Hydraulic impact is a common phenomenon in the hydraulic transmission system, which has great influence on the smooth operation of hydraulic transmission system and the service life of hydraulic components, especially to the hydraulic system with large inertia load. In order to restrain the hydraulic impact, the causes for hydraulic impact are analyzed, and a new method of active adjusting variable damping was developed. The principle of this method is to make use of the reserving signal to predict the timing of the hydraulic shock wave actively and adjust the opening size of the damped hole accordingly to restrain the hydraulic impact. This method was applied to the hydraulic system of a cinder scraper's rail trolley as a case study through simulation and experimental testing. The results show that the method has the advantages of quick response speed, effective restraint of hydraulic impact in the system and low energy consumption. By using this method, the hydraulic impact in the hydraulic system of the cinder scraper's rail trolley can be effectively controlled without affecting the response speed of the system.