Steel mill heavy equipment

[980C]

I've got a couple pics of the big straddle carriers from US Steel, I'll have to find them and post them here too.

 

[slagpot]

Great pictures,please keep them coming.

Slagpot

 

[Midwestern4x4]

Great pictures,please keep them coming.

Slagpot

I will Try to get a few more this week before my layoff.

 

[MKTEF]

I read somewhere that many of the carriers where modified cat 657's.
The produser bought the Cat front, and made their own rearsystem.
Gearchange was a bit rough, so the operators didn't love them...
Not so funny when u got 100's of tons of liquid iron just behind the cab...

 

[surfer-joe]

I was a contractor shop superintendent at US Steel in Gary and also over at Bethlehem Steel for about a year and a half. There isn't another industry I think, that uses it's machinery as hard as a steel mill or in handling the slag.

The mills are always having accidents, many involving molten steel. I remember one time at US Steel, a full ladle sprang a leak and 100 tons of molten steel poured out on the mill floor. We were called in to help contain the 12" thick mess and then clean it up as we had the only crawler tractors on site. Our two D8's worked around the clock for a couple of days building slag berms and pushing ponds of semi-liquid steel into them so the 992's could load out the mess. We kept two mechanic-welders at the site so they could cut the track links apart as the molten steel slowly welded them together. Our rails did not have any seals or oil in them, a must when working in hot slag. We had to change out the entire undercarriage on both tractors when they were finished with the clean up.

Steel mills are probably the most interesting places I ever worked. Always something going on to watch, from the coke works to the ports to the steel rolling mills. Much of our specilized equipment was made by Kress, but we also used a lot of in-house modified equipment as well. What we did to Cat 992C's was not to be believed.

 

[JDOFMEMI]

Thanks for the pics. Nice to see the specialised iron that works in those conditions.

 

[BSAA65LB]

Steel mill work is tough nasty work. Once i lose my probationary status, I will post some pictures of other equipment doing refractory work in a mill.

 

[terex]

Kress transporters were once a common sight at British Steel plants in the UK. The ones I worked on were quite early ones (1970's) based on the 957 scraper front unit with 4 small rear tyres (aircraft tyres for some reason). Being early units they came with drum brakes on the front only which were poor when empty but with 100 ton slag pot behind they were bloody useless and it was a case of going down through the gears to try and stop the thing. Also with all that wieght on the back traction used to be a problem and they quite often had to be pulled out of the slag ponds.

 

[BSAA65LB]

terex sez:

"Kress transporters were once a common sight at British Steel plants in the UK."

Well, steel plants were once a common sight in the UK too.....they are kind of rare today

 

[terex]

lol.....Yeh very true , I'm at Corus Steel right now fighting for my job!!

 

[BSAA65LB]

Most steel mills are a little strange about allowing pictures to be taken inside the facility. These are an exception, and while a few years old, show a Gradall doing vessel & refractory maintenance in a mill

 

[gr79]

color!

A strange sight to see something big and clean in the gray steel mill world.
I live near Dearborn, Mich. The 1.5 hour Ford Rouge Complex tours used to take visitors thru the mills high up on the catwalks, eventually ending up on the final line floor watching Mustangs being assembled. They required visitors to walk a mile+ and have the ability to climb steps. I guess too many complained of dirty hand rails.
On the tour, was able to see, feel, hear, smell everything as an outsider. Tour guides provided the info.
Even me, as an employee at the engine plant there, was not allowed access to many areas. Cameras were not allowed anywhere. Now everyone has cell phone cameras, easy to hide. Tours do not show the real good stuff anymore.

 

[Bumpsteer]

I toured the Great Lakes Steel plant in the early 80's, specifically the continous casting area. We were shown the whole process from charging the crucible to the rolling mills. It was pretty cool to see the never ending red hot slab of steel feeding down the conveyor.
I'll never forget the guy that cut the slabs, he had a torch that was carried like a big weedwacker with a harness. He wore metal soled heat proof boots and would walk out on the hot slab and cut it every 25 feet or so....

Ed

 

[rockdog]

Yep, mill where I worked was no cameras allowed. They let the wives of Blast Furnace workers be on the floor for a cast to see what their husbands did for a living. Damn lawyers put an end to it before my wife got to see it. It's a different and damn dangerous world. My second shift there, I was almost cut in half when the side blew out of the furnace. Thank god for the seasoned guy who knew what was happening and grabbed me and pulled me to the side just in time.

 

[miningtrucks]

great equipment photos keep them coming they are cool

 

[slagpot]

Heres some more from my collection.

Thats it for now,hope you enjoyed them.

Slagpot

 

[trukfan]

Those are some great pics slagpot. I got a tour of a large forge as part of a job interview, and the specialized equipment/facilities were very fascinating to me. It's unlike any other industry I've worked in for sure. I do have one question though. How many tires does a plce like that go through? In one of your pics, there's a rig with a pot dumping hot metal into some kind pit, and it's tires look real close to heat.

 

[slagpot]

Those are some great pics slagpot. I got a tour of a large forge as part of a job interview, and the specialized equipment/facilities were very fascinating to me. It's unlike any other industry I've worked in for sure. I do have one question though. How many tires does a plce like that go through? In one of your pics, there's a rig with a pot dumping hot metal into some kind pit, and it's tires look real close to heat.

Tires on slagpot carriers are only changed out,when they wear down too much. At a steel plant up north{can't remeber which one} a kress slag pot carrier had a tire blow out as it was leaving the inside of the plant. Once it got almost outside the door,the tire blow. Killing one worker,these tire are under hellish tire pressers. As for dumping the slagpot pots in the pit.The pot carrier tires only have to withstand the heat for short periods of time.

I have a whole bunch of mill equipment including a few of massive forge presses.

http://i315.photobucket.com/albums/ll460/dragonriversteel/Steel%20mill%20equipment/sfm23g.jpg


Slagpot

 

[Chris5500]

I remember when I was a young whipper snapper, I use to go for runs with my grandfather who was a truck driver for british steel out of Port Talbot Steel Works in Port Talbot, Wales, I use to see those Kress carriers quite frequently, I remember they use to scare me, but never the less I was very interested with them and like everything else mechanical I use to take hundreds of photos of them with my polaroid

For anyone that didnt know, the Kress carrier is partially made out of a Caterpillar 657 scraper.

Edit:

I've just read through and realised some people have already pointed this out

 

[Andy512]

We actually use 613,621,631 and 657 front ends with 621 and 631 fitting the requirements for most machines.