Hot open cast

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FOWLER MAN
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Re: Hot open cast

Post #11 by FOWLER MAN » Sat Jan 31, 2015 12:00 am

Hello Mark,
Thats the tip that I refered to in the previous post A.F. Budge removed the burning tip they had a rake of gear there including a Cat 245 and several DJB dump trucks. I don't remember Hargreaves involvement though. (I worked in South Wales for the Hargreaves Group as Foreman / Foreman fitter for a couple of years in the mid 1960s).
Our part of the Mountain Ash scheme, new sidings for The Phurnacite Plant, was allong side where Budge were working but on the other side of the main road. The area is overgrown now and there is no sign of the sidings which are long gone.
We had a Priestman 220, a 120 and 108 excavators on that job and two Fowler 33s with 72T rollers.
The two 8 and two 6 wheel tippers I ran then were running railway ballast from Penderyn Quarry for weeks.
Sadly I have no surviving photographs, but I thought this one I lifted from The Motorway Archive is worth posting.

Fred
hotprob.2.jpg
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Last edited by FOWLER MAN on Sun Feb 01, 2015 11:06 pm, edited 1 time in total.


paul.hogan.9066
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Re: Hot open cast

Post #12 by paul.hogan.9066 » Sat Jan 31, 2015 12:13 am

Shirley Bassey financed a lot of the tippers hauling into Llanwhern for Macs and got into a lot of tax problems


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Re: Hot open cast

Post #13 by Mark Williams » Sat Jan 31, 2015 7:52 am

Hello Fred,
Correct me if I'm wrong.The burning tip I'm talking about,in the late 80s was to the left of Mount Comp school,along side the Cwmbach,to Aberdare road,opposite the Phurnasite.The coal Powersreen,was across the road from the school,the Atki was always halfway up the rims with coal slurry @ the screens.Im almost sure it was Hargreaves,as I was always under the impression that they were partnered with Budge in some way?
I also worked on the the opposite side of the mountain,when Cosslett had the contract for the tip.I dont know if this was on fire though,as I worked for K&J Services.They had a Cat 988B on hire there for a long time.It was very very steep.I had to be towed in my service van up to the top,by a Komatsu 155 dozer,to replace the uj on the 988B.There was so much stress on the propshaft,it nearly took my hand off when I undone the bolts.
I also remember,the coal tip @ Cwmbargoed disposal point catching fire.They had a Cat D8H & a Cat 973 reducing the height,to put it out.As this was being done,the 973 blew a travel-motor hose & I went out to replace the hose.My fat belly having some trouble getting under there,I remember.
Regards,
Mark Williams.


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Re: Hot open cast

Post #14 by Mark Williams » Sat Jan 31, 2015 9:03 pm

Hello again Fred,
Wrecking my brain last night in bed,it finally came to me the name of the company that worked the Mountain .
Ash school tip.B&H Fuels (Burnett & Halamshire Fuels)
Were they anything to do with Hargreaves & Budge?
Regards from Ontario,
Mark Williams.


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Re: Hot open cast

Post #15 by gah1950 » Sun Feb 01, 2015 7:46 pm

Mark Williams wrote:Hello again Fred,
Wrecking my brain last night in bed,it finally came to me the name of the company that worked the Mountain .
Ash school tip.B&H Fuels (Burnett & Halamshire Fuels)
Were they anything to do with Hargreaves & Budge?
Regards from Ontario,
Mark Williams.

Afternoon Mark, I am sure it was A F Budge that worked the burning tip across from the phurnacite plant in the late 80s ,It was a bit of an awkward job as there was no real good access points to it off the valley floor.

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Re: Hot open cast

Post #16 by FOWLER MAN » Sun Feb 01, 2015 11:05 pm

paul.hogan.9066 wrote:Shirley Bassey financed a lot of the tippers hauling into Llanwhern for Macs and got into a lot of tax problems


Hello Paul,
You are quite right I remember those days well, I was 18 to 20 years old then.
Most of the local hauliers stayed well clear of it, though a local entrpeneur named Cummins, whose son I know well, managed to recruit many owner drivers who mistakenly thought they would make a fortune.
Most of the owner drivers who Shirley Bassey financed were our dark skinned brothers. The tippers ran all day and through the night and the rout from The Valleys to Llanwern was littered with loads of shale fly tipped from ailling tippers and also with many of the lorrys themselves.
There was a steep hill as the road leaves Lower Machen which was responsible for many broken half shafts, and failed diffs and gear boxes.
There were always casuaties at the roadside there most of which were recovered for out of pocket finance companies.
Fred

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Re: Hot open cast

Post #17 by FOWLER MAN » Sun Feb 01, 2015 11:17 pm

Mark Williams wrote:Hello again Fred,
Wrecking my brain last night in bed,it finally came to me the name of the company that worked the Mountain .
Ash school tip.B&H Fuels (Burnett & Halamshire Fuels)
Were they anything to do with Hargreaves & Budge?
Regards from Ontario,
Mark Williams.

Hello Mark,
It was definitely Budge who moved the tip.
It could be that they factored the coal through Burnett & Hampshire Fuells, I have no idea.
I don't think there was a tie up between B&H Fuels and Hargreaves. Unless someone knows different?
Fred


paul.hogan.9066
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Re: Hot open cast

Post #18 by paul.hogan.9066 » Mon Feb 02, 2015 12:07 am

Yes you have got it Fred but are not we lucky to know this it is not happening now


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Re: Hot open cast

Post #19 by davemadden » Mon Nov 09, 2015 5:14 pm

Hi

Up here in the north east we had quite a few shale heaps that were dangerous to work. There was a heap at Backworth where Richards & Wallington were extracting shale for the A1 link in the late sixties. We were getting our trucks loaded by a 38RB on face shovel and it turned the blue truck bodies black with the heat. R & W had several 631's working the same heap. It was a regular occurrence for the scraper drivers to get leg burns as the machines had no cabs and the heap would flare up regularly. One of our truck drivers jumped out of the cab to check his load and the soles of his plimsolls took fire.


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