Bucket Truck Question

[ACE]

I just bought a new(used) bucket truck w/ a Altec boom. Looks to be 45'-50'.
My question is, should there be deflection in the upper boom. When I start to lift the upper section from a resting postion (horizontal) it starts to crown a little. Just enough to notice. I have a different truck w/ a box style boom and that one does'nt deflect. Any feedback?

 

[Dadatwins]

The fiberglass tube has to flex some or it will crack. The box type, probably hi-ranger has some flex to it also, but the round tube shows it more. I think the round tube altec has a higher rating than the square tube design also. A dealer or service place can actually do an x-ray on the unit and make sure all is up to safety spec. Some units require a rebuild after a set number of years. Congrats on the machine.

 

[ropensaddle]

The fiberglass tube has to flex some or it will crack. The box type, probably hi-ranger has some flex to it also, but the round tube shows it more. I think the round tube altec has a higher rating than the square tube design also. A dealer or service place can actually do an x-ray on the unit and make sure all is up to safety spec. Some units require a rebuild after a set number of years. Congrats on the machine.

I don't know about xray but a stress test is done on them and they
use a powerful microphone, and can hear separating fibers! That is
how I have seen it performed they use weights.

 

[ACE]

Thanks for the info guys. Ill look into having it checked out. Its good to know that some flexibilty in the boom is normal.