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Largest dragline left may become a park centerpiece

CEwriter

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Joined
Nov 16, 2004
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391
Location
St. Louis, MO
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journalist
A group called the Harrison Coal and Reclamation Heritage Park is negotiating with Consol Energy to get the 7,000-ton Bucyrus-Erie 1950-B dragline called the Silver Spade and some defunct strip-mine acres for an interpretive park. The object is to showcase the group's collection of old mining equipment and show future generations how significant coal mining has been to Harrison County, OH.

Pretty interesting stuff. Particularly the point about a similar park built in West Mineral, Kan., around another giant stripping shovel called Big Brutus. They say that park attracts 40,000 visitors a year!

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06260/722539-85.stm

L
 

digger242j

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Oct 31, 2003
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Southwestern PA
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Self employed excavator
It's really odd that this should come up...

Yesterday, I was taliking to a fellow who was telling me about the equipment shows in Brownsville PA that are put on by the National Pike, Steam, Gas and Horse Association. I took a look at their website:http://www.nationalpike.com/. They are affiliated somehow with the HCEA--the Historic Construction Equipment Association. And the HCEA Ohio Valley Chapter is associated with the Harrison Coal and Reclamation Historical Park:
http://www.nesys.org/HCEA/hceaovc.html#news

Thye're the group that's trying to save the Silver Spade. I usually don't buy the newspaper, but I did buy the Post Gazette yesterday, before I had the conversation about the equipment show, but I didn't read it until later, when I read the article CE Writer linked to.

Yesterday morning, I'd never heard of the Silver Spade. By this evening, it's been brought to my attention by three different paths, all totally unrelated. That's just odd... :confused:

I hope they're successful with their museum. :thumbsup

BTW, Ive already penciled in the dates of the Brownsville show on my calendar for next year. That's gotta be way cool... :yup
 

norrodbh

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Joined
Mar 7, 2005
Messages
50
Location
SWestern PA
Cool !

See that massive extension cord on the Silver Spade ?



I'll have to check out that Brownsville Show. For many years, I have had a standing date where I would meet up with my father at the Pioneer Steam & Gas Engine show up in Crawford County (Meadville)

http://www.little-mountain.com/pioneer/
 

CEwriter

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Nov 16, 2004
Messages
391
Location
St. Louis, MO
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journalist
Kieth Haddock's story about the Silver Spade with some interesting statistics, and photos showing the monster at work.

"The behemoth shovel was served by a 7,200-volt trailing cable weighing 20 pounds per foot. On board, AC main driving motors totaling 9,000 horsepower drove DC generators for the shovel's main motions — hoist (8 motors), swing (4 motors) and crowd (2 motors)."

http://www.constructionequipment.com/article/CA6366010.html?text=silver+spade
 

345cl

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Sep 13, 2006
Messages
111
Location
montreal
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excavator operator in the sewer bussiness
heres a few pics of the spade,,check out the website for this machine at
www.stripmine.org
 

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Dusty

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Nov 10, 2003
Messages
178
Location
S.E PA
THE BIG OLD IRON is dieing off due to not meeting clean air requirments and to not being PC enough to try to fix
i hope they save it for the future kids to see and relise how it was once done most kids dont even know what a mine is and where power comes from
 

MVFD

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May 23, 2006
Messages
117
Location
Victoria BC
Dusty said:
THE BIG OLD IRON is dieing off due to not meeting clean air requirments and to not being PC enough to try to fix
i hope they save it for the future kids to see and relise how it was once done most kids dont even know what a mine is and where power comes from


The silver spade was electric...

"The behemoth shovel was served by a 7,200-volt trailing cable weighing 20 pounds per foot. On board, AC main driving motors totaling 9,000 horsepower drove DC generators for the shovel's main motions — hoist (8 motors), swing (4 motors) and crowd (2 motors). The massive weight of the machine was supported on eight crawler track assemblies, each with its own DC motor."

So theres no "emissions" or "clean air" requirements for that machine...

Altho it probley used more power then they could make :lmao
 

Dusty

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Messages
178
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S.E PA
u know i saw a show on it and forgot that it was plug and play thanks for the info
 

Dozerboy

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Jan 18, 2006
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TX
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Operator
You guys should check out the pic Gallery #9 is of a drag line falling off a highwall and they a several pic of them on there sides. I would have never guessed that there is a rollover risk running a few mil ton drag line...:eek:
 

MetalDragon_boy

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Aug 18, 2006
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Sweden
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Work for the Swedish pharmacy
The Spade isnt a drag line, shes a strippingshovel... btw I thougt "The Captain" is the largest if the stripping shovels left... has he been scrapped to now?
 

Deas Plant

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Jan 21, 2006
Messages
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Location
Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia
Big Toys

Hi, Folks.
The Captain, mentioned above, was a stripping shovel, similar to but MUCH larger than the Silver Spade. At 14,800 tons, it was for some years the largest self-propelled earthmoving machine around. It swung a 110 cu Yd shovel bucket It was destroyed quite a few years ago by a fire that started in its hydraulics.

Next heaviest was Big Muskie at 14,200 tons. Big Muskie was a dragline and many people think of it as the biggest because it swung a 184 Cu yd bucket. Big Muskie was sadly demolished for scrap last year.
 

MVFD

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Joined
May 23, 2006
Messages
117
Location
Victoria BC
Hi, Folks.
The Captain, mentioned above, was a stripping shovel, similar to but MUCH larger than the Silver Spade. At 14,800 tons, it was for some years the largest self-propelled earthmoving machine around. It swung a 110 cu Yd shovel bucket It was destroyed quite a few years ago by a fire that started in its hydraulics.

Next heaviest was Big Muskie at 14,200 tons. Big Muskie was a dragline and many people think of it as the biggest because it swung a 184 Cu yd bucket. Big Muskie was sadly demolished for scrap last year.


I think you mean to say... The captian swung a 180 Cu Yd bucket
And big muskie has a bucket capacity of 220 Cu yd
 
Last edited:

Deas Plant

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Jan 21, 2006
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Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia
What I meant to say.

Hello. MVFD.
With all due respect, what you think I meant to say and what I meant to say are two entirely different things. I meant to say exactly what I said in my previous post. The fact that I said it does not automatically make it right and I am always open to correction - without getting uptight about being shown to be wrong. And I thank you for the correction.

My EX-wife thought she knew better than me what I meant to say, or what I ought to be saying, or how I ought to behave, or who my friends should be. THAT is why she IS my EX-wife.

Hi, MetalDragon Boy.
13,000 metric tonnes converts to 14,330 U.S. tons which would still give the record to The Captain at 14,800 U.S. tons but as you said, 'atm' which I am guessing stands for 'at the moment'. And that is still a pretty fair piece of hardware in any man's language. Thanks for the link.
 
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