Mace Canute
Elite Member
This is a device used to throw material a considerable distance. The material is fed into the hopper then drops onto the short conveyor belt, which is turning at a high rate of speed driven by the electric motor (you can clearly see both double pulleys in the third pic). The material is ejected out of the machine with considerable speed and to a fair height also.
The asbestos mine I worked at for a year in the Yukon Territory back in 1972/73 used a much more modern version of that one on the end of the conveyor system that disposed of the mill tailings. It would throw the tailings out in a high arc and as it hung from the end of the last conveyor, we could swivel it around in a part circle to maximize the amount we could dump. When we ran out of room, a bulldozer would come and push the pile out over the side of the mountain where it would slide down and contribute to the growing tailings pile. When it got to a critical amount, the whole shebang would avalanche down to the valley floor.
I was a "Floorwalker" at the mill, meaning I and two other guys were responsible for walking through the mill top to bottom steadily to make sure all the equipment was operating correctly and making sure the mill didn't plug. We would take turns (whole shifts, next shift was the next guys turn) walking the conveyor run, about a quarter mile trip, checking out the conveyors and tending to the thrower and making sure it didn't plug up. We did this several times a shift. Sometimes if the wind was in the wrong direction, the pile grew at a quick pace and we had to be on our toes making sure it never plugged.
Back then I was making$4.955/hour (yes, that's a half cent!) and all the asbestos dust I could breath in!
The asbestos mine I worked at for a year in the Yukon Territory back in 1972/73 used a much more modern version of that one on the end of the conveyor system that disposed of the mill tailings. It would throw the tailings out in a high arc and as it hung from the end of the last conveyor, we could swivel it around in a part circle to maximize the amount we could dump. When we ran out of room, a bulldozer would come and push the pile out over the side of the mountain where it would slide down and contribute to the growing tailings pile. When it got to a critical amount, the whole shebang would avalanche down to the valley floor.
I was a "Floorwalker" at the mill, meaning I and two other guys were responsible for walking through the mill top to bottom steadily to make sure all the equipment was operating correctly and making sure the mill didn't plug. We would take turns (whole shifts, next shift was the next guys turn) walking the conveyor run, about a quarter mile trip, checking out the conveyors and tending to the thrower and making sure it didn't plug up. We did this several times a shift. Sometimes if the wind was in the wrong direction, the pile grew at a quick pace and we had to be on our toes making sure it never plugged.
Back then I was making$4.955/hour (yes, that's a half cent!) and all the asbestos dust I could breath in!
