OK to let bucket slam down to clear stuck snow in bucket?

[Geezer3d]

As you may have noticed I am a bit of an empiricist and this piqued my interest. So when I took the trash down to the road this morning I did a little experimenting with an LA525 and and empty bucket.

1. Float is self limiting - the cylinders act like a hydraulic damper and you get a controlled fall with soft landing.
2. Full power down is a bit faster and you get a thump when you hit the ground (pavement in this case) but nothing exciting.

Findings: its next to impossible to "slam" the bucket on that loader against the ground.

Dan

The speed and 'thump' of allowing the bucket to drop using float depends a lot on the weight in the bucket. My snow plow weighs a lot more than my bucket when empty and it drops a lot faster and harder.

 

[Magicman]

I bent the hydraulic piston rod on my backhoe by slamming it down hard. T'was an expensive lesson.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

ouch !