| Tong Snub Lines |
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Click on the video link above and it should play. If not then you
may need to download the free Flash file player at
www.adobe.com . There is an alternative player here.
Download and install it at your own risk (I have never heard of
a problem with it).
may need to download the free Flash file player at
www.adobe.com . There is an alternative player here.
Download and install it at your own risk (I have never heard of
a problem with it).
The first pull shows the tongs swinging
violently where the employee would be
standing (should the tongs come off of
the pipe). If an employee were standing
there he would be injured. This is
because the snub line is mounted to
the outside.
The second pull shows the snub line
mounted to the inside and the pull line
mounted to the outside. Double box
tongs are stamped with "Pull" to the
outside and "Snub" to the inside. You
will see the tongs drift away from the
employees should they come loose.
This is the right way to mount the snub
even though it is counter-intuitive.
If you only have single-box tongs you
can get an adapter made to help relieve
the stress on your snub line.
However, you will need to inspect and
change out your snub lines more
frequently.
violently where the employee would be
standing (should the tongs come off of
the pipe). If an employee were standing
there he would be injured. This is
because the snub line is mounted to
the outside.
The second pull shows the snub line
mounted to the inside and the pull line
mounted to the outside. Double box
tongs are stamped with "Pull" to the
outside and "Snub" to the inside. You
will see the tongs drift away from the
employees should they come loose.
This is the right way to mount the snub
even though it is counter-intuitive.
If you only have single-box tongs you
can get an adapter made to help relieve
the stress on your snub line.
However, you will need to inspect and
change out your snub lines more
frequently.
<-- Click here and give it a few minutes to download
What you will see here is the tong snub line issue that I wrote about and illustrated in "Roughnecking 101" Version 2.
This is a very important issue and should not be ignored. Some of the worst accidents I have had to deal with
concerned the tongs slamming a hand into the drawworks.
This is a very important issue and should not be ignored. Some of the worst accidents I have had to deal with
concerned the tongs slamming a hand into the drawworks.
Update * There are cases where this is a non issue on your rig(s). There are some hydraulic powered tongs that pull
too slow to make this a hazard. Other rigs (usually Truck mounted) may tie their snub lines parallel to their pull lines.
In this case the leverage hazard has been eliminated, making this a non-issue.
too slow to make this a hazard. Other rigs (usually Truck mounted) may tie their snub lines parallel to their pull lines.
In this case the leverage hazard has been eliminated, making this a non-issue.
