Jaques rope shovels

hi Ray
that one at goldsmith i think that is the 1 of 2 that were at blue circle southern cement at waun ponds geelong , the other 1 is resting at the cambeltown steam museum, out side sydney.

Aktipete - The brand is Smith Rodley. Not a common machine. We had an RB10 in the Army, but I never got to play with it. God almighty, they are a nightmare of levers and pedals and brakes, and you look like a one-armed paper hanger in a willy-willy when you're operating them. The operator of the RB10 we had in 'Nam was a little blackfella .. from Condobolin, I seem to recall - Micky Wighton was his name - but he was a black 'un ..
He had the hang of the RB10 .. but I never wanted to learn to drive it. I was happy with dozers, scrapers, loaders, graders and forklifts .. I could get into enough trouble with them ..

Bills Machinery in Perth currently has a couple of 3 cyl Ruston engines, and I swear they've come out of an old shovel or dragline. The trouble with all of Bills stuff, he buys crap at auctions for bugger all .. gives it a Dulux overhaul .. then puts it on eBay for a million dollars. He'll start getting a heap of negative feedback soon, when all the buyers realise they've been had ..

Thats the one, anyhow if you get over here one day there are two of them at the Steam Club in Scoresby. I usnderstand Lake Goldsmith have been given another monster steam shovel, this one mounted on railway bogies.

My 2 cents worth (TAX FREE)

Loacted @ Batesford Geelong @ the Cement works Quarry


img27.imageshack.us/img27/3954/bucyrus.jpg


Cya

[ch9787]

Those rail mounted steam shovels with the turntable-mounted boom are the grandaddy of 'em all, and they date from the 1840's when they needed to do big projects, such as cuttings for the railways that were going in everywhere. I'd presume they were an extension of the big cranes that were produced to recover train wrecks.

It never ceases to amaze me what they achieved by way of massive earthmoving output in those days.
The old fellas also woke up to the steam shovel potential in dam-building and mining, and they would run a rail line up to the face, with a parallel line beside it, and run rail trucks up the line, just the right distance from the shovel, for loading.

The HCEA site has a lot of pics of these old shovels in operation. This is where Marion, P&H, Bucyrus, Ruston, etc, made all their money, building these monsters in the era where the shovel and a dray, was your only other alternative. When you see a pic of a steam shovel loading drays, you know it's old .. although, when Canberra was built, in the late 1920's, steam shovels and drays were still being used in the earthmoving.
The steam shovels were still around after WW2, but big diesels produced from the mid 1930's, set the tone for their demise.

Steam shovel building railway in S.A. .. images.slsa.sa.gov.au/mpcimg/70000/B69853.htm

An early Steam shovel, probably late 1890's .. note the 5 man crew (likely to be - oiler, fireman, boiler attendant, operator, boom attendant) .. and the total lack of any enclosure .. mview.museum.vic.gov.au/paimages/mm/004/004960.htm

JuanTrak
GuddayM8

My how things have changed from way back when!

them ol days one machine could have a large crew of 5 or more
Nowa days
One joker may have 5 machines to do the work with

dunno ifn labor twaz cheap back then
or labor iz expensive now

LOL
Cya

[ch9787]

Those rail-mounted shovels are the coolest!

Have been watching a few HCEA DVDs of late and have seen all sorts of shovels and paying attention to the various designs and innovations. By golly they have fun!

I was working with a Ruston Byucrus that did a lot of the MIA cannals when new in the saphire mines around Gln Innes in the late 60's I was so impressed I got myself an RB1

But the bloody handle broke!!!

never min - earthmovin jokes :

Knokerz
GuddayM8

Sorry we don't allow earthmove n jokes

MUCH
LOL
GiveTillItHurtz











LOL


Have U got any happy snaps 2 share with us all?

Cya

[ch9787]

G'day Swishy

Ive got some old stuff that I have to scan (gotta buy a scanner first) then I will put them up.

Got a few of old trucks in the Czeck republic last month that I hafta shrink cause they are 5 - 6 meg files so once shrunk Ill try the vagaries of puttin em up

I'm lookin at an old David Brown petrol kero tractor at the moment to restore so will need a small tray truck or trailer to cart it around on


Dave