Finally about a month ago, the shaft has now been equipped with an
electric winch capable of safely carrying loads of half a tonne. It was built
by Dog Pete's old mining buddy from the 1970's, Geoff Smith, in his Teeside
workshop.
The winch has 100m of 6mm stainless wire rope, a hydraulic
braking system, and a 12:1 reduction gear system, which brings a fully loaded
kibble to the shaft collar from 20m down the shaft in about 7 seconds. The 5HP
electric motor pulls very little current from the system, which means that
pumping and ventilation are unaffected when it is running. The kibbles run up a
specially made chute, lined with conveyor belting, which ensures a smooth run
both up and down the shaft, even around curves. A conventional shaft signalling
system is being installed which uses the traditional knocker line signals for
raise / lower and stop.
With the winch now running progress has been
accelerated to a ridiculous level now, and the biggest problem is barrowing the
spoil out to the surface fast enough! |
