TM 5-3805-280-10
Operating the Machine
BUCKET DIGGING: For power digging and for working in
a small or cramped excavation. Use the bucket cylinder
(A) for digging.
Lower bucket to the digging area and use boom to force
the bucket into the ground. Work two functions at once;
retracting the arm, and curling the bucket until the bucket
is full.
If the bucket stalls, raise the boom slightly and continue to
curl bucket.
If arm stalls, roll back bucket to break out.
IMPORTANT: To avoid damaging cylinder(s), do not
strike ground with bucket or use bucket
for tamping when bucket cylinder is
fully extended (bucket completely
curled under).
When bucket cylinder is fully extended, do not strike the
ground with the bucket or use the bucket for tamping.
Do not use the bucket as a hammer or pile driver. Do not
attempt to shift rocks and break walls using swing motion.
Do not sideload bucket. For example, do not swing bucket
to level material or do not strike objects from the side with
the bucket.
Match bucket, bucket teeth, or attachment to type of
material being handled.
Loose, fragmented material dumps quickly from the
bucket. To break up material as it enters the bucket,
excavate material in thin layers rather than jamming it into
the bucket. This is especially important with sticky
materials.
If you clean the bucket by rapping it against the stop, to
prevent cylinder damage, use the MINIMUM amount of
force. Clean the bucket by hand if rapping bucket lightly
does not work. Do not try to remove material from bucket
by striking bucket against the ground or another object.
Continued on next page
TX,35,FF2325 1928JAN922/3
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