Centralia PA...we took this one down to the bones

[farmersammm]

If you look at deposition rates, wire is always ahead of stick. It's simply more efficient.

[Bls repair]

I understand that ,but how do you explain that to someone who would rather save 16 dollars but is ok with paying $450 to to have 5 guys stand around for 2 hours.

[Popeye an old miner]

If you look at deposition rates, wire is always ahead of stick. It's simply more efficient.

I agree 100% there Sam. Same thing with jet arcin verses using a #12 banana tip for cutting off old wear plates and gouging etc. What I can do with a box of 3/8 carbons takes 3 bottles of oxygen. Sure you gotta set up the jetarc, that takes about 5 or 10 minutes, and you gotta run a welder and compressor. Im not gonna say its any faster but for me it works. I can do nicer job than with a torch, and Im pretty damn good with a banana tip, but it just works better for me. In the end its what the results are that count, in this case less grinding than with a torch, and Im not throwin as much heat into whats left of the iron. Rob and Paz 2 of the fellas I work with quite a bit, are very good with that torch, hell they are surgeons with a torch and they prefer the torch, and Im not gonna tell them they cant use it if they want to. but hey its all good

[idacal]

This rig changeover was the first time i actually used jet arc longenough to be decent with it, not good but decent. My welder is just a 302 miller but i found i could cut a bracket off without melting the wires behind the frame rails Way less heat in the steel. And the boogers that rolled down my back are just about healed. Ouch

[Popeye an old miner]

This rig changeover was the first time i actually used jet arc longenough to be decent with it, not good but decent. My welder is just a 302 miller but i found i could cut a bracket off without melting the wires behind the frame rails Way less heat in the steel. And the boogers that rolled down my back are just about healed. Ouch

Many years ago when I had my first weld rig i got a job do cut down the old chute the hoppers and the structure it sat in at a breaker. It was what they call the pockets around here to load trucks when they ship coal. I started this job with a torch and a #8 cutting tip, they supplied the bottles after the first day i burned up 5 or 6 hell maybe even 7 Im not sure oxygen bottles and 1 big acetylene bottle, so the next day i used a #4 tip and used the just about the same. I suggested gettin a bank of oxygen or a big liquid oxygen deal but they didnt want to do that. I said hey Ill go to Minersville to weld supply and get a jetarc and some carbons. We will put your compressor up above the pockets with my welder beside it and I will cut this thing down. I picked up 200 ft of #4.0 weld lead as well and the connections. They kept me in gas for the welder and diesel for that big ol IR tagalong compressor

Them folks down in town never heard such a racket in their life between the noise from me cuttin and droppin this old iron from 80 feet or so they thought there was a war goin on. Evry sidewalk superintendent in town was their to watch this show, hell even the mayor himself came to see what was all the excitement was about. 5 days later the whole thig was down. I took 8 boxes of 3/8 carbons.

I had more fun cuttin that thing down than i ever had in my life, one thing I found out is demolition is a great way to bet rid of the frustration of life. I used my old Big 40 with a Continental F163 motor, the whole rig would shake on its tires like a 16 year old girl gettin laid for the very first time, the old Continental would snort and carry on like a bull til she got goin. Some folks say that jet arcin will kill a welder, the old girl actually welded smoother and better after that workout. Mrs K sent my future son in law down with me she heard about all these goins on and wanted him there to make sure i was ok. He helped move the weld lead and the air hose around on the iron mostly. He told Mrs K after the first day that I was a crazy nut but I would be fine because it looked to him like I was born to be a destructive little bastard. Make a big cut give it a kick and away she goes...bang when it hits the pile of iron already there, after a bit at this section i would go to another spot and cut some while their guy in the loader would push the pile I had just cut out of the way.

6 weeks later I got turned into an ironworker and helped to build the new facility, I had already built the new chutes and hoppers the winter before. I still have that ArcAir K4000 jetarc, I rebuilt it 3 or 4 times since then and Johnny still talks about them 5 days. Ahhh the fun I used to have when I was young and dumb and thought I was indestructable

[Bls repair]

Destruction is always more fun then construction

[Popeye an old miner]

Destruction is always more fun then construction

Yes it is

[Stick-man]

Awesome post, thank you. Please, keep them coming

[Popeye an old miner]

Makin some progress on this Cat 785

Got some of the wear plates put in on the floor, and I am rebuilding the back corner big hole in it from when they were runnin the exhaust through it in the winter i think, in any case there was enough mud to plant taters in it, even found a rat nest in there from just settin there

[Popeye an old miner]

A bit of redneck engineering

[Popeye an old miner]

A bit of redneck engineering

[Popeye an old miner]

Well we finished it and before i got the chance to take a picture of the finished truck they yanked it out from under us while we were wrappin things up. Seems they blew the motor in one of the other trucks and needed it in a hurry, so off she goes on her maiden rebuilt voyage. So they brought us another one to work on, this one wont be as involved and might only take a few days. I will get some pics up if i remember to take them.

I probly wont be doin as much work on this one Im gonna go deer huntin for a few days so it might be done and gone til i get back to work, but there will be another one to work on if not somethin else to fix. I will be workin on it tomorrow so I hope i remember to take a picture or 2 to put up here

You folks have a Happy Thanksgiving and remember the blessings the Good Lord has given each of us. Dont forget to turn the scale back about 20 pounds or so before dinner

[John T]

Interesting reading.....

https://www.wgal.com/article/central...nd-now/6164007

[Popeye an old miner]

Interesting reading.....

https://www.wgal.com/article/central...nd-now/6164007

Good pictures there, they talked about the Mammoth Vein. Well it is a MAMMOTH of a vein to be sure. Blaschak Coal Co is diggin in it, thats where I am workin these days, where they are mining now the vein is smaller than where the fire was I was told. Itrolls up and down and now they are on the north side of the vein in a basin (where it goes down and comes back up). Basins are generally pretty thick compared to the dips, the saddles usually are as well. If you get on Blaschaks websight they have pictures and some videos of where they are diggin

We drove a gangway alongside a basin at the bottom in a bootleg hole i worked in many years ago. We drilled a hole into the side of the basin and never hit rock on the other side and we had 100ft of coal steel in it. We took a few samples for a test burn and it was some of the best burning coal we had. Its hard to work those basins from underground though you get a lot of squeeze from both sides. This wasnt the Mammoth vein it was one of Lykens Veins. We worked that Vein on the south side for 3 years it was strait pitch there for about 200 feet up then it pinched down to about 7 inches so we robbed it back. We were in that gangway about 1200 feet or so it took 4 years to rob it out.

My wifes Pap worked in one the collieries over near Centralia between Ashland and Centralia and was in the Mammoth Vein. He had some intresting stories to tell

[John T]

I rode motorcycle through Gagnon Canada a few years ago...
another "ghost town"

street signs and driveways... but everything else is gone.

pretty surreal .

the old airport runway is still there.... we made a couple high speed runs on the bikes just for kicks...

https://www.amusingplanet.com/2020/0...on-quebec.html