Dolcoathguy
16 years ago
Following on from Derrickman's message, I have seen old rock drill bits in many gardens in Cornwall. Many in the Camborne area. I have 5 in mine, but have seen others with a small section of fence (now overgrown) made of these old drill bits.
Can anyone do better?
They make good frames for running beans as well
Is it safe to come out of the bunker yet?
ICLOK
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16 years ago
I took 10 home ex Sth Crofty... they were tipped out of a dump truck down a tip at the back of the plant... 5 of are holding up a small garden terrace, 2 are on display (painted and nice0, 1 is in shed as a clothes rail for work gear, 1 holds the shed door open and the other I use as a clay loosener or garden tool....

I did ask permission to take them and the dumper driver said OK and as I had an estate well it was all to easy...
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh Creeper!!!!!
sougher
16 years ago
Iclok - Whenever do you ever have the time to do any gardening - especially with all the energy you expend chasing after Bracken!!!!
derrickman
16 years ago
"Dolcoathguy" wrote:

Following on from Derrickman's message, I have seen old rock drill bits in many gardens in Cornwall. Many in the Camborne area. I have 5 in mine, but have seen others with a small section of fence (now overgrown) made of these old drill bits.
Can anyone do better?
They make good frames for running beans as well



I take it you mean steels, rather than bits. I have an old taper-ended 4ft steel which I turned into a pinch-bar years ago. The integral chisel-tip ones are less useful, but they have plenty of uses
''the stopes soared beyond the range of our caplamps' - David Bick...... How times change .... oh, I don't know, I've still got a lamp like that.
ICLOK
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16 years ago
Thanks for that sougher... little S~d had me chasin him round Bailey brook pit site.... I just thought of a new use for a Drill STEEL...
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh Creeper!!!!!
Dolcoathguy
16 years ago
I have some long (6ft?) chisel tip Steels.
As there are so many in Camborne area, I guess it was common for miners to carry them home?
I have yet to see any old photos with these steels in the background (outside a mine) but I guess miner's cottages didn't get photgraphed much.
I'll have a look online to see if there is anyway of dating them. I think probably only to a certain period rather than a specific year looking at their design.




Is it safe to come out of the bunker yet?
derrickman
16 years ago
the chisel tip ones have replaceable bits, but they were sometimes discarded instead when they were worn past sharpening. The sheer numbers of them used over the years meant that there are quite a few around, they were used for a variety of jobs above ground.

the taper-ended ones would simply have the old bit knocked off and a new bit fitted, and would be used until bent or the chucks worn beyond service.

the rope-threaded rods on diamond drills and drifters could remain in use for many years.


hard to find much out about this, but Trounson 'Mining in Cornwall' Vol 2 fig 27 shows a group of miners at Wheal Carne in or around 1900 with a stoper drill which appears to have an integral bit. Vol 1 fig 77 shows a miner at South Crofty shortly after WW2, using a stoper of pre-war design and the steels stacked behind him appear to be integral bits, although it's not clear in either picture.

my best guess is that integral steels with tungsten inserts date from the 1930s, and continued in parallel with the knock-off bit type until the present
''the stopes soared beyond the range of our caplamps' - David Bick...... How times change .... oh, I don't know, I've still got a lamp like that.
Roy Morton
16 years ago
There were loads around in the 70's and 80's, in fact most shafts were fenced off with them and barbed wire...still the odd one here and there.
But now, I can't find them for love nor money. I'm looking for about a dozen to spile through a collapse and can't find any at all!

Help!! ????
"You Chinese think of everything!"
"But I''m not Chinese!"
"Then you must have forgotten something!"
Dolcoathguy
16 years ago
Roy
If they are like mine, they were covered in ivy in a dark part of the garden. I suspect many were removed as fencing and chucked in waste areas of gardens, so they may still be out there. I'll see how many I have got and will post a pic, if suitable, you probably can have a couple, as mine are just sat in the garden doing nothing useful.
I only need one for historic purposes. No chance of getting any from Crofty? I guess the drilling rig they use still uses a long steel and bit?
Is it safe to come out of the bunker yet?
derrickman
16 years ago
jumbo-type rigs became increasingly common in the 70s and 80s and these generally use a somewhat different style of drill steels.

also, there was a lot of work done from the late 60s to the early 80s, fencing and making safe old shafts and adits as part of the general resurgence of mining around that time; a lot of old junk was rooted out from odd corners and pressed back into use.


''the stopes soared beyond the range of our caplamps' - David Bick...... How times change .... oh, I don't know, I've still got a lamp like that.
stuey
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16 years ago
"Roy Morton" wrote:

There were loads around in the 70's and 80's, in fact most shafts were fenced off with them and barbed wire...still the odd one here and there.
But now, I can't find them for love nor money. I'm looking for about a dozen to spile through a collapse and can't find any at all!

Help!! ????



Williams area (WW), remains of redundant fences (Short Steels).
Openwork NE of Tremayne has long steels everywhere.

Dolcoathguy
16 years ago
Found another 3 in the undergrowth bringing total to 6 + 2 supporting my fence.

Photos in my user album:
http://www.aditnow.co.uk/photo/Personal-Album-1369-Image-39243/ 

http://www.aditnow.co.uk/photo/Personal-Album-1369-Image-39244/ 

http://www.aditnow.co.uk/photo/Personal-Album-1369-Image-39245/ 
Is it safe to come out of the bunker yet?
Tezarchaeon
16 years ago
Got some old winding cable used as a fence alongside our field at work... must be allot of that around too!
Roy Morton
16 years ago
Many thanks guys, I'll see what I can round up 'in the wild' before impinging on personal stock 😉 :thumbsup:
"You Chinese think of everything!"
"But I''m not Chinese!"
"Then you must have forgotten something!"

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