Forrest Gump would say...Runnin a PAT blade is hard! Doing finish work with PAT blade is a art. I've come to that conclusion anyway...total respect for ppl i see that make it look easy! I have a total of about 8-10 hours of running a PAT blade. Im getting better but it's learn as you go. Is there any tutorials on tips and tricks for working these blades? I'm running a a CAT D4H II. Thanks
I like to visualize my hand sculpting the dirt the way I want it and transmit that to the PAT control, if that makes any sense. Second - just because it can move 6 ways doesn't mean it needs to all the time.
Right now I'm talking more along the lines of just basic cutting and pushing dirt. Currently I'm reshaping a creek bed that has alot of slit deposited on either side over the years. Just mastering going down into a cut and pushing dirt up and out was a challenge. I was either gouging too much or not enuff. Now I've learned once I have a good contour to follow ..I will take a maybe a half overlap and watch the side of the blade that's overlapping the previous cut, following it. Keeping dirt in front of the blade on uneven ground to spread out is a aquired feel.
That's why us old catskinners say have to develop a bubble in your ***. Keep your groundspeed as slow as possible and as your skill develops your speed will increase. The horizontal amount of cut you make depends on how deep a cut you're taking. Mike