industry,In the last decade I have only one instance where a principal has stated our operators had to have the required truck license.

In a nutshell, its bullshit.

[The Pastor]

ring up some big contractors and ask them

[CookMySock]

my optometrist has told me I can't get an H/T licence as I have a muscle imbalance causing me to use my right eye slightly more than the left.

I'd be getting a second opinion if it were me, and a third as well.

I don't know what the law is regarding drivers' licenses or training for track-laying machinery on a work site, but I bet it's more involved these days than what it has was in the past.

(I'd be more interested in the rural contracting side than digging trenches in the city all day on a 2 tonner).

In the end it all gets boring.. Well, some of the really technical stuff doesn't, but you need a really forgiving boss, or loads of support gear to begin playing with high-end-stupid excavator stuff, and then theres all the breakages.

You also have to be the right sort of person to make money on a digger. You have to be fast and economical with your motion, and not break things. In a way its like riding a bike - think ahead, plan your motion, no mistakes! You really have to quit daydreaming and watch how and what you are thinking.

If you enjoy hard-out days moving at light-speed and never hitting anything (difficult!) then there will be someone who will be keen to hear from you.

I have about 2,000 hours on various machines, and really enjoyed it, but there were some hard lessons.

Steve

[Headbanger]

I don't know what the law is regarding drivers' licenses or training for track-laying machinery on a work site, but I bet it's more involved these days than what it has was in the past.


Steve

The requirement is an HT license. this gives you the legal right to operate an excavator.

[bogan]

I was quite surprised to learn that I could drive a tractor/trailer up to 18T combined weight on my full class 1!

Hmmm, I was told otherwise for this, seem to recal it was 4.5T (or 5T) combined weight max, so I got my class 2 so I could drive a tractor and bale wrapper on the road, weighs around the 5T mark. Ah well, doing the license course was pretty fun, and Ill always be able to drive class 2 if i need to now.

But whats the deal with the opto telling you you cant get a license, isnt he spose to sell you some glasses for that?

[Devil]

Hmmm, I was told otherwise for this, seem to recal it was 4.5T (or 5T) combined weight max, so I got my class 2 so I could drive a tractor and bale wrapper on the road, weighs around the 5T mark. Ah well, doing the license course was pretty fun, and Ill always be able to drive class 2 if i need to now.

But whats the deal with the opto telling you you cant get a license, isnt he spose to sell you some glasses for that?

4.5T is the correct limit. This is what lets Joe Bloggs drive their motorhome on their Class 1...

I would be questioning the eye thing too. I have a very dominant right eye, hopefully it doesn't stuff me up from getting my HT (parents considering larger camper in the future...).

[headlesschicken]

http://www.transfund.govt.nz/factsheets/11.html

It says in there whats covered ^

Thats encouraging to hear headbanger!
I wear contacts an only just scrape thru the vision test as it is but I may see about going to another optometrist. I've clocked up a few thousand hours driving tractors with a fair bit of loader work and like to think I'm pretty proficient at that sort of thing.
Is training more commonly done on the job or the likes of a digger school?
Also I'm turning 20 at the end of the year, will my age have a negative impact on the likelihood of getting a job? Thanks for your replies

[Headbanger]

Training should be industry specific, so on the job it is, Though the bigger companies may well have systems set up where people are sent away for a day or two in the classroom.

I went to "excavator school" in Aussie as you need specific tickets over there for each machine, In my view it done more harm then good, Giving people the belief that after less then 5 hours in a machine they were qualified and competent,when in reality many of them should never be allowed into a machine, and many of the others needed to clock up a few hundred hours at least before being considered competent.

As for your age, 20 is fine, If your an idiot in the machine you will be removed smartly no matter what your age. the trick,or at least one of the tricks is to figure out who you should be listening to and then doing what they say, Though at some stage you will have to go with what you think you should be doing and this is when you sink or swim.

As a foreman I tire very quickly of people who stall for instructions....and people that take it upon themselves to do something stupid.

If it were me and I was looking at getting back into a digger I'd be looking at a forestry job.....

[bogan]

http://www.transfund.govt.nz/factsheets/11.html

Class 1 – car licence

A holder of a Class 1 learner, restricted or full licence can drive:
a vehicle that has a GLW or GCW of 4500 kg or less (this includes tractors or combinations of vehicles, but does not include motorcycles)
....

A holder of a Class 1 full licence can also drive:
a tractor with a GLW of more than 4500 kg but less than 18,001 kg if driven at a speed not exceeding 30 kph
....

The old mans tractor does 35kmhr, so technically i was sposed to have the class 2, but i doubt anyone wuda been too worried bout the extra 5kmhr

[CookMySock]

if driven at a speed not exceeding 30 kph

I bet a hydraulic excavator will come well inside that.

18 tonne digger is a big 'un too.

Steve

[dipshit]

You could always start working at OceanaGold's gold mine at Macraes. Start off driving 180 ton dump trucks and progress to the big excavators. You would need any HT licence there.

[pc220]

I'd be getting a second opinion if it were me, and a third as well.



I have about 2,000 hours on various machines, and really enjoyed it, but there were some hard lessons.

Steve

At 2000hrs you are only just starting to learn.

[CookMySock]

At 2000hrs you are only just starting to learn.

Yeah I was just starting to forget about the machine and concentrate on the job. It was never really a career. Just a fill in thing. I wanted my own business, and not with diggers.

Steve

[JimO]

try not to dig up to many electrical/phone cables i was on a job where the drain layers digger ripped out all the cables on a multi million dollar deer shed and a few hrs later a million dollar house......shit for brains the same guy smacked the side of the truck with the bucket