Skagit Iron and Steel Works, Sedro Wooley, Washington

[northriver69]

Yes simpson out of Camp Govey

 

[Redwood Climber]

Yes simpson out of Camp Govey

Cool we would love to see any pictures of logging equipment you have. My father worked for Simpson out of Korbel and Klamath. California for 36 or so years, I worked for a company that was bought out by Simpson, and my son works for Green Diamond (Simpson). I now do some contracting for Green Diamond. As a kid I used to read "The Simpson Diamond" company magazine cover to cover numerous times. In that were many articles... Camp Govey and Camp Grisdale were read about in nearly every issue.....sadly none of them were saved, all were tossed out as trash. So please post pictures of yarders, cats, loaders, trains off highway logging trucks etc.........any logging equipment. Thank you Sir!

 

[northriver69]

I retired from Green Diamond 2012 with 41 yrs 39 running yarder.Does your son work in logging or mill?

 

[Redwood Climber]

I retired from Green Diamond 2012 with 41 yrs 39 running yarder.Does your son work in logging or mill?

Forester/logging

39 years sitting in the seat of a yarder.......and your still sane?

Tell us about the yarders you ran, model, year, tracks or tires, swing or tower, grapple or choker, carriages etc........... and pictures!

 

[camptramp]

Running a yarder is like playing a guitar any body can strum the strings , but it takes a master to play it classical. Its what you make of the job , a good yarding engineer can make the whole crews job easier and save a lot of broken timber , its just a case of how you approch the job . A good slackline operator is a treat to watch.

 

[Vigilant]

Ever hear of a gent named Ira Blackwell from Grisdale? His nickname was Hippo. He looked the part, from all those years pulling a misery whip. I believe he also played Santa Claus for the kids every Christmas at Grisdale. My dad was with Weyco Twin Harbors, and we lived in Central Park back in the Sixties, right behind Mr. Blackwell. He was a cranky old gent, with a heart of gold. He tolerated me and the other snot-nosed neighborhood kids, even let us climb his apple trees, eat his apples, and play in his barn.

I loved to watch in total fascination when Roberts Brothers logged the Central Park Swamp. From a distance, of course.

Been up North River a few times as well. I used to fish Fall River with my dad, and have been inside the Brooklyn Tavern once in recent years. Bought a round of beer, and left while they still thought I was a pretty nice guy.

Remember Milton Benedict in Monte, and his yard full of log shovels? I sure wish I had a few photos of that place.

I also attended school at Central Park School.

Caught my first fish at Lake Sylvia, and still have the photo.

 

[northriver69]

I started at 22 on the BX-185 skagit slackline on the wood tree for 9 yrs, but i would run big towers from time to time Skagit 101, 99 self propelled, other big Bergers. Then i gor on a PSY-200 swing yarder that we ran grapples and dropline carriage thhia was all at Camp Govey near Shelton for Simpson timber. When the camps shutdown in 1985 i went to low lands for Simpson and started running a Washington 118 grapple yarder, then a New Madill 123 swing yarder we ran doulble shifts for the last 27 yrs that i worked in 2000 we got a 124 Madill that was the best swing yarder that i ran, not the easiest the 118 was. I will find some pics but i never took enough.This is a pic of the 124 crossing a culvert they were putting in on the mainline right by Grisdale. Culvert was 24 ft could have fit yarder and lowbed in it.

 

[TorkelH]

Skagit BX yarders

Brochure first 3 pages

 

[TorkelH]

Skagit BX yarders

Brochure pp 4 - 5

 

[TorkelH]

Skagit BX yarders

pp 6 - 8

 

[northriver69]

Thanks for putting this on i have never seen this brochure before. i always wondered how much they weighed . Looking at this just the wheels weighed 67,000 don't know what overall weight was. Simpson Timber Camp Govey had 2 of the slackline BX-185s. I ran it for 9 yrs. Where did you find these?

 

[TorkelH]

Skagit Production records - BX185

Sorry for the barely readable copy, but you find your yarder down there on the ones produced in 1958 i guess... Seems that a good part of those big Skagits went to BC. This list is not complete, it's a couple more single records for BX185's. Thanks to Museum of History & Industry, Sophie Frye Bass Library in Seattle (also the pictures of the brochure)

 

[northriver69]

Here is the tag off the BX-185 i took it off before they junked it out. It is on the post above that you sent . It is A9 there is a small dent right where the A is but it is it.

 

[hiluxman]

Here is a video you guys might like I know it's kiddie but has some rare footage of a skagit tower yarder working beside a 345CL long reach about 15:00 mini inMighty Machines - Laying Down the Pipeline - YouTube
► 27:01► 27:01
www.youtube.com/watch?v=e10tPPjiC6E
Dec 25, 2013 - Uploaded by Seth Armstrong
Mighty Machines - Laying Down the Pipeline. ... Mighty Machines - Making A Roadby Seth ...

 

[Knocker of rock]

Super-duper on the edge of my seat intense

 

[Blk prince]

Post 19.I have a larger print of this picture.It is a Crown Zellerbach setting,Yarder is Slagit Slackline,Loader is a SJ7,the log truck is an Irvine Olson HDX with 4640 rear ends,Cummins 335 with 5&4.In the blowup the drive is under the truck just back of left steer tire.The setting is on Branch 10C in the Nitinat Valley

 

[Blk prince]

As for the Yarder,it was a real chore to move it as tracks were worn out so we hauled it to camp,cut all the travel gear train off it ,put wheels under the back end,put a 5th wheel pin under the front and hauled it with a Preloader.It would move once a year.Had to snubbed off hillside when being moved.

 

[Factory Kid]

That tower you speak of was a very early Skagit- only about 10 of those were built and sold.
I have alot of pictures of that early tower-style but few scanned.

This is an earlier machine (roughly 1962) than the one you are talking about and is still on the Skagit steel wheels. The tower and guylines- as you described are clearly visible. Photo is from my 'Skagit Collection' and one of several hundred old black&whites given to me by a friend who worked in 'Product Development' for Skagit. I am holding these pictures back for a future 'Skagit' book project and have put very few of them on the internet (just 5 or 6) for that reason.

--------------------------------------------------------------
Another interesting picture. Standing at the rear the tower appears to be a very young John Goodall, an executive salesman for Skagit. I expect that the gentleman with some could very well be a representative from the customer. It could very well be that this machine as suggested was a limited run prototype. It wasn't until engineering improve the rating mechanism by literally "raising the flag pole". I recall the John Goodall and some senior engineers would meet with the big companies over dinner and sketch ideas on the tablecloth when talking about the timber companies requirements. The story goes that a tablecloth with drawings and other material on it had to be purchased from the restaurant so that the material could be transmitted back engineering.

If the date of the post is correct that would be at approximately the end of the tenure of Syd McIntyre as president, a job he had held since the early 30s.

 

[boardbysled]

Wooden Skagit.

 

[Blk prince]

That is a great piece of work,something to be proud of!