Reply With QuoteLooks like THIS:
But on a OMFG scale
Real or not?
You decide... either way, the guy had a BAD day!
Looks like THIS:
But on a OMFG scale
09 Lexus RX350
.... no Miata
Not real. I can tell by the pixels.
You should know, you've probably posted it beforeOriginally Posted by black roadster
09 Lexus RX350
.... no Miata
That's one BIG rock
I'm going to guess the first one is real.
You'd be amazed at how often a poor mine blast leaves huge boulders like that. In fact, we manufacture an entire range of small, articulated rock drills designed specifically for drilling ore body leftovers like that, so they can be blown into smaller bits.
Iain
"We don't stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing." - George Bernard Shaw
Yup... it's real.
I just wonder why, though, with a boulder that size it was still loaded on the truck? Unless it was loaded correctly and shifted over on the turn...
Probably shifted over on the turn. Haul truck drivers can get a little crazy sometimes...
Why was it moved? Well, if you leave it in the ore body to be blasted there, then you can't get the shovels in to move the rest of the ore to the haul trucks until the blast is complete. Moving ore means making money, and if the shovels aren't shoveling, the haul trucks aren't hauling, and the ore isn't moving, which means the mine isn't making money. The boulder was probably on its way to a mined out part of the mine where they could blow it at their leisure without interrupting the shovels.
That's assuming it was ore in the first place. In a coal mine, there is typically a layer of earth above the coal seam that contains nothing of value. This is called the overburden. The overburden is blown out and just trucked away to gain access to the coal seam. Mines don't tend to put as much explosive into an overburden blast, because the size of the rubble isn't as crucial.
Iain
"We don't stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing." - George Bernard Shaw
Is there really a crane or shovel that can lift a boulder that size? I know mining equip. is huge, but generally those shovels aren't as big as the bed in one of those trucks.
And wouldn't they first break that boulder into smaller pieces to facilitate removal?
Speed
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Don't look...there's nothing down here for you!
Here's a picture of a dragline bucket being transported to a minesite:
Some of the bigger draglines can fill a 360 ton (720,000 pounds!) capacity haul truck in one scoop.
Breaking the boulder in place takes time. They've got to bring a drill rig in, drill the boulder, place the shot, clear the area, and take the shot. It's a whole lot more cost effective to move that boulder out of the way and drill it somewhere else while they clear the rest of the ore body.
Iain
"We don't stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing." - George Bernard Shaw
FWIW, the size of some of the big draglines is mind boggling. Imagine a machine that is half a football field wide, with a boom that can reach well over a football field. And they can actually move, although not very quickly.
Iain
"We don't stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing." - George Bernard Shaw
oops
And occasionally, they have "accidents" with these large pieces of mining equipment...
Closeup:
LINK
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Dave"Opinions are like
..."
Holy crap. I saw a Discovery or TLC special on those things. They're unbelievable
09 Lexus RX350
.... no Miata
For more pics of huge machines getting torn up check out the Just Mining gallery.
'06 RSX Type-S NBP
The dump truck picture is REAL! Ever heard of EUCLID?
Iain's post on the dragline bucket is perfect. When my dad and I were on our way to Beaumont in August, we saw 2 of those enormous things right off of I-45 near huntsville.
The Jetta is real.
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