GIFT OF Dean Frank H. Probert Mining Dept EXCAVATING MACHINERY McGraw-Hill BookCompany Electrical World The Engineering and Mining Journal Ensineering Record Engineering News Railway Age G azette American Machinist Signal Engineer American Engineer Electric Railway Journal Coal Age Metallurgical and Chemical Engineering P o we r EXCAVATING MACHINERY BY ALLEN BOYER McDANIEL, B. S. M. AM. SOC. C. E., M. SOC. PROM. ENQ. EDUC., M. AM. A8SOC. ADVAN. SCI., M. SO. DAK. ENG. SOC., FORMER PROFESSOR OF CIVIL, ENGINEERING, UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH DAKOTA, AS8T. PROFESSOR OF CIVIL ENGI- NEERING, UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS CONSULTING ENGINEER McGRAW-HILL BOOK COMPANY 239 WEST 39TH STREET, NEW YORK 6 BOUVERIE STREET, LONDON, E. C. 1913 A/3 KPI. GIFT OP DEAN FRANK H , 3 ROBERT AIMING DEPT. COPYRIGHT, 1913, BY THE MCGRAW-HILL BOOK COMPANY THE. MAPLE- PRESS. YORK. PA. REVEREND B. F. McDANIEL AS A TOKEN OF APPRECIATION AND AFFECTION THIS VOLUME IS DEDICATED BY THE AUTHOR M127108 PREFACE The basis of this book was a set of notes used in my class room and thence expanded to meet practical needs in the field. In its preparation, I have had in mind not only the engineer and the con- tractor, but also the farmer, land owner, promoter, and officials charged with the construction of public works. It is believed that their interests would be materially enhanced by familiarity with its contents. I wish especially to express my appreciation of the advice and assistance rendered me in the preparation of this book by my father, the Reverend B. F. McDaniel, and by Professor Ira O. Baker of the University of Illinois. I wish to make acknowledgment to the following engineers, con- tractors and manufacturers who have kindly and generously furnished me with general information, cost data, photographs, cuts, etc.: Hon. S. H. Lea, State Engineer of South Dakota; Hon. George A. Ralph, State Drainage Engineer of Minnesota; Mr. Sam G. Porter, Chief Engineer of the Arkansas Valley Sugar Beet and Irrigated Land Company; The Fellsmere Farm Company; The U. S. Reclama- tion Service; R. H. and G. A. McWilliams; Mulgrew-Boyce Co.; Pollard & Campbell Dredging Co.; Jacobs Engineering Co.; Thew Automatic Shovel Co.; The Marion Steam Shovel Co.; The Bucyrus Co.; F. C. Austin Drainage Excavator Co.; A. N. Cross; American Steel Dredge Co.; Norbom Engineering Co.; Dix Machine Co.; Baker Mfg. Co.; W. G. Gould; W. A. Colt & Sons; Avery Co.; The Buckeye Traction Ditcher Co.; St. Paul Machinery Mfg. Co.; Western Wheeled Scraper Co.; Austin Mfg. Co.; T. F. Stroud & Co.; The Barren & Cole Co.; The Wilcox Construction Co.; J. D. Adams & Co.; Clinton Construction Co.; The Beaver Land and Irrigation Co.; The Electric Journal; Sawyer & Moulton; American Railway Engineering Association; Toledo Foundry and Machine Co.; The Potter Mfg. Co.; The G. W. Parsons Co.; Lambert Hoisting Engine Co.; Brown Hoisting Machinery Co.; John B. Heim; S. Flory Mfg. Co.; Monighan Machine Co.; Lidgerwood Manufacturing Co.; American Steel Dredge Co.; Noble E. Whitford, Res. Engr., State of New York; Mayer Bros. Co.; Lathrop, Shea & Kenwood Co.; and the Sinaloa Land and Water Co. URBANA, ILLINOIS, A. B. McD. May, 1913. vii CONTENTS PAGE PREFACE vii INTRODUCTION , ix PART I. SCRAPERS, GRADERS AND SHOVELS CHAPTER I DRAG AND WHEEL SCRAPERS ART. i. Slip Scrapers i la. Use in South Dakota 3 ib. Use in Minnesota 3 2. Fresno or Buck Scrapers 4 2a. Use in Colorado 5 2b. Use in California : f 5 2c. Use in Nevada 6 3. Wheel Scrapers 8 3a. Use in Wyoming 10 3b. Use on Chicago Drainage Canal n 3C. Use in Pennsylvania 12 3d. Use on Railroad Work 12 4. Maney Four-wheel Scraper 16 4a. Use in Oregon 17 4b. Use in Colorado " 17 4C. Use in Illinois .\ .18 5. Resume 20 6. Bibliography 21 CHAPTER II ROAD OR SCRAPING GRADERS ART. 8. General Description 23 9. Two-wheel Grader 23 pa. Use in Mississippi 24 10. Four-wheel Grader 24 loa. Light Wheel Grader 25 lob. Standard Wheel Grader 25 11. Reclamation Grader . . 25 na. Use in Iowa 27 12. Resume 29 ix x CONTENTS CHAPTER III ELEVATING GRADERS PAGE ART. 13. General Description v .....;..-.. 30 133. Large Elevating Grader ..... .... . . 30 i3b. Standard Elevating Grader ...... 30 130. Small Elevating Grader . . 30 14. Gasoline-Engine Elevator Drive. . . 31 15. Animal Motive Power . ...............'... 32 1 6. Traction Engine Motive Power '....... 32 17. Use of Elevating Grader in South Dakota 33 i7a. Use on Reclamation Service Project ............ 33 1 8. Use of Elevating Grader in Nebraska ..".'........ 35 19. Use in Montana 35 20. Use in Minnesota 36 21. Use on Chicago Drainage Canal. 37 22. R6sume 37 23. Bibliography . . " . 38 CHAPTER IV CAPSTAN PLOW ART. 24. Complete Outfit 40 25. Field of Work 40 26. General Description 40 26a. The Plow 40 26b. Size of Ditch 41 26c. Cost of Operation 41 27. Resume" 42 CHAPTER V STEAM SHOVELS ART. 28. Field of Work 43 29. Classification 43 30. Construction First-class 45 3ca. Revolving Shovels 51 31. Electric Operation 54 32. Atlantic Steam Shovel 58 33. Otis-Chapman Steam Shovel 61 34. Operation 65 35. Cost of Operation 67 35a. Use in Southern Texas 69 3$b. Sewer Trench Excavation in New York 69 35c. Irrigation Work in Utah 70 3$d. Use on Chicago Drainage Canal 71 3$e. Use of Electric Power Shovel in New York . 76 3$f. Use on C. M. & St. P. Ry. near Newcomb, Montana 77 CONTENTS xi PAGE 35g. Use in Cleveland, Ohio 79 35h. Use for Basement Excavation in Chicago, 111 79 351. Use in Florida 80 35J. Use in Georgia 80 35k. Use on Railroad Work in Illinois 81 35!. Use in Canal Excavation, Ontario, Canada 83 35m. Use in Ontario, Canada 84 35n. Use in Missouri. 85 350. Use in North Dakota 86 35p. Use on Panama Canal 87 35r. Use in South Dakota 91 353. Use in Maine 94 36. Avery Traction Shovel Outfit. . 95 36a. Use in South Dakota 96 360. Use in Illinois 96 37. Resume 97 38. Bibliography 98 PART II DREDGES INTRODUCTORY 101 CHAPTER VI DRY LAND EXCAVATORS ART. 40. Classification .' . . . 102 A SCRAPER EXCAVATORS 41. Varieties 102 42. Traction Excavator with Two Booms . . - 102 43. Gopher Ditching Machine 103 44. Scraper Bucket Excavator 104 45. Typical Operating Cost 121 45a. Use in South Dakota 122 45b. Use on New York State Barge Canal 123 45C. Use in Florida 124 45d. Use in Nevada 125 456. Use in California 126 45!. Use on New York State Barge Canal 129 46. Jacobs Guided-line Excavator . 130 46a. Use in Illinois 132 47. Locomotive Crane Excavator 133 48. Resum6 134 49. Bibliography 135 B TEMPLET EXCAVATORS 50. Austin Drainage Excavators 136 xii CONTENTS PAGE 5oa. Use in Illinois % ............ 138 5ob. Use in Colorado .'.............. 139 500. Use in Texas ... 140 51. Junkin Ditcher ..../. ... 140 52. Resume" ... 143 53. Bibliography ... 143 C WHEEL EXCAVATORS 55. Field of Work 144 56. Buckeye Traction Ditcher . 144 57. Austin Wheel Ditcher .........'.... 145 58. R6sum6 148 D TOWER EXCAVATORS 62. Single Tower Excavators 150 62a. Use on New York State Barge Canal 153 63. Double Tower Excavator ; 155 64. R6sum6 . . 157 E WALKING DREDGES 68. Field of Work 157 69. Description of Dredge ...... 4 .... 157 70. Operation of Dredge . 161 7oa. Use in Minnesota 161 7ob. Use in Nebraska ....." , 161 71. R6sume ~^: ....... 162 CHAPTER VII FLOATING EXCAVATORS 75. Classification . ,*.... 163 A DIPPER DREDGES 76. General Description 163 76a. Use in Colorado 185 76b Use in Florida 187 760. Use in South Dakota 187 76d. Use in Illinois 191 76e. Use in California 192 76f. Use in Louisiana . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . . . . . 194 77. Resume \ 194 78. Bibliography 196 B LADDER DREDGES 80. Field of Work 197 81. General Description 198 8 1 a. Use on New York State Barge Canal 202 CONTENTS xiii PAGE 8ib. Steel Pontoon Dredge, N. Y. State Barge Canal 205 8ic. Use on Gran Canal, Mexico 208 8id. Use in Washington 211 8ie. Use on Fox River, Wisconsin . 214 82. Resume 216 84. Lobnitz Rock Excavator 217 85. Drill Boats 218 85 a. Use on St. Lawrence River, Canada 219 85b. Use in New York 220 86. Resume 221 87. Bibliography 221 C HYDRAULIC OR SUCTION DREDGES 90. Field of Work ^ ...... 224 91. General Description 224 9ia. Use on New York State Barge Canal ..!...,.... 230 9ib. Use in Chicago 236 92. Electric Power for Operation . '. 239 92a. Use in Washington r ..... 239 93. Resume 7~ 240 94. Bibliography 241 CHAPTER VIII TRENCH EXCAVATORS ART. 95. Classification 245 SECTION i. SEWER AND WATER PIPE TRENCH EXCAVATORS 96. Classification . . . . . . ... . 245 A TRAVELING DERRICK 97. General Description . 245 97a. Use in Indiana 252 97b. Use in Kentucky 253 B THE CONTINUOUS BUCKET EXCAVATOR 98. Parsons Traction Trench Excavator . 254 98a. Cost of Operation 257 99. Chicago Trench Excavator 258 99a. Use in Illinois .261 100. Buckeye Traction Ditcher . 262 looa. Use in Colorado 262 C THE TRESTLE CABLE EXCAVATOR 101. General Description 263 loia. Use in Connecticut . 2 7 J xiv CONTENTS D THE TOWER CABLEWAY PAGE 102. General Description 272 103. Carson-Lidgerwood Cableway t ...... 272 io3a. Use in Washington, D. C. . 276 104. S. Flory Cableway . ,< ; 278 E THE TRESTLE-TRACK EXCAVATOR 105. General Description .- 278 106. Potter Trench Machine ........... 279 io6a. Use in Illinois 280 SECTION II. TILE TRENCH EXCAVATORS no. Field of Work 281 in. Buckeye Tile Ditcher .................. 281 ma. Use in Minnesota 285 i lib. Use in Ohio 287 inc. Use in Iowa 288 1 1 id. Use in Kansas 288 112. Hovland Tile Ditcher . . . .-.:.'. . . . 288 ii2a. Use in Minnesota 291 113. Austin Tile Ditcher . 292 114. R6sum6 295 115. Bibliography ! 298 CHAPTER IX LEVEE BUILDERS 118. Field of Work 299 119. Scrapers 299 1 20. Fresno Scrapers in California Y . . . 300 121. Dump Cars in Massachusetts 300 122. Floating Dipper Dredge 300 123. Clam-shell Dredge in California 300 i23a. Description of Dredge 301 i23b. Operation of Dredge 301 124. Dry Land Dredge in Louisiana 301 i24a. Operation of Dredge 302 125. Hydraulic and Ladder Dredges 302 126. Hydraulic Dredge at Cairo, 111 303 127. Austin Levee Builder . 303 128. Resume" 306 129. Bibliography 307 CHAPTER X THE COMPARATIVE USE OF EXCAVATING MACHINERY 132. General Considerations 308 133. Massena Canal, New York 309 CONTENTS xv PAGE 134. The Colbert Shoals Canal, Alabama 31 1 135. State Drainage Work, Minnesota 315 136. Bibliography 3I 5 APPENDIX A General Specifications for a Modern Steam Shovel for Railway Construction 318 APPENDIX B Tests of the Mississippi River Commission for Hydraulic Dredges 327 INDEX ' 329 INTRODUCTION SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS OF THIS WORK As its title indicates, the scope of this book is to describe excavat- ing machinery of various kinds and the uses for which it is devised. During the past decade the development of reclamation work in the western and southern sections of the country by private enter- prise and by local, state and national governments, has awakened great and general interest. The rapid extension and improvement of railroad systems and the expansion of great cities by the filling in of adjacent waste lands, and by sanitary and other municipal works, have called for the use of the most efficient machinery. Designers and builders have been stimulated by this demand and many marked improvements have been introduced into present-day machinery for these purposes. The author has endeavored to de- scribe the makes and types of excavators commonly used in all classes of work except marine dredging. He has not attempted to describe or even mention every make of excavator, but every type has been treated in sufficient detail to give a clear idea of its construction and field of work. The author has been impressed by the careless methods used in the construction and repair of excavators. A new machine is built more in accordance with the forms of previous ones of the same class, rather than in accordance with the demands of the particular piece of work to which it is to be applied. Rule of thumb methods are used instead of original design. In making repairs, it is the gen- eral custom to replace the broken parts with new ones exactly like the old ones, or after repeated breaks, to make the weak member a little stronger. This is often blind guesswork, and is expensive both to the contractor and the owner and should be replaced by scientific study and accurate workmanship. The cost data given have been gathered at the expense of much time and labor from a great variety of sources. They are not in- tended to be an arbitrary guide for the use of any type of excavator in any stated class of work. The conditions and circumstances attend- ing work of this character are so variable and there are usually so many unforeseen factors which may affect the progress of a job, xvii xviii INTRODUCTION that information of this kind can only be suggestive. However, the author does not agree with those who make the sweeping statement that all cost data are valueless, or with others who state that such records are of worth only to those who have actually made them up from experience. It must be kept in mind that cost data relating to the operation of excavating machinery not only depend on and vary with the conditions and circumstances attending each piece of work, such as soil, topography and climate, but also largely upon the efficiency with which the excavator is operated. The author knows of many cases where the contractor has lost money on account of in- competent and unreliable operators. However, it is here assumed, as in the operation of any type of machinery, that such labor is employed as will secure average results. The cost data given in this book have been quoted, as far as possible, from operations under normal working conditions. - In using the cost data given, the engi- neer and the contractor are advised to consider thoroughly the pecul- iar conditions attending the work. The author has been surprised, from practical experience and in the preparation of this book, to find that so few contractors and engineers keep complete, systematic and accurate financial records of their business. In the contractor's office the clerk usually gathers together the checks and receipted bills and makes a rough computation of the cost of the work. On the other hand, the average engineer lays out a piece of work and superintends its construction, but does not give close attention to its cost, losing thereby valuable data for future use. This will probably account for the incompleteness of some of the information of this character given in this book. Every engineer and contractor should keep accurate and complete records of the costs of their work, cover- ing all the details in systematic order. This book is offered in the spirit of an eminent philosopher who said, "I hold every man a debtor to his profession; from the which, as men of course do seek to receive countenance and profit, so ought they of duty to endeavor themselves by way of amends to be a help and ornament thereunto." PART I SCRAPERS, GRADERS AND SHOVELS EXCAVATING MACHINERY CHAPTER I DRAG AND WHEEL SCRAPERS i. Slip Scrapers. Where small open shallow ditches, with bot- tom widths of not less than 3 ft., such as road ditches, are to be con- structed, drag or slip scrapers are used. The drag scraper is a steel scoop with a round back and curved bottom. The latter is either provided with runners or reinforced with a sheet of hard steel, known as a " double bottom." Wooden handles are attached to either side near the rear of the scoop and are used by the driver in handling it. A heavy bail serves for the purpose of attaching a team of horses to the scoop. The following table gives the description and cost of the various sizes of the ordinary drag scraper: No. i, with runners, capacity 7 cu. ft., weight 95 lb., cost $4.50 No. 2, with runners, capacity 5 cu. ft., weight 85 lb., cost 4.25 No. 3, with runners, capacity 3! cu. ft., weight 75 lb., cost 4.00 No. i, with double bottom, capacity 7 cu. ft., weight 100 lb., cost 5.00 No. 2, with double bottom, capacity 5 cu. ft., weight 90 lb., cost 4.75 The scrapers will not excavate and carry to the spoil bank an amount equal to the capacities given above. Rarely does a scraper go out of the excavation full and the material which it does contain is loose soil, which has generally been previously ploughed. Author- ities agree that at least 25 per cent, should be allowed for the shrink- age of the loose material when compacted in an embankment. When the soil is sand, loose gravel, friable loam, or soft clay, the material can be excavated directly by the scraper. For harder and more compact soils a plow must first be used. A two-horse plow with driver will loosen about 400 cu. yd. of average soil per lo-hour day. If the material is a tough earth crust, a dense gumbo or hard clay, the daily output with a four-horse team and three men will be from 150 to 200 cu. yd. The following table gives the cost of plowing per lo-hour working day, under average conditions. 1 2 DRAG AND WHEEL SCRAPERS Labor: Team, plow, and driver, $3 . 50 Plow holder, i . 50 Total labor cost, $5 . oo Repairs, depreciation, etc., i.oo Total cost, $6.00 Total amount of material loosened, 400 cu. yd. Cost of loosening material; $6 .00-7-400 = i cents per cubic yard. For the excavation of hard soil, the cost of plowing per lo-hour day, would be as follows: Labor: Team, plow, and driver, $3 . 50 Plow holder, i . 50 Beam rider, i . 50 Total labor cost, $6 . 50 Repairs, depreciation, etc., 1.50 Total cost, $8 . oo Total amount of material loosened, 200 cu. yd. Cost of loosening material; $8.00-7-200 = 4 cents per cubic yard. The reader is referred to the excellent discussion of the cost of moving earth with the drag-scoop scraper, in Professor Ira O. Baker's " Roads and Pavements," pages 114 to 116. The author offers the following rule, which he has found to work well in practice. For 5o-ft. hauls or less the cost of moving i cu. yd. of earth will be 10 cents. For each additional 50 ft. of haul add 2 cents. When the soil is hard, add 3 cents to the figures derived from the above rule, which applies only to average soils. Drag scrapers are very efficient up to hauls of 100 ft. and can be satisfactorily used to 2oo-ft. hauls. A two-horse team and scraper can move, in a lo-hour working day, the following average amounts of loose material: For a haul of 25 ft., 70 cu. yd. For a haul of 50 ft., 60 cu. yd. For a haul of 100 ft., 50 cu. yd. For a haul of 150 ft., 40 cu. yd. For a haul of 200 ft., 35 cu. yd. SLIP SCRAPERS 3 Drag scrapers should be worked in groups of from 4 to 10, depending upon the size of the job. Figures i, 2, and 3 show the front view and the rear views of a well-known make of drag scraper. ia. Use in South Dakota. These simple drag scrapers were used by farmers in the construction of a long road ditch in Clay County, South Dakota. The ditch had a bottom width varying from 3 to 6 ft. and a depth varying from 30 in. to 4 ft. The side slopes were J to i on the outside and about ij to i on the inside of the road. The work was voluntarily and cooperatively done, and each farmer furnished his team and worked a scraper. The average excavation was about 40 cu. yd. per scraper per day. The work was done under the supervision of the writer and a fairly true and uniform ditch was excavated. Front View of Drag Scraper. Figure i. ib. Use in Minnesota. On the experimental farm of the Univer- sity of Minnesota at Crookston, Minn., some open ditches, having a bottom width of 3 ft. and side slopes of i on ij, were constructed with drag scrapers. The contractor's men averaged 41 to 43^ cu. yd. per scraper per day, while the sub-contractors, using two teams and three men, averaged 50 cu. yd. per team per day. One man with his team averaged 60 cu. yd. per day for six days and 65 cu. yd. per day for 10 days. On this work much difficulty was ex- perienced in excavating in soft, wet soil, as the adhesiveness of the sticky loam and clay impeded the scrapers. In general, it will be found that drag scrapers can only be used economically in fairly DRAG AND WHEEL SCRAPERS dry soil and where the ditches are broad, shallow, and with slight side slopes. 2. Fresno Scrapers. The Fresno or Buck scraper, on account of its long straight cutting edge and narrow width is especially useful and efficient in the construction of shallow ditches. It will remove a thin layer of earth and spread it out over a wide area on a road grade or spoil bank. This style of drag scraper has proved of great value in the construction of irrigation ditches and could Rear View of Drag Scraper with Double Bottom. Figure 2. Rear View of Drag Scraper with Runners. Figure 3. be equally serviceable in the excavation of drainage ditches under favorable conditions. The accompanying figures illustrate the Fresno scraper and the following table gives the various sizes, capacities, weights, and costs of a typical make: No. i, 5-ft. cutting edge, capacity 18 cu. ft., approx- imate weight 316 Ib. $27.00 No. 2, 4-ft. cutting edge, capacity 14 cu. ft., approx- imate weight 260 Ib. 25. 50 .No. 3, 3^-ft. cutting edge, capacity 12 cu. ft., approx- imate weight 245 Ib. 22.50 FRESNO SCRAPERS 5 The Fresno scraper is usually operated on large work in groups of 2 to 10, with a driver for each scraper and a laborer to load for the group. In light ditch work, the scrapers run independently and each driver loads his own scraper. The economical haul of a Fresno is generally limited to 300 ft. It requires less time to load and unload this type of scraper than it does a two-horse wheeler, but the expense of the two extra horses on a four-horse Fresno balances these items when the haul exceeds 300 ft. For side-hill work the Fresno scraper is especially advantageous as it will often push ahead of itself a large amount of loose material. Buck Scraper ready to Load. Buck Scraper, Dumped. Figure 4. Figure 5. 2a. Use in Colorado. In the excavation of a ditch in eastern Colorado, having a 6-ft. bottom width, average depth of 7 ft., and side slopes of ij to i, a No. i drag scraper or "slip" moved by a team excavated from 30 to 75 yd., or an average of 50 cu. yd. of earth (sandy loam), in a working day of 10 hours. A No. i "Fresno" scraper, moved by four horses under the same conditions and on the same work, excavated from 50 to 175 cu. yd. or an average of no cu. yd. in the same time. The excavation cost 10 cents per cubic yard. This example shows the superiority and greater capacity of the Fresno scraper in this class of earthwork. 2b. Use in California. During 1884 levees were constructed along the Feather and Sacramento Rivers, Sutter County, Cali- fornia, by the use of drag and buck scrapers. "The levees were about 12 ft. high, 6 ft. wide on top, 90 ft. wide at base with front slope of i in 3, and rear slope of i in 4. Material was borrowed from both sides for a distance of 100 ft. from the toe of the slope; and buck 6 DRAG AND WHEEL SCRAPERS scrapers drawn by four horses were used to move the earth which was not rolled. A buck scraper 'drifted' or pushed to place up a i to 4 slope, about 90 cu. yd. per day." 1 The material moved was a sandy loam with adobe in places. The "lead" was about 70 ft. and buck scrapers moved the first 70,000 cu. yd. at the rate of 55 cu. yd. per day, per scraper. The next 294,000 cu. yd. was moved at the rate of 90 \ cu. yd. per scraper per day. The cost of earthwork, during the first month, when the levee embankments were low was about 10 cents per cubic yard, while the second month, when the embankments were higher, the cost of earthwork rose to 1 2 cents per cubic yard. 2C. Use in Nevada. 2 The Reclamation Service used the Fresno scraper in the construction of an irrigation canal near Fallon, Nevada, during April, May and June, 1906. The soil excavated was princi- pally a compact sand, with some gravel, loam and sub-soil of hard clay in places. The ditch had an average bottom width of 20 ft. and side slopes of 2 to i. The spoil bank was made 6 to 12 ft. wide on top and with an average height above grade of 7 \ ft. The canal was generally located along a comparatively even side hill, although in places material from cuts as deep as 20 ft., was wasted beyond a 5o-ft. berm or hauled 200 to 300 ft. to reinforce the banks along adjacent depressions. The berms were first plowed and the entire right-of-way cleared of brush before the excavation of the canal was begun. It was excavated truly to grade and the side slopes carefully trimmed. The length of the working day was eight hours. Following is a table giving the labor costs on this work. A very good illustration of the efficiency of Fresno scrapers in the excavation of ditches is given in the following example. The ditch was for irrigation, having an average depth of 6 to *]\ ft. and side slopes 2 to i. The excavated material generally formed the banks. The soil excavated was a sandy loam. The working force was made up of 10 to 12 Fresno scrapers and a two-horse plow which loosened up the earth for the scrapers. Each scraper worked continuously back and forth, down one bank and up the other. Each driver loaded and dumped his own scraper. One finishing scraper was used to trim up the sides and bottom of the 1 Compiled from an account in "Earthwork and Its Cost," by H. P. Gillette. 2 Abstracted from Engineering-Contracting, Nov. 3, 1909. COST OF FRESNO SCRAPER WORK d 8 1 8 M M KJ o 10 10 O 00 ^ CO ON i 1 S c* 'O "H vo 10 cs H ON S 10 10 \ d H H k Tf M ** oo '' > . 1? 3^ Extreme Length Extreme Height Extreme Width .1 o o W a v = 1 Q * be 2 Q rt 1=1 % 7-G 6-1 4-4 5 A % % 1500 Ibs. $500.00 i 8-3 7-0 4-9 X % % 2000 Ibs. $525.00 IK 10-3 8-5 5-0 \ % % 2850 Ibs. $550.00 2 11-2 9-8 5-3 "A % 1 3800 Ibs. $650.00 2M 11-6 10-9 5-9 % % IH 4750 Ibs. $800.00 3 8 12-0 12-0 6-3 7 /s % IH 5900 Ibs. $1000.00 Browning Scraper Buckets. Figure 51. the bucket being hoisted over the spoil bank by the hoist line alone; the drag line being slack. The reduction of repairs on the bucket, due to the design and improved methods of construction. The reduction of weight on the bucket on account of the elimina- tion of the drag-line strain. 118 DR Y-LA ND EXCA VA TORS The resulting increase in size of the bucket on account of the re- duction of work which the machine is subjected to, by the use of the tension feature. The following quotation from a letter of a contractor, who used the Iverson bucket in excavation work connected with the con- struction of the Fourth Ave. Subway, Brooklyn, N. Y., will give the results of several months actual test of this bucket. "Iverson" Bucket. Figure 52. "The bucket possesses two features which will figure to a great advan- tage against any other drag-line bucket, the most important feature that of doing away with the tension between the drag line and the lift line (since the bucket is a locked one) and the second feature that of preventing the compression on the front of the bucket, thereby doing away with a lot of useless reinforcement, has proven to be of such a great advantage to the machine operating the bucket that our own Browning crane can do a good day's work with 65 Ib. of steam with this new bucket whereas other buckets would stall in the bank with 85 Ib. and would require 100 Ib. of steam to do the same work." BUCKET 119 The bucket is made in |, f, i, i f , 2, 2 J and 3 cu. yd. capacities and equipped with either forged or manganese steel teeth. A shovel which has been in successful operation for several years on the Pacific Coast is the Weeks shovel. The principles involved "Weeks" Drag-line Bucket. Figure 53. in its construction and operation can be understood by a reference to the line drawings shown in Fig. 53. Like all other buckets of this type, it is operated by two lines, a 120 DR Y-LA ND EXCA VA TORS drag or haul line, which pulls the bucket forward and a return line to draw it back. The body of the shovel or bucket consists of a pan, open at the top and front, a sloping back to facilitate the return of the shovel after dumping and lugs attached to the vertical sides for use in dumping the load forward. To the front part of the sides of the pan is attached a rigid upright yoke or mast, which contains two sheaves, over which pass the chains, which, when properly operated, cause the shovel to dig and release. A bail, which consists of two short chains, hold a sheave, around which passes the digging chain, one end of which is fastened to the casing of the sheave. The other end of this chain is attached to a lug at the back of the shovel and the rehaul or return line fastens to the digging chain at a suitable point near the boom. The bail by which the shovel is drawn forward may be flexible as described above or it may be rigid. The latter is preferred in excavating soft material. The cutting edge is generally curved upward to assist in releasing the shovel from its cut. The shovel is operated from the boom of a drag-line excavator or a simple boom of a derrick or tower by drawing the bucket back and forth across the area to be excavated by the haul line and return line. To excavate with the shovel the haul line is made taut, the return line is tightened slightly, which action, by aid of the sheaves, draws the mast and haul line together (see Fig. 53), which thus tips the shovel forward on its cutting edge, and in this position it is drawn forward until filled. The return line is then slackened, causing the mast and haul lines to draw apart, after which the drawing in of the haul line releases the shovel (now filled) and owing to the slightly upturned cutting edge the shovel rises out of the material. In this loaded condition, the shovel is drawn forward to the point where it is to be dumped. The latter action is caused by the slacking of the tail line, which causes the shovel to take a vertical position, allowing its contents to fall out of the front end. When the shovel is operated from a swinging boom, the shovel is raised and swung to the side for dumping. The shovel is constructed of heavy steel plate and equipped with a manganese steel cutting edge, and cast steel back. The shovels are constructed in the following sizes and weights: Size Weight 15 cu. ft. 1,520 Ibs. 22 cu. ft. 2,120 Ibs. 34 cu. ft. 3,050 Ibs. 42 cu. ft. 4,100 Ibs. CABLE 121 The 34 cu. ft. is the size generally used and is usually operated by means of an 8j Xio-in. double-drum hoisting engine, requiring from 35 to 60 h. p. depending on the kind of material to be excavated. The capacity of the shovel varies from 350 to 500 cu. yd. per 10- hour day. Three men are generally required in an ordinary crew, one to operate the shovel, one to operate the boiler, and a general laborer. CABLES The experience of most contractors (including some noted above), in the use of drag-line excavators, is that the principal source of expense for repairs is in the wearing out of cables. The drag-line cable especially is subject to great wear in passing over the guide sheaves on the front of the upper platform. These guide sheaves are called the "fair lead" and in the latest form, consist of two horizontal sheaves mounted on a casting on which is pivoted a swinging frame, carrying two vertical sheaves. This frame, in revolving, will take the direction of the drag line and thus maintain a straight lead at all times. The drag-line and hoisting cables are continually subjected to vibratory stress and shocks and should be made of the very best plow steel. There are several, well-known brands or makes, generally designated by a colored strand woven into the cable and thus deriving the names, "red strand," "yellow strand," etc. 45. Typical Operating Cost. With a 2-cu. yd. bucket, drag-line excavator, an excavation of from 800 to 1,200 cu. yd. should be made in a lo-hour working day; depending on the character of soil excavated, the length of swing, the cross-section of the ditch or canal and the experience and ability of the operator. The cost of operation of a 2-cu. yd. excavator for a lo-hour day would be about as follows: Labor: i operator $5.00 i fireman 3.00 4 laborers @ $2, 8.00 i teamster, 2.00 i cook, 1.5 Total labor, $19 -5 122 DRY -LAND EXCAVATORS Miscellaneous: Board and lodging for crew, 4 . oo Repairs, oil, waste, etc., 6.00 2 tons of coal @ $6 . 50 13.00 Overhead expenses, 1 2 . oo Total, $54-50 Assuming that 1,000 cu. yd. is the average daily excavation, the cost per cubic yard would be 5.45 cents. 45a. Use in South Dakota. During the latter part of the year 1911, a 2j-cu. yd. bucket, drag-line excavator was used in the excava- tion of a section of ditch in the lower Vermilion River Valley, Clay County, South Dakota. The cross-section excavated had a bottom width of 20 ft., average depth of 8 ft., and side slopes of i to i. The material excavated was loam and clay, there being an alluvial deposit of about six feet of loam underlaid with yellow clay. The total working time was 148 days of 22 hours each; there being two shifts of about n hours each. The total amount of excavation was 222,494 cu. yd., or an average daily rate of 1,503 cu. yd. and an average hourly rate of 68 cu. yd. A tabulated list of operating expenses is given below: Labor: Scale of Wages Opera tor, $ 1 2 5 . oo per mon th . 2 cranesmen, @ $100, 200.00 per month. 4 laborers, @ $50, 200.00 per month. i teamster, 50.00 per month. i cook, 35-Qo per month. Total cost of labor, $3,060.00 per month. Cost of tabor per cubic yards excavated, i . 38 cents. Fuel: 15,444.8 gal. of gasoline @ 12.4 cents, $1915. 15- Cost of fuel per cubic yard excavated, 0.86 cent. Cable: First quality steel wire rope, | in., for hoisting and swinging cables, and i j in., for drag-line cable. Total cost of wire rope, $978.87 Cost of wire rope per cubic yard excavated, 0.44 cent. Repairs and Renewals of Machinery: REPAIRS AND RENEWALS OF MACHINERY Bucket bailers, friction blocks, sheaves, etc., etc. Total cost of repairs and renewals, $845 . 93 Cost of repairs and renewals per cubic yard excavated, o. 38 cent. USE IN SOUTH DAKOTA Board and Lodging: Total cost of board and lodging of 9 men for full time of 148 days, Cost of board and lodging per cubic yard excavated, 123 $561.81 o. 25 cents. Miscellaneous: Livery, horse keep, hardware, lumber, oil, grease, waste, freight, express, etc., etc. (not including general office expenses, depreciation, insurance and interest on investment). Total cost of miscellaneous, $2,078. 72 Cost of miscellaneous per cubic yard excavated, 0.93 cent. Total amount of operating expenses, $9,440.48 Cost of operating excavator per working day, $63 . 79 Cost of operating excavator per cubic yard excavated, 4 . 24 cents. Initial cost of excavator, moving, setting up, taking down, etc., $10,500.00 Contract price for work, 7 cents per cubic yard. The drag-line excavator was made by the Monighan Machine Company of Chicago, 111., and used a 5o-h.p. Otto gasoline engine for Drag-line Excavator excavating Large Drainage Ditch. Figure 54. power. The boom had a length of 60 ft. and the ai-cu. yd. scraper bucket was of the Martinson type, as shown in Fig. 50. A view of this excavator in operation is given in Fig. 54. 45b. Use on New York State Barge Canal. During the season of 1908, a drag-line excavator with an 85-ft. boom and a 2-yd. dipper was 124 DR Y-LA ND EXCA VA TORS used on a section of the New York State Barge Canal. The machine was equipped with an engine of 5o-h.p. capacity and a boiler of 54 h.p. The total weight of the excavator was 147 tons and cost $10,000. The following table gives the cost of operating the machine during the season of 1908 and also the cost of excavation per cubic yard. TABLE XVII COST OF EXCAVATION OF CANAL Character of work April May June July August Fitting up $426 80 Excavation 3 IQ 74 $684. 20 $74.7 77 $8 co 60 $1 Il8 c.7 Repairs Interest and depreciation, 21 per cent. Shifting on work 175.00 15.82 175.00 (a) 62.60 175.00 48.23 175.00 77 02 75-12 175.00 Total for month $021 C.4 $87 c ii $085 37 $1 I CQ 04 $i 368 60 Average cost per yard. . . . Yards completed during month $0.177 5,205 $o . 048 18,365 $0.0388 25,333 $0 . 0348 33,055 $0.0289 47,36 (a) Work delayed due to accident. The itemized cost of operation during May is as follows: Engineer, @ $90 per month, $90.00 Engineer, @ $95, 84 . 04 Firemen, pump men, watchmen, and laborers @ $i . 75 per day, 363-00 Coal at $3 per ton, 147.00 Repairs, 15.82 Total, $699.86 The canal was 100 ft. wide on the bottom, side slopes of i J to i, and average depth of ? 5 ft. The material excavated was stiff clay. A few boulders and stumps were removed. The average cost of excavation, including an estimate for interest and depreciation, was 4.1 cents per cubic yard. 45C. Use in Florida. During the years 1911,1912 and the present one of 1913, a large outlet canal is being excavated by four drag-line exca- vators. The work is located near Sebastian on the east coast of Florida and the material excavated is sand and shell marl. The ditch or canal is 4^ miles long, has a bottom of 50 ft., depth varying from 10 to 18 ft., and side slopes of 2 to i. Berms of 20 ft. were left along the sides of the ditch. USE IN NEVADA 125 The four excavators each had a bucket capacity of i J cu. yd. and a boom length of 70 ft. The excavators were of standard make and used complete steam equipments. The machines worked in pairs on opposite sides of the canal and excavated to a fairly uniform grade and even side slopes. During the five months from May to November, 1911 (inclusive), the four excavators together excavated on the average, 111,210 cu. yd. per month or 27,800 cu. yd. for each excavator per month. Two shifts, of 10 hours each per day, were worked; and the average excava- tion per machine for each shift was 620 cu. yd. The total yardage excavated during the year 1911 was 1,023,662 cu. yd., one machine working 1 2 months, two machines working 1 1 months, three machines working 10 months and four machines working 9 months. The entire labor organization when the four machines were working together was as follows: i superintendent of works, 2 pump men, i master mechanic, 2 pipe line men, 9 operators, I 6 mules, ' , 3 teamsters, < 4 roller gang foremen, [ i horse, 32 laborers in roller gangs (negroes), 2 cooks, 8 firemen (negroes), i yard man, i oiler, 2 dynamite men, i blacksmith, 7 general laborers (negroes), i assistant blacksmith, The fuel used was pine wood, which had been partially seasoned. About 2 cords of wood were used for each excavator per shift. The following table gives a brief statement of the cost of operation. Operating costs, $67,645.19 Board and lodging, 6,137.85 Repairs and renewals, 7,131.02 Stable upkeep, 1,527.94 $82,442.00 Average cost of excavation (based on a total excavation of 1,023,662 cu. yd.), 8.05 cents per cubic yard. The above estimate does not include depreciation or overhead charges. 45 S - ^ 00 -8 O QJ "C j. ^ S jji? o> "C h 1* 1 J3 p s 1 I d S tn (L> ^ 1 ^ CU 1-4 p2 cx g all 1 S> '3 > cr (U 0) w H S* M d g o. n 3 i 1 ! M Q Wl w ^ !- H ^ s i 2 I 2 If! a* & g CO _ri y U d X *J 03 Q- Jej d> **H 10 <2 5*0-3 P ^-i - O 5^ *5 -FH < rj * 3 * a & H C/} (Si > o 5, rh O 2 si S cj ya III 5 S g S3 -R * > 8 1 M CS III .s .s & *a bO i ' C3 W C *Sb^ fejQ 'W dJ 1 . .1 'QQ "M -*! 44 c d wQ >* +* rg i^l V d "T L | L 73 | | '1 | Ifl cJ J 6 * " b" J5 !^ g WHEEL EXCA VA TORS 147 The ditchers are generally equipped with caterpillar tractions for the two rear wheels. These moving, endless platforms distribute the weight of the machine over a large area and thus enable the machine to move over soft ground. The sizes of caterpillar tractions used are given in the following table. Size of machine Size of caterpillar traction 00 .4 ft. wide by 6 ft. long. ft. wide by ii ft, long. It has generally been found more economical to use a gasoline engine instead of steam-power for the operation of these ditchers. Gasoline is cheaper and easier to handle than coal and the cost of Wheel Ditcher operating under Gasoline Power. Figure 64. the developed horse-power is less with the former type of fuel than with the latter. A gasoline engine takes up less space, is easier and cleaner to operate than a steam boiler and engine. A No. oo size 148 DR Y-LA ND EXCA VA TORS ditcher requires a 24-h.p. gasoline engine and a No. o size ditcher a 40-h.p. engine. The average yardage, for one of these excavators, is about 300 cu. yd. per lo-hour day, in the excavation of a ditch in ordinary soil of loam and clay. Under favorable conditions of soil, climate and operation, a maximum yardage of 500 cu. yd. has been made. Figure 64 shows a No. o machine equipped with a four-cylinder, 4o-h.p. gasoline engine starting the excavation of a ditch with a bottom width of 3 ft. and a maximum depth of 5 ft. Wheel Excavator Constructing Small Ditch. Figure 65. Figure 65 shows a No. oo ditcher excavating a ditch with a bottom width of 2 ft. and an average depth of 4 ft. This view clearly illus- trates the smooth side slopes and true grade of the ditch and shows the spoil bank neatly made at one side of the ditch and with a clean berm between it and the edge of the ditch. 58. Resume. The wheel excavator is the most practical machine for the excavation of small open ditches. In irrigation and drainage systems, where the laterals and distributaries run full only during a small part of each year, a large amount of silt, debris and vegetation generally accumulates. These obstructions will in a few years, unless removed, greatly impair the efficiency of the channel. Hence, WHEEL EXCAVATORS 149 it is necessary that these smaller ditches especially should be excavated to a true grade and with smooth, uniform side slopes. Irrigation ditches are often lined with some impervious material such as concrete to prevent seepage losses. It is a great advantage in such a case to have the ditch excavated to true grade and side slopes so that the forms for the concrete lining may be set without the expense and extra labor of trimming and shaping the excavation. The belt conveyor of the wheel excavator removes the excavated material to a considerable distance from the edge of the ditch, leav- ing a clean berm. It is important that the spoil banks should be far enough from the edges of the ditch to prevent caving and the washing back of the excavated material into the ditch. As regards the capacity and operating cost of a wheel excavator, the following estimate is based on recent experience in drainage ditch excavation in the South. Let us assume an average size of machine which digs a ditch having a top width of 4 ft. 6 in., average depth of 3 ft. 6 in., bottom width rounded to 12 in. and side slopes of about i to i. Average soil and working conditions are con- sidered. Labor: Per day i operator, @ $125 per month, $5.00 i assistant operator, 2 . 50 4 laborers, @ $2, 8.00 Total labor cost, $15 5 Fuel: 20 gal. of gasoline @ $o. 16, 4.80 Miscellaneous : Per day Oil, waste, etc., $0.60 Repairs and maintenance, 5.00 Interest, 6 per cent, of $6,000, 2 . oo Depreciation, 150 working days a year, for eight- year life, 5- Total miscellaneous, $12.60 Total operating cost per day, $3 2 9 Average progress per day, 2,500 ft Average daily excavation, 870 cu. yd. Average cost of excavation, $32.90-7-870 $o. 038 per cubic yard. 150 DR Y-LA ND EXCA VA TORS D. TOWER EXCAVATORS 62. Single Tower Excavator. A type of drag-line excavator which was used with success several years ago on the Chicago Drainage Canal and recently on the construction of the New York State Barge Canal, is the Tower Excavator. As shown by Figs. 66 and 67 the excavator derives its name from Tower Excavator. Figure 66. its principal part, which is a movable tower. The latter is a framed timber structure, the height of which is determined by the width of the ditch or canal to be excavated. The height varies from 50 to 85 ft., with an average height of 75 ft. The tower rests on a platform or car which is trussed by overhead, horizontal, chord, combination trusses. The car is mounted on four solid double- TOWER EXCAVATORS 151 flange cast steel wheels, generally about 14 to 16 in. in diameter, and with 4-in. treads. The wheels run on a track, which consists of 80- to Qo-lb. rails, spiked to cross ties, bolted to 3o-ft. planks. The car and tower are moved ahead by a cable which passes over a sheave on the car and to a "dead-man" placed at a suitable point ahead of the car, and then back to a "nigger head" on the engine. The track section is moved ahead in a similar manner. The tower is braced to the car by cables which extend from the top of the tower to the rear end corners of the car. * / Tower Excavator. Figure 67. On the rear end of the car is placed the power equipment, which consists of a vertical boiler and a double drum, ioXi2-in. vertical engine with two "nigger heads." The machinery in the best plants is operated by a man stationed on a platform placed on the rear side of the tower about one-third of its height. The operator controls the excavator by suitable levers and brakes, and he has an unobstructed view of the work. 152 DRY -LAND EXCAVATORS The bucket used as is shown in Fig. 68, is a two-line scraper bucket with peculiar features. At the rear of the bucket is a frame carrying two sheaves at right angles to the cutting edge, which is strongly reinforced. On the bottom of the bucket are two curved shims or shoes. The front of the bucket is connected to the drag-line drum of the engine by a cable which passes over a sheave suspended on the front side of the tower about one-fourth to one-third of its height. Another cable extends from the hoisting drum of the engine over a sheave at the top of the tower, then between the sheaves fastened to the bail of the bucket and then fastened to an anchorage at the other side of the ditch. The bucket is loaded by pulling it Scraper Bucket of Tower Excavator. Figure 68. toward the tower by winding up the drag-line cable. When the spoil bank is reached, the hoisting cable is raised and the bucket is overturned and dumped. The bucket is returned to the ditch by still further tightening the hoisting cable and releasing the drag- line cable, whereby the bucket rises and slides back to the starting- point. Where a tower 65 ft. high has been used, a reach of 210 ft. from the far side of the ditch to the near side of the spoil bank was used with efficiency of operation. A scraper bucket of 2 cu. yd. TOWER EXCAVATORS 153 has an average carrying capacity of 3 cu. yd. and has been operated at the rate of 4 cu. yd. a minute. Under favorable conditions in the excavation of loam and clay, 2,000 cu. yd. have been excavated during a lo-hour shift and where two shifts have been used per day, an average monthly excavation of 40,000 cu. yd. has been made. The following table gives the cost of operation of the tower drag- scraper excavator under normal conditions for a lo-hour shift.' i engineer, $3 . 50 i fireman, 2 . 50 i foreman, 4.00 i signal man, 2 . oo 1 cable shifter, 1.75 4 laborers, @ $i . 75, 7.00 2 tons of coal @ $3 6.00 Maintenance, repairs, etc., o. 75 Depreciation, interest on investment, etc., 2.00 Total cost of operation, $29. 50 The cost of a complete tower excavator would be about $2,oco. 62a. Use on New York State Barge Canal. 1 The following is a detailed estimate of the cost of a tower excavator, which has recently (1910-12) been used on the New York State Barge Canal. 5,080 ft. B. M. lumber @ $38 per M, $ IQ3-Q4 360 ft. B. M. white oak @ $45 per M, 16.20 540 Ib. iron bolts and nuts @ 6 cents, 3 2 -4 1 20 ft. f-in. wire rope backstays, 13. 20 2 f-in. turnbuckles, -80 i headblock sheave and bearing, To.oo i hauling sheave and bearing, 4.00 i 8|Xio-in. Lidgerwood double-drum hoisting engine, 1,089.00 i scraper bucket, complete with cutting edge, sheaves, etc., 300.00 Labor erection (carpenters @ $2.50 for eight- hour day), 200.00 Total, $1,858.64 At a cost of operation for a two-shift day of $60 and with an average daily excavation of 2,000 cu. yd., the cost of operation per cubic yard would be 3 cents. During April, 1910, a tower excavator 2 was used on Contract 1 Engineering-Contracting, October 26, 1910. 2 Engineering- Contracting, Sept. 28, 1910. 154 DRY-LAND EXCAVATORS No. 42 of the New York State Barge Canal. The material excavated consisted mostly of a heavy gumbo soil. The tower was 85 ft. high and the bucket used had a capacity of ij cu. yd. The excavator was operated by a ioXi2-in. hoisting engine, which was furnished steam from a 4o-h.p. boiler. Following is a tabulated statement of the cost of labor and excavation. i operator, per day, $4 . oo i fireman @ $75 per month, per day, 2.50 i foreman @ $200 per month, per day, 6.67 i pumpman, per day, i . 50 6 laborers @ $i . 50 per day, 9 . oo Total cost of labor per day, $23 . 67 Total cost, $1,455.81 Total cubic yards excavated, I 5 J 65 Cost per cubic yard, $o . 096 Although this type of excavator has been rarely used and is little known and understood by contractors, its use in the past has clearly demonstrated its efficiency and economy of operation, especially in the excavation of large ditches. During the early part of the year 1910, a tower excavator was at work on a section of the New York State Barge Canal. The following statement of the cost of operation has been furnished by the contractors: Labor: i fireman @ 37^ cents per hour, $3.00 i engineer 37! cents per hour, 3 . oo i fireman @ 22 cents per hour, i . 76 i signal man 25 cents per hour, 2 . oo 9 laborers @ 20 cents per hour, 14 .40 Total cots of labor per shift, $24.16 Total cost of labor per month (52 shifts), $1256.32 Material: Wire cable, $160.00 Fuel, 20 tons of coal @ $4, 80.00 Oil, waste and repairs, 15 .00 Total cost per month, $255 . oo Interest on investment \ per cent, per month, 9.30 DOUBLE TOWER EXCAVATOR 155 $1520.62 18,200 Total cost of operation (not including office expenses), Total excavation @ 700 cu. yd. per day, Cost of excavation per cubic yard; $1520.62-7-18,200= $0.084 63. Double Tower Excavator. A double tower drag-line excavator was used with very satisfactory results in the excavation of two sections of the Chicago Drainage Canal. The canal prism, which this excavator made was unusually true to the theoretical cross- Ens. Contg. Plan Diagram of Double Tower Excavator. Figure 69. section, there being less than ij cu. yd. of excavation per lineal foot outside of the required lines. The canal excavated had a bottom width of 26 ft. and side slopes of 2 to i. The average depth was 27 J ft. The canal lay in nearly a level plain and the material excavated was clay. This excavator was designed by the late J. T. Fanning of Chicago, and consisted principally of two towers and two buckets. Fig. 69 is a diagram illustrating the principles of construction and operation. It will be shown by the plan that the two inclined booms are so con- structed that a straight line from the apex of either tower to the point of the opposite boom, clears the side of the tower. This allows the bucket to clear the tower and empty directly on the adjacent spoil bank. As will be seen from Fig. 69, there are two buckets, working in opposite directions and each excavating its half of the canal prism. A double-drum hoisting engine was placed on the side of the plat- form of each tower. Each bucket was operated by a drag or digging 156 DRY -LAND EXCAVATORS line and a load line. The drag line was run from the smaller drum of the engine to the bucket, which dug in a downward direction on the side of the canal opposite to its tower. The load line, which is slack during the filling of the bucket, extends from the larger drum of the engine, upward through the tower, over a sheave near the apex of the tower, then out to a stationary sheave, w r hich is suspended between the two towers, then down to a sheave attached to the bail of the bucket and then out to the end of the boom on the opposite tower. As soon as the bucket is filled the load line is wound up with the drag line kept taut. This raises the bucket up above the surface Double Tower Excavator. Figure 70. of the ground and to an elevation slightly higher than the point of the boom. Then the drag line is released and the bucket allowed to run down the load line by gravity to the dump pile or spoil bank near the end of the boom. By changing the location of the suspended sheaves, the position of the bucket in digging can be altered so as to reach the entire half width of the canal prism. The buckets used had a capacity of f cu. yd. and a tripping device near the end of each boom, caused the bottom of each bucket to swing loose and drop the load on the spoil bank. The excavator was used for a period of two years on daily shifts of 10 hours. The labor employed consisted of an engineer, a fireman and a track gang of five men. An average gang of 12 men, including a superintendent, a watchman and the operating laborers, were used. The average daily excavation was 500 to 600 cu. yd. The maximum monthly excavation was 19,000 cu. yd. in June, WALKING DREDGES 157 1910, while the minimum monthly excavation was 4,750 cu. yd. in December, 1908. A record of two trips per minute for each bucket was made but the average speed of excavation was one trip per minute. 64. Resume. The tower excavator is a type which was de- veloped about 20 years ago during the construction of the Chicago Drainage Canal. The original machine had one tower and bucket, while the later examples use two towers and buckets. This novel excavator has been used with great success upon the Chicago Drainage Canal and the New York State Barge Canal. The field for such a machine is a large canal, where the material is of the class that can be economically handled by a scraper bucket. Very soft and wet soil or rock could not be successfully handled. There are often wide irrigation and drainage canals constructed by the use of other excavators with considerable difficulty and delay, which could be built to great economic advantage with the tower excavator. For a ditch with a top width of over 60 ft., it is generally necessary to use dry-land excavators in pairs, one on each bank, or a large floating dredge which must move from one side of the canal to the other. With the tower excavator, a canal of any practical width can be excavated by one machine at one set-up and completed as the machine advances. E. WALKING DREDGES 68. Field of Work. In construction work on drainage and irriga- tion projects it is often the case that several ditches are to be ex- cavated in the same locality. When the excavator is through with one ditch and wishes to start in on another ditch, it is often neces- sary to dismantle the excavator, transport the parts to the new site and assemble them. This often entails an expenditure of con- siderable time and labor. To provide an excavator which would move itself over ordinary country from one job to another, the walking dredge was devised. The first machine of which the author has knowledge was constructed about 10 years ago by A. N. Cross of Tomah, Wisconsin, and since that time a large number of these dredges have been constructed and used, especially on drainage work in Minnesota, Iowa and Nebraska. 69. Description of Dredge. The walking dredge consists of a wooden hull, constructed of heavy timbers, and braced along the sides by large, overhead, wooden trusses. The hull is made of sufficient 158 DRY -LAND EXCAVATORS width to straddle the ditch as it is being excavated. On the front of the hull is placed the A-frame, which generally is composed of two heavy timbers bolted to the sides of the hull at their lower ends with their upper ends meeting in a "head" casting. The A-frame is set in a vertical plane and braced by w r ire cables, which extend from the top of the frame to the rear of the hull. Fig. 71 gives a side view of a dredge showing truss and A-frame in detail. On the floor of the hull is placed the boiler and machinery. When steam-power is used the equipment is very similar to that used on a floating-dipper dredge; the boiler being placed on the rear end and Side View of Walking Dredge. Figure 71. in front are placed the hoisting and swinging engines. On account of the expense of getting coal, where the work is a long distance from a railroad, it has been found more economical to use a gasoline engine to furnish the power. Engines from 16 to 50 h.p. are used, depending on the capacity of the machine, the size of the ditch and the character of the soil. A machine with a 4o-ft. boom and a i|-yd. dipper has been satisfactorily worked with a.5o-h.p. gasoline engine. The excavator is supported at each of its front corners by a timber platform constructed like a stone boat and called a foot. Each foot is 6 ft. wide, 8 ft. long and 4 in. thick and an iron bar fastened to the bottom near the front edge prevents slipping. Each pair of feet is joined transversely by a light timber, so that both will move conjointly and in the same direction. Each foot is pivoted to the hull and connected to a drum by a chain, so that by revolving the WALKING DREDGES 159 drum, the direction of the feet may be changed by the operator. In the center of each side or midway between the corner feet, is a center foot, similar in construction to the corner feet but having a length of 14 ft. and a width of 6 ft. On the under side of each cen- ter foot, a 6X6-in. timber is fastened transversely to prevent slipping. A large timber extends from the top of each center foot, between each pair of trusses, where it is pivoted. A chain, one end of which is fastened to the side timbers of the hull, passes over two pulleys at- tached to the frame on which the foot support is pivoted, and then Corner Foot of Walking Dredge. Figure 72. passes along the hull to the rear corner and across the back end to a drum near the center of the hull. To move the machine the drum is revolved and the winding up of the chain pulls the foot support gradually to a vertical position. This raises the dredge from the corner feet and it moves ahead about 6 ft. The rear chain is then released and the weight is taken off of the center foot, which is pulled ahead by a chain attached to a drum, located near the center of the front part of the hull. Fig. 72 shows a detail view of a corner foot. The boom is made up of two parts, the upper part is supported at its lower end on a turntable similar to those used on a floating- 160 DR Y-LA ND EXCA VA TORS dipper dredge. The upper end is supported by a cable from the peak of the A-frame. The lower part of the boom is pivoted at one end to the lower end of the upper section and on its outer end is pivoted an iron-trussed framework shaped like a walking beam. A chain or wire cable passes from the upper end of this frame to a drum on the hull. By the winding up of this chain or cable, the top of the frame may be pulled back. To the lower end of the frame is fastened Dipper and Dipper-arm of Walking Dredge. Figure 73. the dipper which is shaped like the pan of a slip scraper. A chain or cable is also fastened to the frame at the back of the scoop. This line passes over pulleys in the outer ends of the booms and then to a drum on the hull. By the winding up of this line the scoop is pulled back and tilted to a vertical position. Fig. 74 will clearly show the details of the boom and scoop. To excavate, the lower section of the boom is lowered until the tip of the scoop is at the required level; the line attached to the upper end of the walking beam is then wound up and the scoop is thus forced forward into the earth. After the scoop is filled the lower section of the boom is raised and at the WALKING DREDGES 161 same time swung to one side until the scoop is over the spoil bank, where the upper line is released and the lower line is pulled in until the scoop is drawn back to the boom and the contents of the scoop are dumped. The machine can move ahead, across country at the rate of one mile in about 10 hours. It can make a quarter turn in about 50 ft. In very soft swampy land the machine can be operated by placing a large pontoon under the hull to float the machine and support the larger part of its weight. It may be operated as a rear or head-on ex- cavator. In the first case, the machine starts at the outlet and backs up away from the excavation like a drag-line excavator, while in the latter case, the machine starts at the upper end of the ditch and straddles it as it excavates. 70. Operation of Dredge. In the Spring of 1907, a walking dredge operated in the Red River Valley near Stephens, Minnesota. The boom was 40 ft. long and supported a i J-yd. scoop. Power was fur- nished by a 5o-h.p. gasoline engine. The machine was operated in two shifts of 1 1 hours each, and each shift consisted of an operator, a craneman and a shoveler. One foreman had general charge of the work and a team and driver did the hauling. An electric motor fur- nished current for the night shift. The ditch excavated had a bottom width of 6 ft., an average depth of 5 ft. and side slopes of ij to i. The soil excavated was a heavy sandy loam underlaid with yellow clay. The average daily progress made was 400 ft. per shift, or 2,000 cu. yd. per 22-hour working day. The average amount of fuel used was 75 gal. of gasoline. The ditch was excavated by the head-on method of moving down-stream and straddling. yoa. Use in Minnesota. On a ditch in Minnesota, with a g-ft. bottom width, an average depth of 9 ft. and i to i slopes, where the soil was very soft loam and peat, the contractor reported an average excavation of 3,000 cu. yd. for two shifts of n hours each. A record was made of 3,000 cu. yd. during one n-hour shift. 7ob. Use in Nebraska. A walking dredge has recently (1911) been used with great efficiency in the excavation of a small ditch in eastern Nebraska. The dredge was of the usual type and equipped with a i J cu. yd. dipper and power furnished by a 4o-h.p. gasoline engine. The material excavated was a surface soil of gumbo, underlaid with soft yellow clay. The ditch had a bottom width of from 6 to 8 ft. a depth varying from 6 to 9 ft. and side slopes of ij to i. The average excavation was 50,000 cu. yd. per month. 11 162 DR Y-LA ND EXCA VA TORS A new type of walking dredge has recently (1911) been devised for use in the excavation of a small ditch in western Iowa. l A drag-line excavator is mounted on its turntable, which is sup- ported by a platform composed of steel I-beams. This lower platform has a length equal to twice the width of the turntable platform and the two are arranged so that the upper platform will roll upon the lower. The whole structure is supported on two skids, shaped like scows with flat bottoms. To move ahead the machine is rolled over to one end of the lower platform where its weight rests on one skid. The other skid is then slipped ahead by cables operated from the main engine. The machine is rolled to the other end of the platform thus placing the weight over the second skid, and the first skid is pulled ahead. Thus a zigzag forward motion is made with an advance of about 7 ft. at each skid shove. The excavator was equipped with a 2 cu. yd. Page bucket, a 6o-ft. steel boom and a 6o-h.p. gasoline engine. An observation of the machine in operation during a short period of time, showed that nine buckets of material were excavated and the machine moved ahead about 7 ft. every eight minutes. The excavator was operated by one man with an assistant as a general laborer. The ordinary track gang is thus done away with. The experience of the contractor with this device indicated that it eliminates the slipping which ordinarily occurs when a drag-line exca- vator is mounted on rollers and the latter become wet. 71. Rsum. The walking dredge is rather a novelty in the field of excavating machinery, but has already achieved some excellent records for economical operation. Every case of its use, of which in- formation has been secured, shows a fairly large output at a compara- tively low cost. While working on one large drainage project in the Middle West, a walking dredge made a better record than a dipper dredge operating on the same work and under similar conditions. This unique dredge has the advantage over the ordinary dry-land or floating dredge, in being able to move over the country, from one job to another, by means of its own power. 1 From Engineering-Contracting, July 19, 1911. CHAPTER VII FLOATING EXCAVATORS 75. Classification. The dredges of this class, as the name signi- fies, move along a stream like a boat. They are classified as to the methods used in excavating the material, as follows: A, Dipper dredges; B, ladder dredges; and C, hydraulic dredges. A. DIPPER DREDGES 76. General Description. The type of dredge which is best known and commonly used for the excavation of drainage ditches is the floating-dipper dredge. The principal parts of a dipper dredge are the hull or boat, the power equipment, the hoisting engines, the swinging engines, A-frame, spuds, boom and dipper. All of these parts are used in some form in every dredge. Each manu- facturer uses the same principles of operation, but varies the details of construction to suit his ideas and generally claims therefor certain points of superiority. Fig. 75 shows the principal parts of a float- ing-dipper dredge with vertical spuds and Fig. 76 those of a dredge with bank spuds. It is the general custom to set up the machinery of each dredge complete on the testing floor of a factory and to give it a thorough test before it is shipped to the purchaser. This test is of value in so far as it assembles all of the parts and proves their ability to work in coordination up to certain standard requirements. However, as such a test is conducted under the most favorable con- ditions, with good fuel, pure water, stable foundations, light and uniformly applied loads, it does not show how the machinery will stand up under the actual conditions of low-grade fuel, impure water, unstable foundations, and vibratory and repeated loads. The only satisfactory method to become acquainted with the weak as well as the strong points of any piece of machinery is to give it a severe test or series of tests under actual working conditions. Hull The hull or boat is generally built of wood and of such dimensions as the size of the machinery, length of boom, size of dipper, and the 163 164 F WAT ING EXCAVATORS DIPPER DREDGES 165 166 FLOATING EXCAVATORS width of the ditch may require. If practicable the width of the dredge should be nearly the width of the ditch so that the stability of the whole dredge may be enhanced by the use of bank spuds. In the construction of ditches, the top width of which exceeds 60 ft., it is not practicable to use bank spuds. The width of the hull depends solely on the size of the machinery to be used, the length of the boom, and the size of the dipper. The width of the hull of a dredge using bank spuds is generally made less than that of a machine using vertical spuds. It is evident that the tendency of the hull of a dredge to tip sideways, as the boom is swung to one side, will depend on the distance that the dipper is from the center of the hull or upon the length of the boom. Hence, the width of the hull should bear some relation to the length of the boom. When bank spuds are used the width of hull is generally made about one-half the length of the boom, while with vertical spuds the hull width is generally made about five-eights of the length of the boom. See tables XIX and XX on pages 1 68 to 171. The length of the hull must be sufficient to provide suitable space for the boiler, the ma- chinery, " A "-frame and boom, but principally it must provide sufficient stability to balance the weight of the boom and dipper in their various positions. The depth of the hull must be built to furnish sufficient displacement, but with as light draft as possible so as to float in shallow water. The early practice in dredge building was to make the hull wider on top than on the bottom, thus giving the sides a slope which would partially conform to the side slopes of the ditch. However, this involves extra labor in construction with no material benefit, and it is now the universal practice to build hulls with vertical sides. The dimensions of the hulls of various-sized dredges are given in Tables XIX and XX on pages 168 to 171. These tables were compiled by the Marion Steam Shovel Co., of Marion, Ohio. The hull is composed of a framework of heavy timbers, which should be of continuous length as far as is practicable. The writer has seen timbers 14 in. square and having a length of 87 ft., used for the longitudinal bracing of a hull, which had an overall length of no ft. Transverse timbers should always be the full width of the hull. In the construction referred to above, transverse sills and caps were used and were 30 in. square with a length of 40 ft. The framework is covered on the sides, top and bottom with 3-in. plank. In the case of a large hull with very heavy machinery, the sides and ends may be made of heavy timbers, placed one on another. DIPPER DREDGES 167 All timbers should be well bolted together; although in small hulls of light construction, the planking is generally spiked to the frame- work. Yellow pine and fir are generally used and as both woods are about equal in strength, the preference is given to the cheaper. Great care should be taken in framing and splicing timbers, so as to secure strong joints, which should stagger where practicable. To much care cannot be taken in the construction of the hull to secure the greatest strength and rigidity possible. When a dredge is in operation, extremely severe strains of every kind are being applied in rapid succession. The joints of the planking on the sides, ends and bottom must be made watertight. This is done by fitting the adjacent planks together so as to leave a V-shaped joint, with an opening of about f in. on the outside surface. Three threads of clean oakum should be driven tightly into the joints, until the surface of the oakum is about J in. below the outside surface. This space should then be filled with hot coal-tar. It is not necessary to calk the deck joints, unless the dredge is to be towed through rough water. It is rarely practicable to move a dredge from one job to another and so it is generally dismantled for shipment by railroad. If the length of shipment is great, it is more economical to build a new hull, rather than to move the old one. Recently, the manufacturers of a steel dredge have constructed a steel hull, which is made in sections, which can be readily bolted together. On deep-water dredges the boiler, coal bunkers and heavier machinery are placed on the bottom of the hull to secure maximum stability. On ditching dredges, however, it is the custom to place the boiler, coal bunkers, water tank, condenser, etc., on the rear end of the deck, which is from i to 2 ft. lower than the main deck. See Figs. 74 and 75. BOILER The use of a boiler on a floating- dipper dredge is very similar to that on a drag-line excavator and the reader is referred to the description on pages 107 to 109 of boilers for dry-land excavators. It would be well to emphasize a few important points and recom- mendations, which have been previously mentioned. The locomotive fire-box type has been generally found to be the most satisfactory to meet the exacting conditions of dredge work. It is easily adaptable to the consumption of various grades and kinds of fuel and can be easily cleaned. The Scotch-marine type of 168 FLO A TING EXCA VA TORS W o > K .2- M >oo iooo.Mvo ONOO fOCMNONONOOOOt^ HI M M HI HI * Capacity fOPO (N ^ *la O vo T^ ts O OO vo ^* M O 00 VO Tf W O 00 C*l CS CS CS CS HI <3- N O OO O tO W| * f to O to O to O r HI 1.1 c/5 'S + * ir-ffir-ffir-ffirir PI CS CS CM M P) DIPPER DREDGES 169 M-fee mber hull o^ < .9 O O OOO OOO )OO OOO OOO ) 'O ^O 1 O l-O ^-O Tt* "^J" Tj" CO ^O ^O vvvvv XXX Joo ooo S\ /\ /\ /\ S\ H|C4 rH|M HlN ^> ^3 ^ -G -S tG ^O ^O ^O ^O ^ ^O *O *O O O CJ U CJ CJ ^^J, i; J, . i g OOOOO oooooo MMMHM OOOOOO OOOOOO VN/V XXXXX XXX XXX opopcoopco opopoo ^ ^ ^* fYf fcl XXX Ffr c c c a c d O 000 xxxxx vo vo vo vo CS CS CS CS vO vo vo XXX O 00 vo 10 to to to to to XXX XXX OO vO to IO rj- CO XXXXX to to O O O XXX to to to VO vo vo XXX XXX O O O to to to VO VO VO to to to ^ a g 3 8 J u ^ to O to o to to O to O to cs to cs o r^ co o\ to O "4" ^ co co co CO co CO III III to O *- O .** *O P .5P * OO vo Tj- cs O rt- U hJ hJ 13 194 FLOATING EXCAVATORS 76f. Use in Louisiana. The reclamation of about 3,000 acres of swamp land in a district near New Orleans, La., comprised the excava- tion of two main canals having a bottom width of 18 ft. and an aver- age depth of 7^ ft. The material excavated was what is known as " sharkey clay," which is silt deposited by the Mississippi River. The soil was wet, as the general elevation of the ground surface was about 5 ft. above sea level. The excavators used were two Marion floating- dipper dredges, one with a f cu. yd. dipper and the other with a ij cu. yd. dipper. The small dredge cost $8,500 to construct ready for operation. The whole plant was estimated as worth $20,500 at the commencement of the work. Crude oil was used for fuel and was hauled from New Orleans on two oil barges of 400 gal. capacity each, by a 25-h.p. gasoline tug. The rate of wages paid were as follows: Engineer, $125.00 per month. Craneman, 65.00 per month. Fireman, 50.00 per month. Laborers, 2.00 per day. These rates include board and lodging. Following is an estimate of the cost of operation from the latter part of 1909 to August, 1911. Total excavation. 674,921 cu. yd. Cost Per Cubic Yard: Plant (arbitrary), 1 $0.0076 General, 0.0059 Repairs, 0.0020 Supplies, 0.0138 Fuel, 0.0094 Labor, 0.0219 Camp. o 0081 Total cost per cubic yard, $0.0687 77. Re'sume'. The floating dredge, in its many forms, is the best- known and most popular class of machinery used in the construc- tion of drainage canals and ditches, in England and on the Conti- nent, the ladder and hydraulic dredges were early developed and have been generally used. In this country, the average dredge con- tractor has not been willing to put a large sum of money into a on a depreciation of 25 per cent, for two years' use. The above does not include interest or overhead expenses. DIPPER DREDGES 195 permanent plant, but has demanded returns on a smaller invest- ment. For example, the English or French contractor will spend $100,000 for a ladder dredge with a daily capacity of 3,000 cu. yd., while the American contractor will be content to invest $40,000 in a less substantial dipper dredge of the same capacity, time being the chief element which the American considers. A large part of open ditch work is done in low, swampy land where it is difficult for anything but a boat to move about. Thus it early becomes necessary to mount excavating machinery on a boat or hull in order to reach the scene of operations. The simplest form of excavator is a steam shovel mounted on a hull and so arranged as to be stable under all conditions. The dipper dredge of to-day is a remarkable piece of machinery. It can raise its spuds and move in a minute's time, excavate all kinds of soil from silt Cross-section of Ditch Excavated with Floating Dipper Dredge. Figure 89. to loose rock, pull stumps, remove boulders, bridges, and various other obstructions, drive piling, erect simple structures, build earthen dams, etc. The dipper dredge can be used for the excavation of any ditch, the width of which is greater than 16 ft. There must, of course, be sufficient water to float the dredge. It is sometimes necessary during dry seasons to sink a well and pump water into a small arti- ficial reservoir built around the dredge in order to float it. Open ditches with top width of 16 ft. and depth of 3 ft., to those having a width of 100 ft. and depth of 20 ft., have been successfully con- structed by this versatile excavator. These ditches are not true or uniform in cross-section and cannot be made by a dipper dredge with smooth and continuous side slopes. The cross-section of a typical dipper dredge ditch is rounded as shown in Fig. 89. The 1 96 FLO A TIXG EXCA VA TORS principal objection to the use of a floating dipper dredge is the roughness and unevenness of the ditch, and the objections to this are stated in Articles 52 and 58. However, the author has found from his experience in superintending such work that much of the roughness is unnecessary and is due to the careless operation of the dredge. After two or three years of use, with ditch running on an average one-quarter full, the cross-section will gradually take the form of a semi-circle, which is the best and most efficient form of an open channel. Such a ditch will, bowever, require consider- able maintenance to remove vegetation along the side, and silt and debris from the bottom. Under average working conditions the capacity of a if-yd. dipper dredge should be about 1,250 cu. yd. for each n-hour shift. The operating cost should average about 4 cents per cubic yard. For a si-yd. dipper dredge the excavation should average about 2,000 cu. yd. at an operating cost of 5^ cents. 78. Bibliography. For additional information, see the following: BOOKS 1. The Chicago Main Drainage Channel, by C. S. Hill, published in 1896 by Engineering News Publishing Co., New York. 129 pages, 105 figures, 8 by ii in. 2. Dredges and Dredging, by Charles Prelini, published in 1911 by D. Van Nostrand, New York. 294 pages, figures, 6 by 9 in., cost $3. 3. Earth and Rock Excavation, by Charles Prelini, published in 1905 by D. Van Nostrand, New York. 421 pages, 167 figures, 6 by 9 in., cost $3. 4. Earthwork and Its Cost, by H. P. Gillette, published in 1910 by Engineering News Publishing Co., New York. 254 pages, 54 figures, 5^ by 7 in., cost $2. 5. Mechanics of Hoisting Machinery, by Weisbach and Hermann, published in 1893 by Macmillan & Co., New York. 329 pages, 5! by 8| in., 177 figures. 6. Excavating Machinery, by J. O. Wright. Bulletin published in 1904 by Department of Drainage Investigations of U. S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. MAGAZINE ARTICLES 1. The Claquette Clam-shell Dredge, C. E. Davenport; Compressed Air, December, 1903. Illustrated, 2,700 words. 2. A Combination Dipper and Clam-shell Bucket Dredge, Frank Edes; International Marine Engineering, August, 1909. Illustrated, 1,200 words. 3. The Cost of Deep-water Dredging with a Clam-shell Dredge for the Stony Point Extension of the Buffalo, N. Y., Breakwater, Emile Low; Engineering News, October n, 1906. 1,000 words. 4. Cost of Dredging with Different Classes of Plant, John Bogart; Engineering Record, August 10, 1901. LADDER DREDGES 197 5. Cost of Excavating 4,151,000 cu. yd. of Material with 51 Dipper and Bucket Dredges in 1911; Engineering-Contracting, October 16, 1912. 6. Dredges, A. Baril; Revue de Mecanique, March 31, 1907. Illustrated, first part, 2,500 words. 7. Dredges on the New York State Barge Canal; Engineering, London. September 22, 1911. 8. Dredging, J. J. Webster; Engineering, London, March 4, 1887. 9. Dredging and Dredging Appliances, Bryson Cunningham; Cassier's Magazine, November, 1905. Illustrated, first part, 2,500 words. 10. Dredging Machinery, A. W. Robinson; Engineering, London, January 7 and 14, 1887. 11. Dredging Machines, John Bogart; Engineering, London, August 29, 1902. 12. Dredging Operations and Appliances, J. J. Webster; Proceedings of Insti- tute of Civil Engineers, Vol. LXXXIX. 13. The Dredge "Independent"; Engineering Record, June i, 1907. Illus- trated, 1,400 words. 14. English and American Dredging Practice, A. W. Robinson; Engineering News, March 19, 1896. 15. Experiments with Automatic Dredges, Herr Kammerer; Zeitschrift des Vereines Deutscher Ingeineur, April 20, 1912. Illustrated, 2,000 words. 16. European Sea-going Dredges and Deep Water Dredging, E. L. Corthell; Engineering Magazine, April and May, 1898. Illustrated, 8,000 words. 17. Evolution of the California Clam-shell Dredger, H. A. Crafts; Scientific American, September 30, 1905. Illustrated, 700 words. 18. A i5-yd. Dipper Dredge; International Marine Engineering, May, 1910. Illustrated, 2,500 words. 19. Harbor Dredging, Brysson Cunningham; Cassier's Magazine, March, 1912. Illustrated, 3,000 words. 20. Large Bucket Broom Dredge; Engineering Record, July 27, 1895. 21. A Large Single Rope Dipper Dredge; Engineering News, February 28, 1901. Illustrated, 1,400 words. 22. Largest Dredging Plant in the World, Engineering News, May 9, 1912. 4,000 words. 23. Modern Dredging Appliances for Waterways, J. A. Seager; Cassier's Magazine, January, 1910. 24. A Modern Dredging Plant; Engineering News, September 21, 1893. 25. Modern Machinery for Excavating and Dredging, A. W. Robinson; Engineering Magazine, March and April, 1903. 26. A Powerful Dredge Equipped with a Cable Storage Drum; Engineering News, February 7, 1907. 27. Self-dumping Dredges with Wide Jaws, Wintermeyer; Sliickauf, December 23, 1911. Illustrated, 2,100 words. 28. Ten-yard Clam-shell Dredge for the Buffalo, N. Y., Breakwater Construc- tion; Engineering News, February 2, 1899. Illustrated, 1,500 words. B. LADDER DREDGES 80. Field of Work. The ladder, or elevator dredge, is a type of excavator jvhich is very popular and has been used for many years in 198 FLOATING EXCAVATORS England and on the Continent. However, in this country, it has been principally used for placer mining in the Northwest and in Alaska. Not until recently has this type of dredge, been used in reclamation projects. The best-known examples of the use of a ladder dredge in canal construction are those on the New York State Barge Canal and the Panama Canal. During the last three years (1909-12), a ladder dredge of large capacity has been used with considerable success in the excavation of a large drainage ditch in western Iowa and also in the construction of irrigation ditches in Idaho. It is unfortunate that cost data on the use of this dredge are not available. Descriptions of ladder dredge operations on the Fox River, Wisconsin and on the New York State Barge Canal will be given later on in this chapter. 81. General Description. The ladder, or elevator dredge, consists of a barge or hull, which supports the excavating machinery. The Elevator Dredge Excavating Large Drainage Ditch. Figure 91. latter is made up of a ladder^ which is a framework, carrying at each end two sheaves over which run two endless chains. Along these chains are placed buckets or scrapers at intervals of about 3 to 6 ft. each holding from 3 to 15 cu. ft. One end of the ladder is hinged to the hull and the other end is suspended from a frame placed at the bow of the hull. By means of wire rope running over sheaves, the outer end of the ladder may be raised and lowered to any desired depth. The buckets in passing around the ladder scrape the material from the bottom and front of the excavation and bring it to the upper end of the LADDER DREDGES 199 ladder above the deck. Power is applied from an engine to a shaft, which passes through the ladder and drives the chains to which the buckets are attached. The material is automatically discharged from the buckets upon belt conveyors, which carry it to the spoil banks or to barges for removal. In some cases the excavated material falls into a hopper, where it is mixed with water and the resulting fluid mass flows through spouts or troughs to the spoil areas. The horizontal movement of the dredge is generally secured by a single spud which is placed and operated at the stern of the hull. In some ladder dredges the heel of the ladder is pivoted to the hull, so that the ladder may be rotated. However, the ladder is generally fixed to the hull and passes through a well in the bow. Fig. 91 shows a front view of a large ladder dredge in the excavation of a drainage ditch near Glencoe, Iowa. HULL The hull or barge is rectangular in shape and generally constructed of heavy timbers. The hull may be built as one structure with a well through the bow for the ladder, or as two structures with a space between for the operation of the ladder. The latter type of construc- tion was used for the New York State Barge Canal dredges so that they might pass through the locks of the Erie Canal. The size of the hull depends on the capacity of the dredge. The length, which varies from 60 to 1 20 ft. is generally about five and one- half times the width, which varies from 30 to 50 ft., and the depth varies from 6 to 10 ft. The draft of a completed dredge is from 4 to 6 ft. Suitable cross frames of timber or steel are used to brace the hull and heavy planking with well-calked joints forms the outer covering. A few ladder dredges have had hulls composed of two steel pontoons, which were held parallel, at a suitable distance apart, by steel cross- frames. LADDER The ladder is composed of the chain of buckets and the frame upon which it revolves. The ladder frame is generally a structural steel framework or trussed wooden beam. The length of the ladder frame varies with the size and capacity of the dredge and the depth of excava- tion to be made. The upper end of the ladder-frame is hinged to the upper tumbler-shaft, while the lower end is suspended by heavy tackle, 200 FLOATING EXCAVATORS from the bow gantry. The frame carries at its two ends tumblers or large metal barrels. The upper tumbler is revolved by power supplied from the main engine through a shaft, while the lower tumbler is revolved by the friction of the bucket chain. The upper tumbler is pentagonal, while the lower tumbler is often made hexagonal. The five-sided tumbler is the most practical shape for both tumblers, as it allows three adjacent sets of links to come into contact wdth the tumbler at a time and \vith continuous operation of the chain. CHAIN AND BUCKETS The chain is composed of buckets, links, and the connecting pins. The chain may be arranged in two different ways, depending on the Bucket Chain and Gantry of Ladder Dredge. Figure 92. material to be excavated. For hard material, the buckets are joined directly, following each other closely, as shown in Fig. 92. LADDER DREDGES 201 For softer materials, such as would ordinarily be encountered in the excavation of drainage and irrigation ditches, the buckets are separated by a link connection, making a space between the adjacent buckets. The buckets are generally made in three parts and riveted together. The bottom is made of a specially treated, open-hearth, basic steel casting, the sides of pressed steel and the cutting edge of manganese steel. A continuous lip or cutting edge is generally used for the ex- cavation of soft material, while teeth are used when hard material is to be excavated. The pins are made of steel and have a continuous bearing along the rear edge of the bucket. The outer ends of each pin are fixed by set screws in the bushings of the outer ends of the links. The buckets are fastened to the links by rivets and the whole chain is made of such strength that if the buckets encounter an obstruction that they are unable to move, the chain and machinery will be stopped. The buckets have a capacity from 3 to 13 cu. ft., the ordinary sizes being 3, 5 and 8j cu. ft. The movement of the buckets is slow and uniform, the chain moving at a rate of 1 8 to 20 buckets per minute. GANTRY The lower end of the ladder-frame is suspended from a gantry or inclined framework, which is placed at the bow of the hull. This gantry is generally built of heavy timbers or structural steel shapes. The framework may be made with either parallel or inclined posts. At the top of the frame are hung suitable sheaves over which run the wire cable supporting the lower end of the ladder frame. See Fig. 92. The gantry has a height of from 15 to 25 ft. SPOIL CONVEYORS The material contained in each bucket is automatically deposited when the bucket turns over the upper tumbler and starts on its down- ward path. The material either falls into a hopper or upon a moving belt. The latter type is generally used in reclamation work. The moving belt is either leather or canvas and rubber, from 2 to 4 ft. in width, and is supported on a series of small wheels, which are spaced along a light steel frame. This frame extends from the hull to each side of the ditch or canal and is supported as a cantilever, from an A-frame. See Fig. 97. Where the excavated material has to be 202 FLOATING EXCAVATORS carried to a distance, the conveyor is often placed at the stern of the hull and a series of conveyors supported on pontoons are used. See Fig. 96. SPUDS One or two spuds are placed at the stern of the hull to secure stability of the dredge in operation, but principally to provide for the horizontal movement of the dredge. The spuds are generally built of a single timber with a pointed iron shoe at the lower end, and are usually operated by separate engines of the type used on floating dipper dredges as explained in Chapter VII. ENGINES The engines used are of the standard horizontal, double-cylinder type, as described in Chapter VII for floating dipper dredges. Inde- pendent engines are used for the operation of the bucket-line, the raising or lowering of the ladder, the operation of the spoil conveyors and operation of the spuds. In many cases the conveyor and main engine are driven by elecrtic motors. The power is furnished from an electric generator which may be belt or direct connected to a steam engine. A centrifugal pump, driven by a separate engine, is generally used to furnish water for a hydraulic monitor, for the hoppers (if there are any) and for perforated pipes, which extend along the sides of the belt conveyor for cleansing purposes. Steam pumps of standard type are used to supply the condensers, feed- water heaters, and the boilers with suitable water supply. BOILERS The boilers used are generally of the Scotch marine type and should be of more than estimated capacity to supply power for the various engines. The reader is advised to read the discussion of boilers in Chapters VI and VII. 8ia. Use on N. Y. State Barge Canal. 1 Two ladder dredges, named the Tornado and the Cyclone, were used during the year 1909 on the New York State Barge Canal. They were alike in construction and the conveyor systems were made interchangeable. In operation, how- 1 Abstracted from Barge Canal Bulletin, March, 1909. LADDER DREDGES 203 ever, the dredge Cyclone used the scow conveying system and the dredge Tornado the shore conveyor. The dredge hulls were made in two sections so that the dredges could pass through the locks of the Erie Canal. Each section of the hull or pontoon had a length of 97 ft., a width of 17 ft., and drew 9 ft. of water. They were constructed of heavy timbers covered with plank- ing and the sections braced together with steel truss frames. The View of Front End of Ladder Dredge on New York State Barge Canal. Figure 94. sections or pontoons were flat bottomed, the bows blunt-pointed and the sterns square. The bucket line was carried by a heavy ladder frame composed of steel-plate girders having an over-all length of 50 ft. The upper end of the frame was hinged to the upper tumbler shaft, while the lower end was suspended by means of a heavy tackle from the main or bow gantry. This is a steel framework composed of four channel posts well braced transversely. These details are well shown in Fig. 94. The bucket line was of the close or continuous bucket system and each bucket was constructed in three parts; the bottom of an open- hearth, basic steel casting, the sides of pressed steel and the cutting 204 FLOATING EXCAVATORS edge of manganese steel. The capacity of each bucket was 8| cu. ft. and its weight 2,050 Ib. or practically i ton. The buckets and links were hinged together with 4-in. turned steel pins. In Fig. 94, it will be noticed that a large monitor nozzle is placed above the bow of the dredge. This was used to break away and wash down material from high banks in front of the dredge. Water under high pressure was forced through this nozzle by a i2-in. centrifugal pump, direct connected to an n-in. by ic-in. marine engine. The main power equipment of each dredge consisted of a loo-kw. generator direct connected to a i3~in. by i6-in. horizontal, single- cylinder engine. A i2-in. centrifugal pump direct connected to a ico h.p. double engine supplied water to the hoppers and to the jet-cleans- ing pipes of the belt conveyors. Two standard steam pumps, of the locomotive type of 150-!!. p. each were used for boiler supply. The dredge was swung from side to side across the channel by wire cables attached to trees along the sides of the channel and to winch drums on a 5-drum winch engine operated by a 25-h.p. electric motor. Two spuds were located at the stern of the hull and when digging both were kept down to prevent the shoving back of the dredge. To move the dredge ahead, one spud was kept down and the hull was swung around by winding up the cable attached to the shore. Then this spud was raised and the other spud lowered and the opera- tion repeated. The spuds were operated by a special 8-in. by 8j-in. reversible engine of 40 h.p., which moved gearing directly attached to them. The bucket chain moved at an average speed of 22 per minute, thus discharging 250 cu. yd. in about 26 minutes. The material passed from the bucket line at the top of the ladder frame into a hopper. A grating of heavy bars was placed over the bottom of the hopper to intercept heavy stones, limbs of trees and other large objects. The material after passing the hopper, fell upon a belt conveyor of the Robins type. This conveyor was made up of a steel framework, supporting a double-thick canvas and rubber belt, having a width of 4 ft. and a length of 60 ft. The belt was driven by a 25-h.p. electric motor and at a speed varying from 250 to 500 ft. per minute, depending on the character of the material being handled. The belt conveyor dumps the material on to a delivery scow which carries a belt conveyor 42 in. wide and extending the whole length of the scow. The belt may be raised so as to have a slope as great as n degrees with the horizontal. The delivery LADDER DREDGES 205 scow was equipped with a winch, which was used for placing the dump scows, operating the spud at the stern and tipping the delivery chute. This winch was operated by a 25-h.p. electric motor. The Tornado used the shore conveyor system. In this case, the delivery scow described above, was replaced by an intermediate scow carrying a 42-in. Robins conveyor having a length of 60 ft. This belt was driven by a 2o-h.p. electric motor. Attached to the intermediate scow was a shore scow 80 ft. long and 52 ft. wide carrying a conveyor 200 ft. long. By means of this shore conveyor system, the excavated material was placed at a distance of 100 ft. inshore and to a height of 60 ft. above the ground surface. The shore conveyor was operated by a yo-h.p. electric motor. All of the machinery of the dredge and of the conveyors was con- trolled by one operator, located in a small house placed near the bow and above the machinery house. Besides this operator there were required an engineer, a fireman, an oiler, and deck hand on the dredge, a man for handling and controlling the conveyor belts, and three men for handling the scows while loading. On the shore conveyor system, one man was required on the intermediate and the shore scows. The dredge Cyclone required the use of a tug and from four to six dump scows. Each scow was of the standard, bottom-dumping type, 80 ft. wide with five compartments and a capacity of 250 cu. yd. Stones up to a size of 24 in. were handled without difficulty and material of all kinds from silt to blasted hard pan and rock was excavated. 8ib. Steel Pontoon Dredge, N. Y. State Barge Canal. 1 During the four months from August i, 1909, to December i, 1909, a ladder dredge of standard design was operated on a section of the New York State Barge Canal, near Adams Basin. Figs. 95 and 96 show the front and rear views of this dredge. The hull was made up of two steel pontoons, which were braced together by a rigid steel framework. The buckets were each of 5 cu. ft. capacity. The excavated material was discharged into a hopper at the top of the ladder and then on to a belt, which in turn discharged into a second hopper and on to a second belt. These belt conveyors were carried by pontoons or scows, placed at the rear of the dredge. A third belt conveyor carried the material 40 to 50 ft. on to the bank of the channel. The third pontoon was pivoted to the stern of the second pontoon. The belt conveyors were each operated by a small electric motor. 1 Abstracted from Engineering- Contracting, Sept. 7, 1910. 206 FLOATING EXCAVATORS The total cost of the entire dredge plant was $70,000. Considerable difficulty was experienced in keeping the soft exca- vated material in place on the spoil banks. At first heavy wooden fences were built to hold the embankment to full height. But View of Excavating End of Steel Pontoon Dredge Operating on New York State Barge Canal. Figure 95. View of Elevator End of Steel Pontoon Dredge Operating on New York State Barge Canal. Figure 96. these proved to be very expensive and inefficient and were replaced by dykes of earth and sod having a height of 4 ft. and placed along the outside edge of the embankment. LADDER DREDGES 207 Following is given the cost of the work for the months of August, September and October, 1909: AUGUST, 1909 Coal and oil, 15 tons coal for hoisting engine @ $2.85, Miscellaneous supplies for hoisting engine, Miscellaneous supplies for hoisting engine and derrick, Hauling supplies, Crew of dredge, Total cost, $4,389.66 Total excavation, 18,638 cu. yd. Cost of excavation; $4,389 . 66 -j- 18,638 = 23 . 6 cents per cubic yard. Cost of moving 6,244 cu. yd. of earth by use of scrapers, (supplementing work of dredge), $1,280.50 Cost of scraper work, 20 . 5 cents per cubic yard. Cost of wooden forms and compacting and spreading 10,015 cu. yd. of excavated material, $1,193. 25 Cost of forms, spreading, etc., 11.9 cents per cubic yard. SEPTEMBER, 1909 Interest, depreciation and repairs, $2,205.00 180 tons of coal (2 tons per shift), 513.00 150 gal. gasoline @ 12 cents, 48.00 Oil (80 gal. @ 19 cents, 60 gal. @ 35 cents, 36. 20 1,200 Ib. grease @ 8 cents, 96.00 200 Ib. waste @ 8 cents, 16.00 Teams, 245 . oo Labor, 2,827.00 Total cost, $5,986.20 Total excavation, 32,000 cu. yd. Cost of excavation, $5,986. 20-7-32,000 = 18.6 cents per cubic yard. Total working time was 90 eight-hour shifts. ' The cost of embankment was as follows : Labor, spreading and compacting, $3,151 . 50 Hauling lumber for forms, 177. 1 6 Cost of lumber for forms, 1,125.00 General, 290.00 Labor on forms, 828.32 Hauling supplies, 55 -oo Total cost, $5,626.98 Total amount of excavated material worked, 11,000 cu. yd. Cost of embankment; $5,626.98^11,000 = 51. i cents per cubic yard. 208 FLO. 1 TL\G KXt 'AVA TORS OCTOBER, 1909 Interest and depreciation, $2,351.66 186 tons coal @ $2.85, 530. 10 Labor, 3,145.58 Teams, 5-oo Oil, grease and waste, 153.09 Gasoline, 18.60 Repairs, 18.90 Total cost, $6,222.93 Total excavation, 25,500 cu. yd. Cost of excavation; $6,222.93-7-25,500 = 24.4 cents per cubic yard. Total working time was 93 eight-hour shifts. The cost of embankment was as follows: Labor, spreading and compacting, $2,898. 25 Forms, 567.50 Erection, 108.50 Hauling, 95 .00 Total cost, $3,669.25 Total amount of excavated material worked, 21,800 cu. yd. Cost of embankment; $3,669. 25-^2 1,800=16.9 cents per cubic yard. 8ic. Use on Gran Canal, Mexico. The Gran Canal, which was built during the years 1890 to 1896 by S. Pearson & Son of England, was designed to drain three lakes near the City of Mexico, Mexico. The canal had a total length of 29^ miles, a bottom width varying from 1 6 ft. 5 in. to 21 ft. 4 in., a depth varying from 33 ft. to 72 ft., side slopes of i to i and an average fall or grade of about i ft. to the mile. For the first 14 miles, the soil was a saponaceous marl for the full depth ; for the last 1 5 miles the soil was this same material for the upper 20 ft. and below this was a hard material known as "tepetate." Five ladder dredges excavated about 8,500,000 cu. yd. in four years. These dredges were built by Messrs. Lobnitz & Co. of Renfrew, Scotland, shipped to Mexico, where they were erected on the site of the canal. Four of the dredges were of the same size and build, while the fifth was larger and differed from the others somewhat in details of construction. The hulls of the four smaller dredges were made of iron and had a length of 120 ft., width of 40 ft. and depth of 7 ft. and each provided with a ladder well 40 ft. in length and 7 ft. in width. The hull of the larger dredge had a length of 140 ft., a width of 45 ft. and a depth of 10 ft. and was built with a ladder well, the length of which was 48 ft. and width 7 ft. The heights of the upper tumblers above the decks of the hulls were 56 ft. for the smaller dredges and 74 ft. 6 in. for larger dredge. LADDER DREDGES 209 The ladder frames were box girders with iV in. thick web plates, which were cross-braced every 6 ft. with transverse webs. The upper and lower ends of the girders were provided with heavy brackets for the support of the tumbler and suspension shafts. To the web plates, on the outside, were bolted 6-in. elm timbers. The ladders were all 78 ft. in length, 4 ft. 6 in. in width and 4 ft. in depth. The top tumbler was four-sided, with outside flanges, and was keyed to a shaft 1 2 in. in diameter, which alone carried the drive wheel, chain connected to the main engine shaft. The bottom tumbler was six-sided, with inside and outside flanges and was keyed to an 8-in. diameter shaft. A guide wheel of special construction, having a diameter of 1 1 ft. and a width of 3 ft. 9 in., was placed just below the ladder frame near its center, and served as a guide to the bucket chain and also to take up the sag of the chain. The wheel was made of solid steel plates, reinforced with 6-in. timbers under the periphery of the wheel, to take the pounding of the buckets. The bucket chain carried buckets having a capacity each of 1 1 cu. ft. and placed 3 ft. 3 in. apart. Each bucket had a cast-steel back \ in. thick, a body of iVin. steel plate with f -in. malleable steel cutting edge and provided with bushings of J-in. wrought manganese steel in lugs. Buckets with hinged bottoms were used in sticky soil and a cam on the top tumbler was used to lift the bottoms and throw out the contents. The buckets were fastened to links made up of three steel plates riveted together and provided with J-in. wrought manganese steel bushings, fitted at the ends for pins. These were of wrought manganese steel 2\ in. in diameter. Steel chutes, extending from a hopper below the upper tumbler, carried the material to the spoil banks on both sides of the canal. These chutes were 3 ft. in diameter and were supported by wire cables from the tops of A-frames, which were placed at the sides of the hulls. The inclination of these chutes could be varied from i in 20, to i in 5, and the excavated material was carried to a distance of 165 ft. from the center of the dredge. The main engine of each dredge was a two-crank compound engine, with a high-pressure cylinder 14 in. in diameter and a low-pressure cylinder 28 in. in diameter, the stroke being 15 in. At a speed of 100 r.p.m., the developed horse-power of each engine was 150. A pitch chain connected the main shaft of this engine to the upper tumbler shaft which, by means of gearing, was driven at a speed of 6 to 9 r.p.m. On the four smaller dredges were also independent two-crank compound engines, with one high-pressure cylinder 9 in. in diameter and one low-pressure cylinder 14 in. in diameter with a stroke of 12 in. 14 210 FLOATING EXCAVATORS The corresponding engine in the larger dredge had a high-pressure cylinder 10 in. in diameter, a low-pressure cylinder 20 in. in diameter and a stroke of 1 5 in. These engines were used to operate the w r inches, the ladder-hoist winches and the tower pumps. The maneuvering winches were placed in the stern of each dredge and were operated by belt connections to an overhead line of shafting worked by the auxiliary engine. The ladders were raised and lowered by a chain tackle suspended from the gantry frames at the bow of the hulls. The tackle consisted of four upper and five lower iron sheaves, each 26 in. in diameter. The tower pumps were operated by a three- throw shaft. They discharged water, at a maximum rate of 600 cu. ft. per minute into the chutes, through a 1 2-in. pipe. The steam was furnished by three return-tube boilers, each having a length of 10 ft. and a diameter of 7 ft. They were arranged to work independently and had a total heating surface of 408 sq. ft., a grate area of 19.6 sq. ft. and a working pressure of 75 Ib. per square inch. A hand jib crane of 2 tons capacity, was placed at the box of each dredge and was used to remove buckets, small machinery parts, etc., which had to be sent away for repairs. As most of the excavation was carried on in two n-hour shifts, electric generators were belt connected to the shafting and furnished light for the night shift. The maximum monthly excavation was 124,230 cu. yd. by one dredge. In the harder soil, the average excavation was 90 cu. yd. per hour. Difficulty was experienced in keeping the dredge up to the face and prevent bumping, when excavating hard soil. Faces up to 9 ft. above the water level were dredged, but a face of 6 ft. in height was found to be the most suitable for average work. The following table gives the relative time occupied in the various steps of operation, by each dredge: Soft soil Hard soil Repairs to machinery, 11.4 27.0 \ Changing buckets, links and pins, 1.7 2.9 Shifting mooring chains, 9.1 5.1 Cleaning buckets and shoots, i . i i . o Sundries, 2.9 0.7 Time actually dredging, 73 . 8 63 . 3 100.0 100.0 The actual amount of excavation for each dredge is given by the following table (No. i being the larger dredge and Nos. 2 to 5 inclusive, being the four smaller dredges) : LADDER DREDGES 211 No. i working 50 months, 2,480,250 cu. yd. No. 2 working 48 months, 1,977,500 cu. yd. No. 3 working 45 months, i,S33,7oo cu. yd. No. 4 working 40 months, 1,692,000 cu. yd. No. 5 working 34 months, 824,250 cu. yd. Total, 8,507,700 cu. yd. For ii months the dredges worked only during the day shift, and during the remaining time worked both during the day and night shifts. The crew of each dredge was made up as follows: i captain in charge of dredge. 1 mate, as first assistant to captain. 2 laddermen, in charge of repairs to ladder and bucket chain and for general repairs. 1 chief engineer, in charge of machinery. 2 assistant engineers, to operate levers and have general care of machinery. 2 oilers. 4 firemen. 1 6 winchmen. 2 laborers, to look after chutes. 24 laborers, on shore to look after moorings and anchors. i coal dredger, for special service. 4 laborers, for location of sights on shore and to take soundings. 8 id. Use in Washington. The U. S. Reclamation Service has used a Bucyrus ladder dredge on the enlargement of the Main Canal of the Sunnyside Project near Sunnyside, Washington. The excavation extended from mile 0.228 to mile 20.67 making a total length of canal dredged of 20.342 miles. The average distance of the work from a railroad station was 2 miles. The work was carried on in two shifts from December i, 1909, to June 19, .1910, and in three shifts per day from June 19, 1910, to October 1,1911. The character of the material excavated varied from loose gravel to hard pan. At about mile i, the material was so hard that explosives were necessary to assist the hydraulic giant in break- ing down the high banks. Blasting was carried on from this point to the end of the work. From mile 13 to mile 20.67, teams were employed to excavate the high banks above the water line. Difficulty was experienced in disposing of the excavated material where the banks were high. On fills and shallow cuts bulkheads were built along the right-of-way on the lower bank to keep the wet material from flowing into adjoining fields. In winter, ice hindered the progress of the work to a considerable extent. 212 FLO A TING EXCA VA TORS The dredge used was a Bucyrus ladder dredge equipped with steam- power and a 3i-cu. ft. continuous bucket chain. The hull was built Elevator Dredge Excavating Large Irrigation Canal. Figure 97. View of Excavating End of Ladder Dredge on Irrigation Work in Washington. Figure 98. of timber with a length of 82 ft., a width of 30 ft., a depth of 6 ft. 6 in. and drew 5 ft. of water. Steam was furnished by two locomotive LADDER DREDGES 213 type boilers, 44 in. in diameter and 18 ft. long and having a rated capacity of 80 h. p. The main drive and ladder hoist were driven by an 8-in. by i2-in. double horizontal engine of 70 h.p. The winch ma- chinery for operating the spuds and swinging the dredge was driven by a two-cylinder 6-in. by 6-in., double horizontal engine of 20 h.p. The belt conveyors were operated by two y-in. by lo-in. single-cylinder, center-crank, horizontal engines of 18 h.p. A No. i Hendy hydraulic giant was mounted on the bow of the dredge and water was forced through it by a two-stage, 6-in centrifugal pump belted to a lo-in. by i2-in. single-cylinder upright engine of 80 h.p. This giant or mon- itor was used to remove banks above the water level and beyond the reach of the buckets. Two belt conveyors, one on each side of the dredge, were used for the disposal of the excavated material. Each conveyor was 72 ft. long and consisted of a steel framework supporting a 7-ply 32-in 3 rubber conveying belt. Fig. 97 shows the dredge in operation with a high bank on one side. A near view of the bow showing the details of construction is given in Fig. 98. The operating force consisted of eight men and four horses. The following scale of wages was paid: Superintendent, per day, $7.50 Operator, per day, 5 . oo Engineer, per day, 4.67 Spudman, per day, 3 . 83 Fireman, per day, 3 . 33 Oiler, per day, 3 . oo Deckman, per day, 2 . 50 Man and team, per day, 4 . 50 TABLE XXII COST OP CANAL EXCAVATION WITH LADDER DREDGE Item Total excavation Total cost Cost per cu. yd. Labor, dredge y j y>/^>5 *-" > u - $26,960.63 $0.029 Labor spoil banks 31,159.06 0.034 Fuel 33,043.07 0.036 Plant maintenance 52,327.40 0.057 Plant depreciation 4i,432.S3 0.045 Total $184,922.69 $0.201 Engineering and administration .... 28,154-41 0.031 Grand total $213,077.10 $0.232 214 FLOATING EXCAVATORS The maximum excavation per eight-hour shift was 1,429 cu. yd. The average excavation per eight-hour shift was 557.9 cu. yd. The maximum excavation per week was 17,644 cu. yd. for the week ending June 28, 1911, working three eight-hour shifts. The average excavation per actual working hour was 128.7 cu. yd. The per cent, of lost time was 49, made-up of moving as 10 per cent, and of repairs and miscellaneous as 39 per cent. 8ie. Use on Fox River, Wisconsin. 1 A ladder dredge, built by the Bucyrus Company of South Milwaukee, Wis., was used by the U. S. Government for dredging of the channel of the Fox River in Ladder Dredge operating on Fox River, Wisconsin. Figure 99. Wisconsin. The plant consisted of a dredge with two intermediate and one delivery scow, which were operated either in line or with- out the use of one or both of the intermediate scows. Fig. 99 gives a general view of the plant in operation. The dredge was a regular elevator dredge, equipped with a chain of 39 buckets of 5-ft. capacity each. The buckets were provided with steel teeth, and excavated hard material up to a depth of 10 ft. One stern spud provided a pivot about which the dredge could swing through a radius of So ft, and covering a channel width of 145 ft. The bucket chain was driven by a 9-in by 12 -in double reversing engine, by gearing, which also operated the ladder hoist. A six- drum winch, driven by a 6-in. by 6-in. double-cylinder engine, was used to operate the anchor, spud lines, etc. A walking spud operated by a steam cylinder was used to move the dredge. The belt conveyors on the dredge and the scows were operated by elec- 1 Abstracted from Engineering News, October 25, 1906. LADDER DREDGES 215 trie motors supplied with current from a 35-kw. electric generator, driven by a lo-in. by ic-in. engine on the dredge. This generator also supplied current for lighting the plant and power to a 6-in. spray pump for cleaning the belts. Steam was furnished by a Scotch-marine boiler 9 ft. in diameter and 10 ft. in length, water- back type and equipped with two Adamson furnaces 35 in. in diameter. The delivery scow was provided with a winch operated by an electric motor and used for operating the anchor lines, gantry and spud. The hulls were built of Oregon fir and strongly braced and bolted together. The dredge was 75 ft. long, 31 ft. wide and 6 ft. deep. View of Excavating End of Elevator Dredge on Fox River, Wisconsin. Figure 100. Quarters for the crew were provided on the upper deck, where the pilot house was also located, whence the operator had complete control of the operation of the plant and from which a view of the whole work was afforded. Fig. 100 offers a general view of the dredge. The intermediate scows were 40 ft. long, 16 ft. wide and 3 ft deep, each carrying a belt conveyor 65 ft. long. The delivery scow was trapezoidal in shape, having a length of 31 ft. 4 in., 16 ft. 4 in. wide and 2 ft. deep at the receiving end and 33 ft. 4 in. wide and 4 ft. deep 216 FLOATING EXCAVATORS at the delivery end. The hull was given this shape so as to support the overhanging load of the delivery conveyor and to secure a greater angle of gyration when the scow is attached to the dredge. The capacity of the dredge averaged 200 cu. yd. per hour in tough clay and hard pan under adverse conditions. The preliminary test showed a capacity of 400 cu. yd. per hour in ordinary soil under favorable conditions. Most of the water raised by the buckets was lost on the conveyors and the excavated material was deposited along the banks in a nearly solid condition. The crew of the plant con- sisted of nine men and the cost of operation averaged about $30 per day. 82. Resume. The elevator dredge has been universally used in Europe for harbor and canal excavation and was largely used on the Suez Canal and the Panama Canal under the French regime. In this country it has not been used to a great extent on account of the large initial cost of the plant. The elevator dredge has generally been regarded as an excavator for soft material, but recent experience shows that it is very effi- cient in the excavation of hard materials, such as indurated clay, cemented gravel, hard pan and the softer stratified rocks. Where the dredge has width of channel sufficient to breast from side to side, it can work to advantage. But where the channel is restricted as in the smaller canals or ditches, the dipper dredge is the more useful. The elevator dredge is most efficient in large canal, river, and harbor work, where there are broad reaches and a large amount of hard material to be removed. The elevator dredge cannot be used economically on the ex- cavation of ditches and canals for irrigation and drainage systems. These channels are generally too narrow for a dredge of this type to properly maneuver. Where the banks are high, difficulty is experienced in depositing the material. When the banks are low, dykes or bulkheads must be erected to prevent the soft material from running back into the channel or over adjacent land. Usually the sides of the channel must be sloped and this requires the raising and lowering of the bucket chain as the machine is breasting over the portion to be sloped. The deposition of the excavated material in uniform spoil banks along the sides of the channel is not easily done with a ladder dredge. The material is too wet to remain in place and the belt conveyors are troublesome to adjust and keep in good running condition. As elevator dredges are built to meet special conditions, it is im- LOBNITZ ROCK CUTTER 217 possible to give any definite rules as regards their capacities and cost of operation. 84. Lobnitz Rock Excavator. For the excavation of rock and Side Elevation and Cross-section of Lobnitz Rock Cutter. Figure 101. hard pan, it is necessary to break up the material before the ladder dredge can remove it. Blasting has generally been resorted to, but in recent years a rock cutter has been used. This cutter was Plan of Lobnitz Rock Cutter. Figure 102. invented and is made by Messrs. Lobnitz & Co., Ltd., of Renfrew, Scotland. The Lobnitz rock cutter consists of a heavy chisel of steel, weighing 218 FLOATING EXCAVATORS from 4 to 15 tons and provided with a hardened steel, cutting point. The chisel is raised to a height of from 5 to 10 ft. and then allowed to fall vertically upon the surface of the hard material, which is thereby splintered and disintegrated sufficiently to permit its removal by the buckets of the ladder. The cutter is capable of breaking up the hardest rock in layers 3 ft. thick, at a time. The apparatus is often separately mounted on a hull, composed of two barges rigidly connected by cross girders. See Figs. 101 and 102. The Lobnitz rock cutter has been used directly in connection with a ladder dredge by placing several picks or chisels in a well alongside of the ladder. These chisels are spaced about 2 ft. apart and can be operated singly or in unison. The picks or chisels are in this case generally made of heavy timbers, iron shod and provided with hardend steel points. The rock when broken up is raised by the buckets, which are made especially heavy and strong for this kind of work. With a lo-pick ladder dredge, an excavation of 43 tons of hard rock per hour, has been made. Figs. 101 and 102 show the details of con- struction of a Lobnitz rock-cutting machine. 85. Drill Boats. The Lobnitz rock drill with its slow-acting well and drop drill has been found not competent to meet the American requirements of a great lifting and striking power combined with a large number of blows. Hence, the manufacturers of this country have devised the steam-actuated percussion drills with the drill steel forming an extension of the piston rod. The drill boat consists of a barge or scow with a spud at each corner to support it upon the rock, which is being drilled. These four spuds or columns are each operated by a pair of independent engines geared to a rack on each spud. When the drills are working these spuds are forced down until the barge is raised above the height of normal flotation. This elevation of the barge is maintained by the automatic regulation of the steam pressure in the spud engines. The drills are steam-operated percussion drills, similar in design and operation to the ordinary steam or compressed-air operated drills used on land. The piston diameter is from 5^ to 6j in. and the drills are mounted on movable steel towers. The latter run on tracks along the side of the barge and are provided with vertical guides from 15 to 30 ft. in length. The drills may be raised or lowered along these guides.* The feed of the drill is controlled by hydraulic plungers having a stroke the length of the guides and moved by long screws operated by small steam engines. The towers are moved along the tracks by steam or hydraulic power. DRILL BOATS 219 In tidal waters or streams where the water level is continually changing and of large range, the steel towers are replaced by a steel column which rests directly on the surface of the rock. This column carries the drill and its mechanism and is held in position by guides which permit of the vertical motion of the barge as the water level changes. The guides are carried on a track along the side of the barge. This construction makes the drill independent of any motion of the barge. 8sa. Use on St. Lawrence River, Canada. 1 A drill boat was used in the excavation of a ship channel through the Galops Rapids of the St. Lawrence River. The work consisted in the removal of a very hard limestone rock in strata of from 20 to 30 in. thick, by submarine drilling and blasting, to form a channel 200 ft. wide and 17 ft. deep. The Rapids have a current of from 8 to 12 miles an hour and form an area of turbulent water, full of strong eddies, across currents and breakers. The shoal water was drilled to a length of 1,800 ft. The drill boat carried four 5-in. drills and was supported by four 2o-in. by 2o-in. power controlled spuds and gear. Drums operated five ii-in. breasting chains, one leading upstream and two over each side. Each chain was attached to an anchor weighing about a ton. This chain weighed 84 Ib. per fathom and tested to 44 tons breaking load. The drilling was done through four slots, each 20 ft. long and 18 in. wide and located in the forward part of the barge. The drill frames carrying the steel drill spuds with pipe guides for the drill bars, were arranged to be moved the length of the wells. This allowed each drill to make a number of holes at each set-up of the barge. Holes were drilled and blasted in groups of four. The rock was drilled below grade to a depth equal to half the distance the holes were apart, the maximum spacing being 6 ft. on centers. The weight of dynamite used was equivalent to i Ib. of nitro-glycerine per cubic yard of rock, measuring from the bottom of the hole. This rule produced uniformly satisfactory results. Allowance was made for the payment for excava- tion below the specified grade line, as it was impossible to perform accurate work under the unusually severe conditions. The amount of the excavation paid for below grade was 25 per cent, of the total. The monthly cost of operation is given in the following table: 1 Abstracted from Engineering- Contracting, April 24, 1912. 220 FLOATING EXCAVATORS Labor: i captain, $100.00 4 drillers, @ $75, 300.00 4 helpers, @ $30, 120.00 i fireman, 30.00 i machinist, 65 . oo i blacksmith, 70.00 i helper, 30.00 4 blaster, 60.00 i helper, 35 .00 i cook, 30.00 Total labor, $840.00 Board and Lodging: 16 men @ $12, $192.00 Fuel and Supplies: 60 tons of coal @ $4, Oil and waste, Blacksmith's coal, Steel, iron and supplies, Total fuel and supplies, $347.00 Grand total, $1,379.00 Cost of drilling, $i . 105 per drill hour. Cost of drilling, $0.049 P er foot drilled. Average depth of drilling per hour, 2.25 ft. Depth of drilling varied from o to n ft. 8sb. Use in New York. The following table gives a statement of the use of two drill boats in submarine rock removal in Black Rock Harbor, Buffalo, New York. This work has been in progress for sev- eral .years and the drill boats were of the very latest design and of first-class construction. The boats each were equipped with five .6^- in. Ingersoll-Rand Drills. The drill holes averaged 9 ft. 9 in. in depth. Cubic yards drilled and blasted, 14,450 Linear feet drilled, 15,224 Linear feet per shift of 1 1 hours, 293 Cubic yards per shift, 278 Cost of dynamite per cubic yard, *9-5 cents. Ccst of drilling and blasting per cubic yard, 42 . 43 cents. Interest and depreciation @ 2 per cent, per month on plant value, $40,000, per cubic yard, 5 . 94 cents. Total cost including depreciation, etc., 67.87 cents. ROCK EXCAVATORS 221 For drill holes having average depth of 3 ft. 6 in. Cubic yards drilled and blasted, 333 Linear feet drilled, 3,480 Linear feet drilled per shaft, 154.5 Cubic yards per shift, 148 Cost of dynamite per cubic yard, 36. i cents. Cost of drilling and blasting per cubic yard, 45 . 33 cents. Interest and depreciation @ 2 per cent, per month on plant value of $40,000, per cubic yard, 10.40 cents. Total cost, 9 J -83 cents. 86. Resume. The two types of rock crushers are very efficient for submarine- rock drilling and compare very favorably with drilling on land. The Lobnitz cutter was originally used in connection with a ladder dredge for the removal of the excavated material. Recently the cutter is generally mounted on an independent hull and the loosened rock raised by a ladder or dipper dredge. The Lobnitz cutter works most efficiently in shallow cuttings of stratified, easily shattered rock. The drill boat of the American type reaches its highest efficiency in the drilling of hard rock to depths greater than 3 ft. 87. Bibliograpy. For further information, consult the following: BOOKS i. Dredges and Dredging, by Charles Prelini, published in 1911 by D. Van Nostrand, New York*. Pages, 6 by 9 in., figures, cost $3. MAGAZINE ARTICLES Ladder Dredges. 1. Boom Dredge and Conveyors, H. E. Jeainu; Memoires de la Societe des Ingenieures Civils de France, May, 1904. Illustrated, 1,500 words. 2. Bucket Dredges, R. Richter; Zeitschrift des Vereines Deutscher Ingenieure; June 19, 1909. Illustrated, First Part, 4,500 words. 3. Bucket Dredging Machine; Engineering, June 23, 1899. Illustrated, 500 words. 4. Construction Work on the New York State Barge Canal; Engineering News, July 29, 1909. 5. Cost of Excavating 4,151,000 cu. yd. of Material with 51 Dipper and Bucket Dredges in 1911; Engineering-Contracting, October 16, 1912. 6. A Desirable Method of Dredging Channels through River Bars, S. Max- inoff, Transactions of the American Society of Civil Engineers, December, 1903, and January, 1904. Illustrated, 4,300 words. 7. Double Ladder Dredger for the Swansea Harbor Trust; Engineering, London, July 13, 1888. 222 FLOATING EXCAVATORS 8. The Drainage of the Valley of Mexico, J. B. Body; Engineering Record August 10, 1901. 9. Dredges, A. Baril; Revue de Mecanique, March 31, 1907. Illustrated, 7,000 words. 10. Dredges and Dredging Appliances, Brysson Cunningham; Cassier's Maga- zine, November, 1905. Illustrated, First Part, 2,500 words. 11. The Dredger "Percy Sanderson" for the Danube Regularison Works; Engineering, London, August 9, 1895. 12. Dredges on the New York State Barge Canal; The Engineer, London, September 22, 1911. Illustrated, 2,000 words. 13. Dredging, J. J. Webster; Engineering, London, March 4, 1887. 14. Dredging Appliances; Cassier's Magazine, November, 1905. 15. Dredging in the Mersey Dock Estate; Engineering, London, May 30 and June 6, 1890. 16. Dredging Machinery, C. H. Holt; De Ingenieure, November 30, 1901. 4,000 words. 17. Dredging Machinery, A. W. Robinson; Engineering, London, January 7 and 14, 1887. 18. Dredging Machines, John Bogart, Engineering, London, August 9, 1902. 5,600 words. 19. Dredging Machine for the Clarente; Engineering, London, December 2, 1895. 20. Dredging Operations and Appliances, J. J. Webster, Engineering News, July 16 and 23, 1887. 21. A Dutch Dredge for Australia; The Engineer, London, September i, 1911. 250 words. 22. Electrically Driven Ladder Dredge; Engineering, London, October 9, 1896. 23. Electrically Operated Dredges, R. Richter, Zeitschrift des Vereines Deut- scher Ingenieure, June 12, 1909. Illustrated, First Part, 3,300 words. 24. English and American Dredging Practice, A. W. Robinson; Engineering News, March 19, 1896. 25. The French Bucket Dredger Bassure de Baas; International Marine Engi- neering, May, 1912. Illustrated, 1,500 words. 26. German and American Electrically Operated Bucket Dredges, Hubert Hermanns; Elektrische Kraftbetriebe und Bahnen, December 24, 1910. Il- lustrated, 4,000 words. 27. The "Hercules Dredgers" for the Panama Canal; Engineering News, February 3, 1883. 28. Hopper Dredger "La Puissante"; The Engineer, London, September 7, 1900. Illustrated, 900 words. 29. Hopper Dredger on the Panama Canal; Engineering, London, October 20, 1911. 30. Ladder Dredge on the Fox River, Wisconsin; Engineering News, October 25, 1906. 31. A Large Elevator Dredge for Work in Boston Harbor; Engineering News, January 27, 1910. Illustrated, 800 words. 32. New Bucket Dredgers for the Kaiser Wilhelm Canal; International Marine Engineering, May, 1910. Illustrated, 2,500 words. BIBLIOGRAPHY 223 33. New Dredger for the Clyde; The Engineer, London, April 27, 1905. Illustrated, 800 words. 34. The New Joinini River Dredge, M. Lidy; Annales des Fonts et Chaussees, Vol. VI, 1908. 35. Panama Canal Dredge "Corozal," William G. Comber; Engineering News, January 25, 1912. Illustrated, 2,500 words. 36. Petroleum Driven Dredge, M. Wender; Annales des Ponts et Chaussees, i Trimestre, 1901. 3,500 words. 37. Powerful Dredger for Panama Canal; The Engineer, London, October 20, 191 1. Illustrated, 400 words. 38. Recent Dredge Construction, Paulmann and Blaum; Zeitschrift des Vereines Deutscher Ingenieure; June 19, 1909. Illustrated, First Part, 4,500 words. 39. Recent Improvements in Dredging Machinery. A. W. Robinson; Engi- neering News, December 4, 1886. 40. The Sea-going Bucket Dredge, Fedor Solodoff, A. V. Overbeeke; Zeit- schrift des Vereines Deutscher Ingenieure, April 7, 1906. Illustrated, 1,500 words. 41. A Sea-going Bucket Dredge, Dr. Alfred Gradenwitz; International Marine Engineering, November, 1907. Illustrated, 1,600 words. 42. Stern Delivery Dredger on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal; Engineering, London, June 16, 1893. Rock Excavators: 1. Current Practice in Blasting and Dredging, W. L. Saunders; Engineering- Contracting, April 24, 1912. 6,500 words. 2. The Lobintz Rock Dredge; Engineering News, January 16, 1889. 3. The Method of Operating a Lobintz Cutter in Canal and Harbor Works, Lindon Bates, Jr.; Engineering-Contracting, December 18, 1907. 2,500 words. 4. Methods and Costs of Operating Lobintz Rock Breakers and Drill Boats on the Panama Canal, S. B. Williamson; Engineering-Contracting, May 29, 1912. 1,500 words. 5. Methods and Costs of Rock Excavation in the Harbors of Aviales, San Esteban de Praria and Port de Bilbao, Spain; Engineering- Contracting, June 19, 1912, 4,000 words. 6. Methods of Subaqeous Rock Excavation, Buffalo Harbor, N. Y; Engineer- ing News, July 6, 1905. Illustrated, 1,000 words. 7. Methods of Submarine Rock Drilling with Drill Boats, with Records of Performance, Detroit River Improvement; Engineering-Contracting, October 9, 1912. 8. The Operation of Rock Breakers at Black Rock Harbor; Engineering Record, January 7, 1911. 9. Removal of Subaqeous Rock at Blythe, George Duncan McGlashan; Trans- actions of the Institution of Civil Engineers, 1907. Illustrated, 4,000 words. 10. A Review of Methods Employed for Removing Subaqeous Rock, Michael Koch; Engineering-Contracting, May 29, 1912. 3,000 words. 11. Rock Excavation by Mechanical Power Instead of Explosions; Engineer- ing News, June 25, 1908. 2,200 words. 224 FLO A TING EXCA VA TORS 12. A Subaqeous Rock-cutter Dredger, Benjamin Taylor; International Marine Engineering, April, 1908. Illustrated, 1,500 words. 13. Subaqeous Rock Removal, B. Cunningham; Cassier's Magazine, March, 1908. Illustrated, 2,500 words. 14. A Submarine Rock Excavator, Charles Graham Hepburn; Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers, 1906. Illustrated, 1,000 words. C. HYDRAULIC OR SUCTION DREDGES 90. Field of Work. In recent years, the vast improvements in the rivers and harbors of this country have led to the development of the hydraulic dredge. The reclamation of the great tidal marshes and the removal of sand bars along the Atlantic and Pacific Coasts and the cleaning out of channels in the Mississippi River are being con- stantly carried on by large dredges, which are largely under govern- ment supervision. The best field for this type of dredge is the re- moval of soft material such as sand, silt and loose clay. It does not work well in hard material or where there are stumps, stones, logs or similar obstructions. 91. General Description. The essential parts of a hydraulic dredge are a centrifugal pump and the power to drive it, all of which are suit- Side View of Hydraulic Dredge. Figure 103. ably mounted on a floating barge or hull. Attached to the pump is the suction pipe with a flexible, movable joint, so that the lower or outer end can be raised and lowered to any desirable depth. In some types of dredges a horizontal range is secured by swinging the hull of the HYDRAULIC DREDGES dredge from side to side by means of lines attached to shore anchors. In the Von Schmidt type of hydraulic dredge, the suction pipe which extends from the end of the hull is placed on a table which rotates on a circular track. By rotating the table the suction pipe may be re- volved through an angle of 120 degrees. The pipe is made of wrought iron or steel, in sections which can be tele- scoped; the lower and smaller sections sliding up into the upper and larger ones. At the lower end of the suction pipe is placed the mouth pipe, which consists of a circular hood. On the periphery of this hood are generally placed a series of knives, which form a revolving cut- ter. This is made to revolve by a shaft and gearing as shown in Figs. 109 and in. By use of the cutter the material to be excavated is loosened up and dis- integrated and by dilution with the water is readily sucked up by the pump, through the suction pipe. The cutters thus allow the use of this type of dredge in the excavation of a very stiff or hard clay. A water jet has in some cases been used to remove and dissolve the material at the end of the suction pipe, but this detail has recently been chiefly supplanted by the revolving cutter. Figures 103 and 104 show the detail design of a standard 15- to i6-in. hy- draulic dredge made by the Norbom Engineering Company of Philadelphia, Pa. 225 15 Plan of Hydraulic Dredge. Figure 104. 226 FLOATING EXCAVATORS PUMP The most important element in the construction of a hydraulic dredge is the pump, which draws the excavated material up through the suction pipe and then discharges it through the discharge pipe to barges or to spoil banks on the shore. The pump is the governing factor in determining the efficiency of a dredge. The centrifugal pump is used exclusively for this work on account of its being of a rough and adaptable type of construction and range and ease of operation. Where large quantities of solid material pass through the pump (as high as 70 per cent, solids are often pumped) it is neces- sary to use a pump which does not require close adjustment of parts and where the parts are few in number, simple in operation and easy of replacement. A centrifugal pump consists of a shell of circular form with two apertures, one on the periphery, the other at the center of one side. Inside this shell or outer casing revolves a set of vanes mounted on a shaft which extends transversely through the center of the casing. These vanes are the only part of the pump subject to great wear and the casing is generally constructed in two sections so that the top half can be removed and the shaft and runner taken out. In the so-called Edwards Cataract Pump, provision is made for the repair of the runner in the following manner. The vanes are made in two parts; the inner section, which is made as a part of the shaft and extends two-thirds of the distance from the shaft to the inside of the casing, and the outer section, which is a piece of metal bolted to the inner section and forming an extension to the vane. The bolts pass through slots in the extension plate and this allows the plate to be forced to one side or bent away from a heavy body (such as a stone or piece of metal) which may come in contact with it. This prevents the breakage of the runner as a whole. The plates are made of light iron and can be easily replaced at a small cost by the removal of a hand-hole cover on the casing and the bolting on of a new plate. The opening in the periphery of the casing is the admission orifice to which the suction pipe is attached and through which the material enters to the casing. The steel suction pipe is generally 15 in. to 30 in. in diameter and varies in length from 10 to 60 ft. To the side opening of the casing is attached the discharge pipe, which varies in diameter from 6 to 48 in. The following table gives the sizes and nominal capacities of a type of centrif uga 1 pump especially made for dredging. HYDRAULIC DREDGES 227 TABLE XXIII SIZES OP CENTRIFUGAL PUMPS Diameter of Capacity, gallons Capacity, cubic Horse-power re- discharge, per feet per quired for each foot inches minute second of total head 6 880 1.965 0.446 8 1,565 3-495 0.794 10 2,450 5-45 1. 192 12 3,525 7.85 1-655 15 5,5oo 12.25 2.49 18 7,920 17-65 3-47 20 9,780 21.8 4.14 24 14,100 3 x -4 5-75 30 22,000 49-0 8.71 36 31,700 70.7 12. 18 42 43,200 96. 2 16. 10 48 56,350 125-5 20.45 The above capacities and horse-power are based upon a velocity of discharge of 10 ft. per second. For other velocities the capacities would be in proportion. Fig. 105. shows a 2o-in. centrifugal pump of the type used on the hydraulic dredges operating on the New York State Barge Canal. ENGINES The pump of a hydraulic dredge is generally direct connected to a steam engine of the vertical, marine type. For the small sizes and capacities compound engines are used, but where the en- gines are designed for hard service and to operate against high heads, the triple-expansion type is used. All marine engines for pumping service should be in excess of the requirements. They should be provided with extra large bearing surfaces and with an automatic sight-feed oil service which will allow for continuous operation. The crank shaft should be forged out of one piece of steel and especial care taken in the welding of the vanes at their junction with the shaft. The size and constructional details of the engine used depend on the size of the dredge and the work to be done. Further detailed information concerning engines, as well as the other parts of a hydraulic dredge will be given later in the descriptions of some hydraulic dredges and their work. 228 FLOATING EXCAVATORS Centrifugal Pump of Hydraulic Dredge. Figure 105. Machinery of Hydraulic Dredge. Figure 106. HYDRAULIC DREDGES 229 Figure 106 shows the winch machinery of a 2o-in. Bucyrus hy- draulic dredge, used for hoisting the spuds, raising the ladder, swinging the dredge, etc. HULL The hull of a hydraulic dredge is rectangular in shape and with a length of about 3! times the width. The draft is made as small as possible and generally varies from 3 to 9 ft. This requires a depth of hull varying from 6 to 15 ft. The size of the hull depends on the capacity of the dredge. The hulls are constructed of both steel and wood, but experience has shown that steel is preferable on account of its greater strength, less cost of maintenance, and its ability to withstand the pounding and vibratory strains of the machinery. Cross frames of steel or wood are spaced from ij to i\ ft. on centers and connect the keelsons and deck beams. The framework is covered with steel plates or heavy wooden planking. The machin- ery is generally placed on a lower deck, while a superstructure or deck house extends over the greater part of the length and contains the living quarters for the crew and the operating house at the for- ward end. SPUD FRAME At the stern is placed a trapezoidal-shaped frame which suspends two vertical spuds by means of sheaves and cables leading to the engine drums. The spuds are generally single timbers of Douglas fir, long leaf pine or oak and are of sufficient length to reach the bottom of the excavation during high water. BOILER The prime mover is either steam or electricity. Steam is generated by boilers usually of the Scotch marine type. Where electricity is used the power is supplied either from a steam engine or from a power station independent of the dredge. The latter method of operation is the more economical and the more convenient to use when the dredge is operating near a steam or hydro-electric power plant. DISCHARGE PIPE The discharge pipe line extends from the pump through the stern of the hull and consists of iron or steel pipe varying in diameter from 12 to 48 in. The pipe is supported on wooden or steel pontoons, and the adjacent sections of pipe are connected by heavy rubber sleeves 230 FLO A TING EXCA VA TORS fitting over the bell-shaped ends of the pipe. In recently built dredges, the joints of the discharge pipe have been formed into an iron ball- and-socket joint. Longitudinal and lateral stresses are controlled and relieved by steel springs, arranged somewhat as in the draft rigging of railway cars. Fig. no shows a discharge pipe of a dredge operating on the New York Barge Canal. In order to give the reader a clearer idea of the detailed construction of hydraulic dredges, which have been used in canal excavation, the following descriptions of dredges used recently on the N. Y. State Barge Canal and for the reclamation of land in Lincoln Park, Chicago, Illinois, are offered. Space in this chapter does not allow of descrip- tions of other dredges which are of especial interest and have been highly successful in river and harbor work. The reader is urged to read carefully the exhaustive paper by Mr. J. A. Ockerson on " Dredges and Dredging on the Mississippi River," contained in the Transactions of the American Society of Civil Engineers, Vol. XL (December, 1898). A condensed resume of this valuable paper is given in Engineering News, Vol. XL, No. 15 (October 13, 1898). 9 1 a. Use on New York State Barge Canal. During 1907 and 1908 two hydraulic dredges were in operation near Oneida Lake, New York, Cutter and Suction Pipe of Hydraulic Dredge. Figure 107. in the construction of a section of the New York State Barge Canal. These dredges were the "Oneida" and the "Geyser" and each will be HYDRAULIC DREDGES 231 described separately as each contained many individual and peculiar details, although they were both very similar in general design. The "Geyser" was provided with a hull having a length of 96 ft., width of 29 ft., and drew 9 ft. of water. The dredge was so constructed as to excavate material to a depth of 19 ft. below the water surface and discharge the excavated material through the pontoon pipes, at a dis- tance of 1,500 ft. and to a shore elevation of 25 ft. above water. At the bow of the boat a steel frame of trapezoidal shape supported the suction pipe and cutter head, the driving shaft and gearing. See Fig. 107. The steel girder was 33 ft. long and was pivoted at the inner end on one side of the elbow of the suction pipe and on the other side by a hollow pivot through which the cutter-shaft is driven by a counter- shaft geared to a 65 -h p. engine with double lo-in. by i2-in. cylinders. The pump used was a 2o-in. centrifugal, direct connected to a triple expansion engine of 450 nominal horse-power, which developed on occasions 550 h.p. on overload. The pump and engine were placed near the center of the hull. The steel discharge pipe was 20 in. in diameter and passed back on the port side to the stern of the boat, where a valve was placed to prevent backing up of the material. The pipe was in 32-ft. sections and was supported on pontoons, which were heavy water-tight casks. Heavy rubber sleeves were used to connect the ends of the sections of pipe. The boiler plant consisted of two B. & W. water- tube boilers, having a rated horse-power of 2#>, and used at about i6o-lb. pressure. One duplex pump furnished water under pressure to the pump stuffing box and cutter-head bearing. Two other duplex pumps were used to supply the boilers directly or through a 4oo-h.p. feed-water heater. The pumps were arranged to take suction either from cold water or the hot well, as did the injectors, one of which was used with each boiler. Electric current was supplied by a 6-kw. electric generator and furnished light for night work. The hoisting engine was provided with five drums and was operated by a double-cylinder engine of 45 h.p. Upon the forward shaft, the drums on each side swung the dredge and the center drum raised or lowered the suction ladder or boom. The two rear drums operated the two spuds at the stern of the hull. A winch head was placed at each side of the deck for mooring purposes. The pilot or operating house was placed directly over the engine and the operator by means of 12 levers had complete control of the hoisting and lowering of the ladder and the spuds, the swinging of the dredge and the speed of the cutter. 232 FLO A TING EXCA VA TORS "Oneida" excavated that section of the New York State Barge Canal commencing at the junction of Fish Creek and Oneida Lake and following the creek valley for a distance of about 5 miles. The material excavated was a loose sandy loam and in many places large quantities of quicksand were encountered. The depth of exca- vation at Oneida Lake was about 15 ft. and gradually increased to 25 ft. at the eastern end of the section. Hydraulic Dredge Operating on New York State Barge Canal. Figure 108. The dredge was one of two constructed by the New York Ship- building Company of Camden, N. J., for the Empire Engineering Corporation, which executed two contracts on the canal with these two excavators. See Fig. 108. The hull of the dredge was constructed of steel and had an overall length of 97 ft., beam width of 17.5 ft., molded depth to deck of 10 ft., and draft of 5.5 ft. The general shape of the hull was that of a huge rectangular box with the bilges rounded off. The frames were of 3-in. by 3-in. by i'V-in. angles, in one piece from keel to deck and spaced 21 in. c. to c. The reverse frames were of 2j-in. by 2^-in. by J-in. angles and followed the tops of the 10 by f-in. floor plates, every alternate one extending to the deck and the intermediate one extending to the lower stringers. The deck beams were 4i-in. by 3-in. by f-in. angles; one attached to each frame and crowned 3 in. in 1 Quoted from Engineering News, December, 5, 1907. HYDRAULIC DREDGES 233 the center of the vessel. The center keelson extended the full length of the hull and intercostal keelsons were used at the main engine foundations, where the hull was very strongly braced. The covering of the hull was steel plates f in. thick. The suction pipes were two in number and were made of steel plates and angles having a bearing on their upper sides for the cutter- shafts. The interior diameter of these pipes was ig| in., thus giving an area of 291 sq. in. The suction pipes extended from the centrifugal pump to the cutters at the outer ends. The steel plate, intermediate lengths of suction pipes, were connected to the pump by cast-iron breech pipes bolted to the pump and joined the pipes by heavy steel Cutter Heads and Suction Pipes of Hydraulic Dredge Operating on New York State Barge Canal. Figure 109. angle flanges. The breech pipes were connected at their forward ends to two Bates curved telescopic joints, the movable interior portions of which were bolted to the upper end of the ladders. These ladders were suspended by means of heavy brackets from trunnions, the axes of which were those of the telescopic joints. The cutter heads were mounted around and concentrically with the ends of the suction pipes and were 5.5 ft. in diameter and 3! ft. in height. Each cutter was composed of 12 knives of manganese steel, J in. thick. 234 FLOATING EXCAVATORS The cutters and ladders were raised and lowered by two sets of blocks having five sheaves in each block and using f-in. wire rope. The power to operate the ladders was furnished by two independent, compound, vertical, reversing engines of 100 h.p. each. These engines were located back to back in the forward engine room. In the same engine room were located a service pump, electric light plant and blower engine. The service pump was used as an auxiliary feed pump and discharged to the boilers, ladder and cutter-head bearings, fire service pipes and over board. On the supply of suction heads, it was connected to the hot well, canal, bilges and settling tank. Fig. 109 shows the cutters. The centrifugal pump was located in the after engine room and was provided with two suctions having a diameter of 19! in. and a discharge of 26 in. diameter. The casing of the pump was made in five pieces; a throat piece containing a steel knife, two upper and two lower segments. The runner was of cast steel and had a diameter of 6J ft. The pump was direct connected to a triple-expansion engine which developed 750 h.p. at a speed of 165 r.p.m., cutting off steam in the H. P. cylinder at about ^ of the stroke. The H. P. cylin- der had a diameter of 17 in., the I. P. cylinder a diameter of 25 in. and the L. P. cylinder a diameter of 42 in. The average stroke was 24 in. A separate engine was used to operate the two spuds at the stern of the hull. This engine was of the horizontal type with two cylinders 6|X8 in. Steam was supplied from two standard water-tube boilers, working at 2oo-lb. pressure and having a combined heating surface of 3,750 sq. ft. and a grate area of 95 sq. ft. The engine was compound geared and provided with reverse link motion. The drums were 1 8 in. in diameter and were controlled by a friction hand brake. Flat cables, 3X| in. were used and these were run at a speed of 40 ft. per minute. On the forward deck of the dredge was placed a two-cylinder steam winch with 8jXio-in. cylinders. There were two drums, each having a diameter of 18 in. and face width of 38 in. to hold 1,000 ft. of f-in. wire rope in four layers; and also two drums, each 24 in. in diameter and having a face width of 16 in., to hold 400 ft. of f-in. wire rope in three layers. The discharge pipe was supported on 16 intermediate and one terminal pontoon. It was also found necessary at times to use two HYDRAULIC DREDGES 235 pontoons, each 6 ft. wide, one on each side of the dredge, to secure necessary stability while in operation. See Fig. no. The excavation began October i, 1906 and was worked one eight- hour shift daily, during the early part of this month. Later, two eight-hour shifts were used and from November, 1906 on, three eight- hour shifts were used. The work of the dredge was in charge of a chief engineer and a chief operator. Following is the labor schedule for each eight-hour shift. Discharge Pipe of Hydraulic Dredge. Figure no. i operator, i engineer, i engineer, 3 firemen, i spudman, i oiler, 4 deckhands, @ $100.00 per month @ 100.00 per month @ 80 . oo per month @ 70 . oo per month each @ 60.00 per month @ 50.00 per month @ 50.00 per month each. Besides the above force was a gang which moved the discharge pipe and repaired the levees along the canal and behind which the spoil was deposited. An engineer or operator for the gasoline launch, which towed the fuel scow, and a night watchman, were also constantly employed. The following table gives the labor costs of excavation for this hydraulic dredge during the month of November, 1906: 236 FLOATING EXCAVATORS TABLE XXIV. COST OF LABOR FOR HYDRAULIC DREDGE Description No. of days Rate Amount i chief engineer i chief operator 30 30 $150.00 I 2 c QO $150.00 I 2 r OO 3 engineers 86 IOO OO 286 67 3 engineers 3 operators 86 86 80.00 IOO OO 229.33 286 67 9 firemen 3 spudmen . . . 258 86 70.00 60 oo 602 . oo 172 oo 3 oilers 86 SO. OO 14? . 7? 1 2 deckhands i night watchman i foreman i foreman 344 30 34i 37l 50.00 1. 60 3.00 2 OO 573-33 48.00 102.75 7C eo Laborers 1,056^ 1. 60 1,690.40 i engineer, tug 30 80.00 80.00 $4,574.98 Amount of excavated material, 144, 882 cu. yd. Cost of excavation, $4, 574. 98-1-144,822 =$0.0316 per cubic yard. The "laborers" were those in the gang employed in moving the discharge pipe and repairing the levees. gib. Use in Chicago. 1 During the seasons of 1907 and 1908, an extension to Lincoln Park of Chicago, Illinois, was made by filling in a large area with material excavated from the bed of Lake Michigan. A specially designed hydraulic or suction dredge was used. The material excavated was a stiff blue clay, mixed with gravel and stones. Part of the work was in water to a depth of 1 8 ft. and the dredge was designed exceptionally strong and seaworthy, so as to withstand the sudden and severe storms of the Lake. Fig. 112 gives a view of the dredge in operation. The hull was made of steel and had an overall length of 148 ft., a beam width of 38 ft., and a depth of loj ft. A superstructure or deck house extended over nearly the whole length of the hull and a pilot house was located near the front end and just above the deck house. An A-frame boom was hinged to the bow of the hull and was stayed back to a vertical fixed A-frame, placed a short distance Quoted from Engineering News, February 27, 1908. HYDRAULIC DREDGES 237 back on the hull, from the bow. From the point of the A-frame boom by means of sheaves and wire rope, was suspended the steel ladder frame, which carried the suction pipe. The ladder was 40 ft. View of Hydraulic Dredge showing Cutter, Cutter Frame and Gantry and Spuds and Spud Gantry. Figure in. Hydraulic Dredge Operating in Lincoln Park, Chicago. Figure 112. long, and by means of the suction pipe, excavation could be made to a depth of 32 ft. A large gallows frame, at the stern of the hull, was used to sus- pend the two spuds. The centrifugal pump was operated by a triple-expansion engine 238 FLOATING EXCAVATORS of 1,200 h.p. Steam was supplied by two Scotch Marine boilers, nJXiS ft., each boiler being provided with four furnaces. The suction pipe had a diameter of 30 in. and at its outer end a cutter was operated, which was a steel casting 9 ft. in diameter and weighing 9 tons. It was made up of eight blades, which curved out- ward and backward from the shaft and were bolted at their outer ends to a circular steel plate. The blades were equipped with Rear View of Hydraulic Dredge Operating in Lincoln Park, Chicago. Figure 113. renewable cutting edges of hard steel. The cutter was operated by an independent, tandem compound engine of 300 h.p. The discharge pipe was composed of riveted steel pipe having a diameter of 30 in. and in lengths of 93 ft. 6 in. The adjacent sections were connected by specially made ball-and-socket joints, provided with steel springs to relieve the joints from lateral and longitudinal stresses. Each length of pipe was supported between two 33-in. cylindrical steel pontoons about 100 ft. long. The pipe line and pontoons are shown in Fig. 113. During the season of 1907, the dredge worked 122^ days of 24 hours each, and the total excavation was 457,242 cu. yd. The HYDRAULIC DREDGES 239 maximum excavation per hour was 866 cu. yd. and the average was 426 cu. yd. per hour. The material pumped averaged 10 per cent, of solid matter. 92. Electric Power for Operation. In very recent years, the remarkable development of cheap electric power, and especially that of water-power, has led to the use of electric power in the opera- tion of dredges. As the water-power of our rivers becomes develop- ed and as the power facilities of the cities of the South and West are increased in size and number, it will be found to be more econo- mical to run an electric transmission line to the scene of a dredging project, rather than to haul coal or oil over long distances and bad roads from the nearest railroad station. Q2a. Use in Washington. As a recent example of the use of electric power in the operation of a hydraulic dredge, the following description of the dredge "Washington" will be given. This dredge was built by the Tacoma Dredging Company of Ta- coma, Washington, for the dredging out of the Puyallup River in Tacoma harbor. 1 The dredge was operated by electric power taken from one of the 60,000- volt, 6o-cycle, three-phase transmission lines of the Seattle Tacoma Power Company. This voltage was stepped down to 2,300 volts at a temporary substation, located near the scene of the work. From the substation the distributing circuit was carried on a temporary pole line along the water's edge. The switchboard panel in the pilot house of the dredge was connected to the distribut- ing circuit by a three-phase flexible cable, of sufficient capacity to transmit electric power equivalent to a total of 1,500 h.p. This cable was carried along the discharge pipe, from which it extended to the shore line at convenient points. The electrical equipment of the dredge provided for the operation of the cutter, the spuds, the pump and the several auxiliaries. The cutter was operated by a wound rotor type, i5o-h.p., 2,300- volt, 69o-r.p.m., semi-enclosed motor. A drum type reversing controller, with gird resistance, was used to operate the motor from the pilot house. The motor was equipped with a special bearing and was con- nected to the cutter by double reduction gearing. The whole equip- ment was designed to operate at the angle at which the cutter was operating, the normal position of operation being at an angle of about 45 degrees with the horizontal. 1 Quoted from the Electric Journal, March, 1910. 240 FLOATING EXCAVATORS The cutter was raised and lowered by a direct-connected hoist, which was driven by a so-h.p., 2 20- volt, two-phase, 85o-r.p.m., wound rotor type motor. This motor was also controlled from the pilot house by a drum type reversing controller with gird resistance. Two large timber, iron-shod spuds were located in the stern of the dredge. They served to brace the dredge as the cutter moved forward into the bed of the stream. By raising and lowering these spuds alternately, the dredge could Jbe swung in an arc and allow the cutting of a channel 40 to 50 ft. wide and from 10 to 15 ft. deep. The spuds were operated by a 6o-h.p., 2 20- volt, wound rotor type motor. The main suction pump was of the single-runner centrifugal type, operating at a speed of 460 r.p.m. It was located about amidships and connected by a rope drive to two 5oo-h.p., 2, 300- volt, self-con- tained wound rotor type motors. The two motors were operated in multiple on a single shaft. The discharge pipe was a 26-in. diameter, wooden-stave pipe and took care of a discharge of 21,000 gal. per minute. Several smaller motors of the squirrel-cage type were used for the operation of small auxiliaries, such as a lathe, an air pump, etc. This dredge was in operation a little over a year and worked very satisfactorily. The power equipment furnished a continuous load of from 900 to 1,250 h.p. for 24 hours a day and seven days a week. The dredge handled 30,000,000 gal. of a heavy solution of mud and water per 24-hour day. 93. Resume. The hydraulic dredge has been in use during the past 50 years. For many years its use was restricted to the removal of soft material such as sand, loose gravel, silt, mud, etc. It is doubtless the most efficient type of excavator for this purpose and has been used generally in this country on harbor work, on the Mississippi River, and for the filling in of large areas of waste lands. Recently, the hydraulic dredge has been adapted to the excavation of hard materials, such as clay, hard gravel, and stiff mud, by the use of a cutter. In the earlier designs the cutter head was simply an agitator to stir up and mix the loose material with water, so that it could be easily drawn into and up through the suction pipe. The present dredges use the cutter as an excavator to cut and loosen the harder material and force it into the suction pipe. This type of dredge has the peculiar advantage of being able to dispose of the excavated material at any side of the machine and at a considerable distance. This is of especial value in the filling in of low waste lands along rivers, harbors and lakes. BIBLIOGRAPHY 241 The hydraulic dredge is not an economical type of excavator to use in canal work and in the construction of levees. The material as it emerges from the discharge pipe contains so large a proportion of water that it will not remain in place unless retained behind artificial bulk- heads or banks. The capacity of and cost of excavation with a hydraulic dredge depend on local conditions. The dredge is generally built under special requirements and there are no general rules which can be applied to all cases. 94. Bibliography. For additional information, the reader is referred to the following: BOOKS i. Dredges and Dredging, by Charles Prelini, published in 1911 by D. Van Nostrand, New York., pages, 6 by 9 in., figures, cost $3. MAGAZINE ARTICLES Hydraulic Dredges. 1. The Bates Dredge for Calcutta; Engineering Record, June 9, 1900. Illus- trated, 2,000 words. 2. The Bates Electrically Driven Hydraulic Dredger; International Marine Engineering, May, 1909. Illustrated, 900 words. 3. "Beta," Hydraulic Suction Dredge on the Mississippi, Day Allen Willey; Scientific American, September 23, 1905. Illustrated. 1,000 words. 4. The Booth Improved Dredge Pump; Engineering News, March 26, 1892. 5. The Burlington Suction Dredge; Railway Age Gazette, August 25, 1911. Illustrated, 1,200 words. 6. Clay Cutting Hydraulic Dredger for the River Nile; Engineering, London, January 6, 1911. Illustrated, 700 words. 7. The Colorado River Silt Problem, the Dredge "Imperial" and Irrigation in Imperial Valley, California, F. C. Finkle; Engineering News, December f4, 1911. Illustrated, 5,000 words. 8. Combined Bucket and Suction Dredge; Nautical Gazette, October 19, 1905. Illustrated, 1,000 words. 9. The Cost of Hydraulic Dredging on the Mississippi River, Lieut. Col. C. B. Sears; Engineering Record, March 21, 1908. 1,200 words. 10. Cutting Machinery for Suction Dredgers; Engineering, London, May 23, 1902. Illustrated, 1,500 words. 11. The Danish Suction Dredge Graadyb, Axel Holn; International Marine Engineering, May, 1912. 300 words. 12. Design of Hulls for Hydraulic Cutter Dredges, E. H. Percy; International Marine Engineering, May, 1909. 1,700 words. 13. Dredger and Soil Distributor at the Manchester Canal; Engineering News, September 5, 1891. 14. Dredgers on the New York State Barge Canal; Engineering, London, September 22, 1911. 15. Dredges, A. Baril; Revue de Mecanique, March 31, 1907. 16. Dredges, R. Masse; Revue de Mecanique, August, 1900. 3,500 words. 16 242 FLOATING EXCAVATORS 17. Dredges and Dredging in Mobile Harbor, J. M. Pratt; Engineering-Con- tracting, March 20, 1912. 4,500 words. 18. Dredges and Dredging on the Mississippi River. J. A. Ockerson; Pro- ceedings of the American Society of Civil Engineers, June, 1898. Illustrated, 28,300 words. 19. Dredging by Hydraulic Method, G. W. Catt; Iowa Engineer, March, 1905. Illustrated, 3,500 words. 20. Dredging in New South Wales, Cecil West Dailey; Engineering, London, June, 1903. 1,200 words. 21. Dredging Machinery, C. H. Hoist; Le Ingenieur, November 30, 1901. 4,000 words. 22. Dredging Machinery, A. W. Robinson; Engineering, London. January 7 and 14, 1887. 23. Dredging Machines, John Bogart; Engineering, London, August 29, 1902. 24. Dredging New Haven Harbor, Edwin S. Lane; Yale Scientific Monthly, November, 1906. Illustrated, 1,500 words. 25. Dredging Operations and Appliances, J. J. Webster; Engineering News, July 16 and 23, 1887. 26. Dredging Plant for India; The Engineer, London, December 28, 1906. Illustrated, 800 words. 27. Dredging the Hooghly; The Engineer, London, July 13, 1906. Illustrated, 800 words. 28. Dredging, with Special Reference to Rotary Cutters, James Henry Apjohn; Engineering, London, June 19, 1903. 1,000 words. 29. An Electrically Operated Dredge; Engineering Record, June 6, 1908. Illustrated, 2,500 words. 30. An Electrically Operated Suction Dredger, W. T. Donnelly; International Marine Engineering, May, 1910. Illustrated, 1,200 words. 31. English and American Dredging Practices, A. W. Robinson; Engineering News, March 19, 1896. 1,900 words. 32. An Enormous Suction Dredge; Engineering Record, December 14, 1895. 1,800 words. 33. Experiences in the Operation and Repair of the Hydraulic Dredges on the Mississippi River, F. B. Maltby; Journal of the Association of Engineering Societies. 34. Feathering Paddle Wheels for U. S. Self-propelling Hydraulic Dredges; Engineering and Mining Journal, August 15, 1912. Illustrated, 1,500 words. 35. The Fruhling System of Suction Dredging, John Reid; Engineering News, March 5, 1908. Illustrated, 3,500 words. 36. Government Dredges for New York Harbor; Marine Engineering, July, 1904. Illustrated, 1,500 words. 37. High Powered Dredges and Their Relations to Sea and Inland Navigation, Linton W. Bates; Nautical Gazette, March 9, 1899. Illustrated. Serial. 38. Hopper Suction Dredger "Libana" for the Port of Liban; Engineering, London, January n, 1889. 39. The Hussey Delivering Dredge; Engineering News, June 13, 1895. 40. The Hydraulic Dredge " J. Israel Tarte," A. W. Robinson; Proceedings of Canadian Society of Civil Engineers, February 25, 1904. Illustrated, 6,000 words. BIBLIOGRAPHY 243 41. Hydraulic Dredge for Reclaiming Land for Lincoln Park, Chicago; Engineering News, February 27, 1908. Illustrated, 800 words. 42. Hydraulic Dredger for Burmah; Engineering, London, January 12, 1885. 43. Hydraulic Dredges, L. W. Bates; Engineering Record, September 24, 1898, 2,800 words. 44. Hydraulic Dredge used on the New York State Barge Canal, Emile Low; Engineering News, December 5, 1907. Illustrated, 1,200 words. 45. Hydraulic Dredging in the Pacific Division of the Panama Canal; Engineer- ing Record, April 2, 1910. Illustrated, 3,500 words. 46. Hydraulic Dredging in Tidal Channels, W. H. Wheeler; Engineering Record, February 4, 1899. 5,000 words. 47. Hydraulic Dredging; Its Origin, Growth and Present Status, W. H. Smyth; Journal of the Association of Engineering Societies, Vol. XIX, 1897. 10,000 words. 48. Hydraulic Dredging in New York Harbor; Railroad Gazette, August 28. 1891. 49. Hydraulic Dredging Machines, C. B. Hunt; Proceedings Engineers' Club of Philadelphia, March, 1887. 50. Hydraulic Dredging Steamer "Gen. C. B. Comstock"; Engineering News, April 23, 1896. 51. Hydraulic Suction Dredge for the Navigation Improvements of the Mis- sissippi River; Engineering News, April 23, 1896. 52. The Hydraulic Transmission of Dredged Material at San Pedro Harbor, California, H. Hargood; Engineering News, September 2, 1909. 53. An Improved Hydraulic Dredge; Engineering Record, March 27, 1897. 54. An Improved Suction and Force Dredge, H. V. Horn; Zeitschrift des Verienes Deutscher Ingenieure, February 17, 1900. Illustrated, 800 words. 55. The Improvement of the Mississippi River by Dredging, H. St. L. Coppee; Engineering Magazine, June, 1898. Illustrated, 4,500 words. 56. The Kretz Jet Dredge; Oesterreichisehe Monatsschrift fiir den Oeffent- lichen Bandienst, January, 1900. Illustrated, 3,000 words. 57. Light Draft Hydraulic Dredge; Marine Engineering. April, 1902. Illus- trated, 2,000 words. 58. A Light-draught Sand-pump Dredger; The Engineer, London, May 20, 1910. Illustrated, 1,500 words. 59. The Maintenance of Centrifugal Dredging Pumps; Engineering Record, April 20, 1901. 100 words. 60. Modern Dredging Machinery, R. Wels; Zeitschrift des Vereines Deutscher Ingenieure, March 22, 29, 1902. 7,500 words. 61. Modern Machinery for Excavating and Dredging, A. W. Robinson; Engineering Magazine; March and April, 1903. Illustrated, 7,500 words. 62. A New Flexible Connection for Suction Pipes of Dredges; Engineering Record, October 19, 1907. Illustrated, 1,000 words. 63. New Hydraulic Dredges for the Mississippi River Improvement; Engi- neering News, July 22, 1897. 64. A New Method of Applying Cutting Machinery to Suction Dredges, George Higgins; Practical Engineer, November 23, 1910. First Part, 3,500 words. 65. A New Pumping Dredge; Engineering News, January 30, 1886. 244 FLO A TING EXCA VA TORS 66. Notes on Hydraulic Dredge Design, M. G. Kindlund; International Marine Engineering, May, 1912. 3,000 words. 67. Plans for a Fruhling Suction-hopper Dredge, M. Popp; Schiffbau, May 8, 1912. 8 Plates, 4,000 words. 68. A powerful Prussian Hydraulic Dredge, H. Prime Kieffer; Iron Age, September 24, 1908. Illustrated, 2,000 words. 69. The Pumping Dredge used in Reclaiming Land, John Graham, Jr.; Engineering Record, February 13, 1892. 70. Recent Dredging Operations at Oakland Harbor, California, L.J.Le Conte; Transactions of the American Society of Civil Engineers, Vol. XIII, 1884. 71. Recent Improvements in Dredging Machinery, A. W. Robinson, Engi- neering News, December 4, 1886. 72. River and Harbor Dredging; Indian and Eastern Engineer, June, 1898. Illustrated, 2,400 words. 73. Russian Dredgers. A Bormann; Nautical Gazette, January n, 1906. 74. Sand-pump Dredgers, A. Geo. Syster; Engineering, London, June 16, 1890. 1,400 words. 75. The Sea-going Hydraulic Dredge "Bengaurd"; Engineering Record, Octo- ber 6, 1900. 1,000 words. 76. Sea-going Hydraulic Dredges for the East Channel Improvement, New York Harbor; Marine Engineering, June, 1901. Illustrated, 1,400 words. 77. Sea-going Suction Dredges, Thomas M. Cornbrooks; Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers, November, 1908. Plates, 500 words. 78. Self-propelling Hydraulic Dredge for the Mississippi River; Engineering News, May 31, 1900. Illustrated, 2,800 words. 79. Suction Dredge and Collector; Schweizerische Bauzeitung, September 16, 1899. Illustrated, 1,200 words. 80. Suction pump Dredger "Octopus" for the Natal Government; Engineer- ing, London, August 20, 1897. Illustrated, 700 words. 81. Two New Dredgers; The Engineer, London, December 30, 1910. Illus- trated, 500 words. 82. The io,ooo-ton Suction Dredger "Leviathan" for use on the Mersey; Scientific American, November 6, 1909. Illustrated, 1,700 words. 83. Twenty-inch Hydraulic Dredge "King Edward," A. W. Robinson; Cana- dian Engineer, March, 1903. Illustrated, 2,800 words. 84. Two Sea-going Suction Dredges; Marine Review, August 29, 1901. Illus- trated, 900 words. 85. U. S. Suction Dredge New Orleans; International Marine Engineering, May, 1911. Illustrated, 1,200 words. 86. The Van Schmidt Dredge, George Higgins; Proceedings of the Institute of Civil Engineers, Vol. CIV, 1890. CHAPTER VIII TRENCH EXCAVATORS 95. Classification. The rapid development of sanitary and drain- age engineering during the past quarter of a century has led to the general construction of sewer, water-supply and drainage systems. The large amount of trench excavation made necessary for the installa- tion of these improvements has led to the design of special excavators. In work of any magnitude, these machines are much more efficient and economical than hand labor. Trench excavators may be divided into two general divisions, viz: (1) Sewer and water-pipe trench excavators. (2) Drainage tile trench excavators. SECTION I. SEWER AND WATER-PIPE TRENCH EXCAVATORS 96. Classification. This class of excavators will be considered in five different groups or types, as follows: (a) The traveling derrick or locomotive crane; (b) the continuous bucket excavator; (c) the trestle cable excavator; (d) the tower cableway; (e) the trestle track excavator. A. THE TRAVELING DERRICK 97. General Description. The traveling derrick or locc motive crane is similar in construction and operation to the revolving shovel described in Chapter V. The machine consists essentially of a derrick and a double-drum hoisting engine mounted on a platform car. The smaller sizes of cranes are mounted on four-wheel trucks, equipped with either broad-tired wheels for ordinary road traction or with standard railroad wheels. The larger sizes of cranes, generally above ic-ton capacity, are mounted on two four-wheel trucks of the Standard M. C. B. railroad type. These trucks support a steel- frame platform equipped with drawbars for tha four-wheel type and with M. C. B. couplers, steam brake, train pipe, grab handles, steps, etc. The upper or swinging platform is pivoted to the lower or stationary 245 246 TRENCH EXCAVATORS one and by means of a gearing can be made to revolve in a circle. This platform is a steel frame, to the front end of which is hinged the boom. Behind the boom is placed the two engines and at the rear end the boiler or motor is set, if electric power is used. The machinery is generally housed to furnish a protection against the weather. It consists of two reversible link-motion vertical engines, which operate a moving gear for the propulsion of the machine, a reversible swinging gear to swing the upper platform and bucket and the drums for the handling of the bucket. Travelling Crane Equipped with Grab Bucket. Figure 115. The power used is either steam or electric. In the case of the former, a vertical type of steam boiler is used, and the steam is fed direct to the cylinders of the engine. Electric power is commonly used for street railway work and is cleaner, cheaper and smoother in operation than steam power. The equipment for an electrically operated crane would be similar to that for a revolving steam shovel. See Art. 28, Chapter V. The crane or boom is generally a latticed steel framework, widened out to the width of the platform at its lower end and narrowing to a sufficient width at the upper end to carry the sheaves. The boom may be raised and lowered by cables attached to its outer end from a winch on the engine. TRAVELING DERRICK 247 Wire cables lead from the engine drums out over the sheaves at the end of the boom and then down to the bucket or skip. A grab bucket of the clam-shell or orange-peel type may be used or a simple skip or bucket for the hoisting of excavated material. Fig. 115 shows a 20-ton crane with a grab bucket. This machine is being used on the Panama Canal. A scraper bucket may be used for the excavation of trenches or ditches. See account of such a machine given in Art. 47, Chapter VI. A drag line and separate drum must be used in this case. For descriptions of the various types of buckets see Art. 26, Chapter V, and Art. 44, Chapter VI. The following set of blank specifications of the Brown Hoisting Machinery Company of Cleveland, Ohio, give a general idea of the make-up of a standard type of locomotive crane with grab bucket. SPECIFICATIONS FOR FOUR-WHEEL, TON LOCOMOTIVE CRANE, SUPPLIED WITH GRAB-BUCKET EQUIPMENT See Clearance Sketch No and Photo No herewith For Gage of track '..... ft in. CAPACITY. The crane on above gage of track has power, strength and sta- bility to safely handle the following loads at the given radii, without the use of rail clamps or outriggers, and will swing these loads through a full circle, and will move the same along tracks with boom in any position: At radius Ib. At 15 ft. radius Ib. At 20 ft. radius Ib. At 25 ft. radius Ib. At 30 ft. radius Ib. At 35 ft. radius Ib. At 40 ft. radius Ib. At 45 ft. radius Ib. At 50 ft. radius Ib. Note. These lifting capacities are based on tracks being in good condition and with 16,000 Ib. counterweight in truck. By using track clamps (provided with crane) these lifting capacities are increased. If tracks are in bad condition, these capacities will be diminished. FUNCTIONS AND SPEEDS. The crane, under its own steam, to have the functions of hoisting, rotating, track travel, and boom lowering. The hoisting, traveling and rotating may be utilized simultaneously with full load or any fun- ction may be used independently, as desired, and at approximately the follow- ing speeds: Hoisting, grab bucket; full load, 140 ft. per minute. Hoisting, grab bucket; empty, 180 ft. per minute. 248 TRENCH EXCAVATORS Hoisting, full load with block on four-part line, 70 ft. per minute. Hoisting, empty hook on four-part line, no ft. per minute. Rotating, full load, when at specified radius, 4 complete turns per minute. Rotating, empty hook, 6 complete turns per minute. Track travel, full load on straight level track, 500 ft. per minute. Track travel, empty hook on straight level track, 600 ft. per minute. Possible grade, with full load. . . .per cent. Possible grade, with empty hook . . . .per cent. Minimum radius curve, 70 ft. Maximum draw-bar pull on straight level track Ib. GENERAL DESCRIPTION: The crane in general consists of a structural steel truck frame which sets on trucks, a heavy cast-iron truck bed, which is riveted and bolted into truck frame; a rotating bed and housings upon which engine and crab mechanism are mounted; a large heavy cast-iron combined counterweight and water tank, also used for boiler support; a boiler, engines, crab mechanism and boom. TRUCK FRAME AND TRUCKS. This frame is made of I-beams, plates and channels, and constructed to fit cast-iron truck bed and also form a convenient receptacle for counterweight. The entire crane is mounted on four wheels, 28 in. in diameter, having standard M. C. B. chilled treads, with axles forged from a special steel. Axles are 5-in. diameter in the journal, 6-in. in the wheel- seat, and with journals running in bronze half-boxes with large receptacles for oil. COUNTERWEIGHT. In the truck frame, space is provided for 16,000 Ib. of counterweight. This counterweight would consist of pig iron, punchings, scrap, etc. Note. This counterweight is always furnished by customer. ENGINES. These consist of a pair of vertical cylinders, Q-in. diameter, 7-in. stroke, coupled at right angles, and mounted on the housings. Engines have link-motion reversing gear, wide-ported slide valves, and are equipped with suitable lubricators, dripcocks, etc. Speed 350 r.p.m. under full load. The connecting rods, eccentric rods, valve stems and suspension pins are made of manganese bronze. Cylinders, guides and stuffing boxes are bored at same setting, thus insuring perfect alignment. Pistons can be removed without disturbing cylinder. Note. Vertical engines on locomotive cranes are preferable to horizontal, as they cause less vibration to the machine. This is noticeable when used on a bridge, trestle or other structure, which might be injuriously affected by any excessive vibratory action. BOILER. The boiler is of the vertical tubular type, possessing quick steaming qualities and large steam capacity. It is 54 in. in diameter and 8 ft. 3^ in. high. There are no tubes of seamless steel, each 2\ in. in diameter, with copper ferrules. The boiler has double-riveted vertical and single-riveted circular seams. The shell is of f -in. fire-box steel, and the heads of f-in. fire-box steel. The boiler has a large fire-box, is of ample capacity to supply steam for all conditions of work, and is fitted with best make of water-gage, steam-gage pop-safety valve, blow-off valve, etc., and injector for boiler feed. The entire boiler is heavily TRA VELING DERRICK 249 lagged with magnesia, with outside surface of sheet steel; working steam pressure, 100 Ib. HOISTING MECHANISM. Consists of a main or hoist drum, and a holding or shell-rope drum. The hoist drum is driven from a friction clutch on the main engine shaft through a train of cast-steel gearing with machine-cut teeth. The shell drum is driven from the hoist drum by a suitable slip friction. The amount of friction is controlled by an adjusting device on the end of the drum shaft, designed to maintain a slight tension on shell rope during the operation of closing and hoisting bucket. Both drums are of sufficient size to receive their respective ropes in a single layer; all overwinding and consequent wear of ropes is thus avoided. Each drum is provided with a brake of ample size, and all levers are within easy reach of operator, who has at all times perfect control of crane and bucket. Wood friction blocks between hoist and shell drum can be replaced in a few minutes' time without taking out drums. ROTATING MECHANISM. (Grafton's patent. The Brown Hoisting Machinery Co., sole licensees.) Consists of two friction clutches driving a train of gears, the last two of which are on a nickel-steel shaft; the pinion on the lower end of this shaft meshes into a slip-ring of large diameter, whereby rotating in either direction may be accomplished without reversing the engines. This slip-ring is made of non-welded forged steel like a locomotive tire, and has teeth cut in its periphery; said ring resting loosely on a properly turned bearing or seat on the upper surface of the truck bed. The upper surface of the slip-ring, which is beveled, forms the bearing or path for the conical rollers carrying superstructure. There are six of these rollers, four in front to take the thrust of the boom, carried in pairs by steel equalizers, and two in rear. The slip-ring is free to move in either direction, when the rotating clutch is thrown into gear, but is retarded in this motion by the frictional resistance between the ring and its seat, due to the weight of the crane superstructure and load resting on it. The action of the slip-ring is therefore that of a safety cushion when rotating the crane under light or heavy loads, and the resistance of the ring to rotating is directly proportional to the load hanging on the crane. These several parts are so nicely adjusted that by this simple means all tendency to shock is avoided, and rotation may be effected in either direction, or may be reversed as frequently and as quickly as desired, without any danger of breaking or even straining any part of the mechanism. Note. The gain in time and convenience to the operator by using this slip- ring is very apparent when the crane is seen in service. A crane thus constructed is far safer, more convenient, and more rapid in action than one not provided with such a frictional safety device, and our cranes, therefore, have an actual capacity of from 20 to 40 per cent, greater than any other crane, to say nothing of the reduced cost of repairs. TRAVELING MECHANISM. This mechanism is driven by a friction clutch on a shaft geared to the crank shaft and consists of a train of gears, one of the shafts of which passes down through the hollow center pin. This pin is the axis of rotation of upper part of crane. On the lower end of this shaft is a bevel pinion meshing with a bevel gear on a longitudinal shaft on the ends of which are bevel pinions that mesh with gears of truck-wheel axles. The truck-wheel axle gears are split and easily removable when making repairs. BOOM. Boom is built up of four heavy angles, securely latticed together in both horizontal and vertical planes. The two angles forming either side of boom 250 TRENCH EXCAVATORS are brought as near together at the ends as proper connection will permit and between these points the angles are bent to a parabolic curve. The greatest vertical depth of boom is therefore at the middle point of its length, and the parabolic curve of angles, relieving the lacing of all compressive stress, renders this the strongest shape possible. The angles forming the horizontal bracing are laced together in a vertical plane at alternate panels, forming diaphragms which rigidly maintain the rec- tangular cross-section of boom. The least horizontal width of boom is at the upper or head end and the greatest at the foot or lower end, where connection is made to rotating bed of crane, giving ample lateral stability when rotating the heaviest loads at maximum speeds. The boom may be lowered until head end is level with track without injury, thus rendering it practically impossible for the boom feet to be broken off by carelessness of operator. The head of boom is provided with a suitable pin carrying the sheaves for both hoisting and radius-varying ropes. The hoist rope sheaves are arranged to shift readily on pin so that when using a "Brown-hoist" bucket, it may be hung in such a way as to open either parallel or at right angles to the boom. This is an exceedingly valuable feature. All sheaves are provided with ample rope guards, which positively prevent the rope becoming fouled. The change from bottom block to bucket may be made in a very short time. RADIUS-CHANGING GEAR. This consists of a drum driven by worm gearing, from the main shaft, by means of a- positive clutch, which is held securely in place by a quadrant. The worm wheel is of bronze and worm of steel, both having cut teeth. The boom is supported from the drum by six parts of f-in. plow-steel wire rope running through equalizing sheaves. A clamp operates on the worm shaft to hold mechanism when clutch is thrown off. By running the engines in the proper direction, the radius may be varied from ft. maxi- mum to ft. minimum when equipped with grab bucket; and ft. maximum to ft in. when equipped with bottom block. GEARS. All gears are of steel and all spur gears have teeth cut from the solid. CLUTCHES. All clutches except radius-varying are of the disc friction type, built for rapid operation and designed and located for quick and easy adjustment. The adjustment of the clutch is only the matter of loosening one binding screw and turning adjusting nut to right or left as desired. This one-point adjustment insures uniform pressure over the whole face of the friction blocks. OPERATING LEVERS. The functions of hoisting, rotating and traveling are controlled by levers, one above the other, that move in a horizontal plane about a common vertical axis. These levers are conveniently located to be manipu- lated by the operator with the left hand. The shell brake lever is conveniently located to be handled with the right hand. The hoist brake is controlled by a foot lever. Reversing lever is about central on the operator's platfornTand is convenient for the operator to handle with the right hand. The clutch for boom hoist is controlled by a hand lever near the right-hand side of operator's plat- form. The throttle is controlled by hand levers, dropped down from the roof of the cab in front of the operator. There are three of these levers, one con- venient for the operator when in position to work the other levers, and one at TRAVELING DERRICK 251 each side of crane, so that when traveling backward, the operator can stand on either side, inside the cab, and look out the door in direction of travel and see that the track is clear. The operator's platform is raised up so that he can look over the drums and have a good view of his lift at all times. HALF CAB. A half cab, with roof over operator is furnished, consisting of light angle-irons covered with sheet steel. Note. A full cab, having, in addition to above, sheet steel sides and ends, with two sliding doors with windows, can be furnished when required, at addi- tional cost. DRAW BAR. A draw bar is supplied for coupling crane to railway cars, so that crane can be used to switch cars. Both ends of truck frame are equipped with necessary brackets to enable draw bar to be used at either end. WATER TANK. There is provided a cast-iron water tank with a capacity of gal. BOTTOM BLOCK. A bottom block is provided for use with crane when used for handling miscellaneous material. Block to have two sheaves and to hoist the load on four parts of rope. Sheaves to be of ample size for the diameter of rope used, to have machine turned score, and bronze bushing. Side plates of block to be made from soft steel plate. Hook to turn in a swivel cross-head. COAL SUPPLY. The crane coal bunker has a capacity of i,coo Ib. ROPES. All ropes are best grade of plow steel. TRACK CLAMPS. Four pairs of track clamps are furnished and suitably at- tached to the crane for clamping same to the rails at four points, to give addi- tional stability, or to hold crane on grades when necessary. TOOLS. There is provided with every crane, a complete set of firing tools, a flue cleaner, oil cans, wrenches, etc. CLEARANCES. Extreme height of crane, 16 ft. 2 in. Extreme width of crane, 10 ft. o in. Wheel base, 8 ft. o in. Rear overhang of rotating parts, 9 ft. ic4 in. Note. Where absblutely necessary, the height of crane can be reduced to 14 ft. o in. by removing the stack, which is bolted. GRAB BUCKET. The equipment includes a Brown patent two-rope grab bucket of cu. ft. capacity, suitable for handling MATERIAL. The material entering into the construction is the very best obtainable. Exhaustive tests, together with years of experience in building locomotive cranes, has enabled us to determine exactly the kind and grade of material best suited for each detail. WORKMANSHIP. The workmanship on these cranes throughout is of the highest order. Holes are bored to micrometer sizes and details made to gages, thus insuring positive duplication of parts when needed for repairs. Shafts are of best grade of forged steel enlarged in diameter where press or drive fits are used. This practice insures parts intended to be a tight fit, remaining so, as well as facilitates making repairs by avoiding the necessity of driving the part to be removed, more than the length of the fit; and from that point it can be removed with the hands. All parts of these cranes are subjected to a rigid inspection in detail, during the process of machining, as well as a general in- spection after assembling and during tests, which are given all cranes before shipment. 252 TRENCH EXCAVATORS WEIGHT. Total weight of crane and bucket, without counterweight, coal or water, is approximately Ib. With counterweight Ib. LETTERING. Cab will be lettered and numbered to suit purchaser. ALL-RAIL SHIPMENT. For all-rail shipment, the crane is shipped assembled as far as possible, in a drop-end gondola car; the only detached parts being the boiler, boiler fittings, boom and ropes, these together with the bucket being loaded in a separate gondola car accompanying the crane. The injector, valves, etc., are boxed and strapped to the car floor. OCEAN SHIPMENT. For ocean shipment, the crane would be "knocked down" and boxed. All parts to be properly marked to facilitate assembling. All packages marked with customer's mark, contents, gross and net weights and dimensions, and numbered from one up. Slings are made on all heavy packages to avoid breakage and assist in handling. Shipping and detail packing lists to be furnished at time of shipment. An extra charge is made for this boxing for export. CATALOGUE OF PARTS, ETC. With each crane a book of photographs, showing all crane parts, properly numbered, is supplied. Printed instructions, covering the erecting of the crane, its care and operation are furnished. THE BROWN HOISTING MACHINERY CO. By... 191- 97a. Use in Indiana. 1 A simple form of locomotive crane was used during the season of 1908 for the excavation of a sewer trench in Gary, Indiana. The excavator consisted of a J-cu. yd. Hayward orange-peel bucket operated by a 25-h.p. hoisting engine and a separate swinging engine. The whole machine was mounted on a heavy platform supported on rollers and moved ahead by means of a wire cable attached to a "dead man" ahead. The trench had a rectangular cross-section of 30 ft. width and a depth of 12 ft., and in the bottom was a secondary rectangular channel, 10 ft. wide and 4 ft. deep. The material excavated was a fine lake sand and the last 3 to 4 ft. of excavation was in water. The labor schedule was as follows: i Engineer @ $6 per day i foreman @ $3.50 per day 5 laborers @ $1.50 per day The work was commenced on April 2, 1908, and the first 1,830 ft. were completed May 31, 1908. The machine was shut down five days for repairs and a night crew worked 13 extra shifts, so that a total of 51 shifts or working days were used for this work. The following table will give the cost of the work: Abstracted from Engineering- Con tracting, July 15, 1908. TRAVELING DERRICK 253 Labor: i engineer @ $6, $306.00 i foreman @ $3.50, 178.50 5 laborers @ $1.50, 382.50 Extra labor of engineer and fireman for 5 days making repairs, 47. 50 Total labor expense, $914.50 Fuel and Supplies: Coal, Oil, waste and repairs, Total, $320.00 Grand total expense, $1,234.50 Total amount of excavation, 21,250 cu. yd. Cost of excavation; $1234. 50-^21, 250 = $. 058 per cubic yard. 97b. Use in Kentucky. ^hree Browning locomotive cranes were used during the season of 1910 in the excavation of a large sewer trench in Lousville, Kentucky. The trench was 2,723 ft. long, the average depth of excavation was 22.4 ft., and the average amount of excavation per linear foot of trench was 12.25 cu - yd. The material excavated consisted of blue and yellow clay to a depth of 6 ft., yellow clay and loam for the next 6 to 1 2 ft. and this was underlaid with fine and coarse sand. The excavators were lo-ton Browning locomotive cranes, one of which was equipped with an automatic orange-peel bucket of i cu. yd. capacity and one with an automatic clam-shell bucket of J cu. yd. capacity. The cranes ran on a standard gage track of 60- and 65-lb. rails. The cranes operated as follows: Crane No. i, equipped with an Owens clam-shell bucket, moved along the trench and excavated the first 10 to 12 ft. The sheeting was started as soon as practicable and Crane No. 2, equipped with a f cu. yd. bucket, followed and re- moved the balance of the cut to grade. The excavated material with the exception of the sand was dumped into a spoil bank along the opposite side of the trench from the track. The sand was dumped into a screen and used for concrete. Crane No. 3, brought up the rear and did all the back-filling and pulling of sheathing and timbering. The following are the labor costs per working day of 10 hours: 1 Abstracted from Engineering-Contracting, June 29, 1910. 254 TRENCH EXCAVATORS CRANE No. i i engineer, $3.50 i fireman, 2.00 i tagman, 1.75 i signalman, 1.75 Total labor cost, $9 . oo Average excavation, 200 cu. yd. Cost of excavation for labor, $0.045 per cubic yard. CRANE No. 2 i engineer, i fireman, i foreman, 8 laborers, @ $1.75, Total labor cost, $21 . 50 Average excavation, 225 cu. yd. Cost of excavation for labor, $0.095 P e ? cubic yard. CRANE No. 3 i engineer, i fireman, i signalman, Total labor cost, $7.25 Average excavation, 500 cu. yd. Cost of excavation for labor, $0.0145 per cubic yard. The average amount of coal used per crane per day was 1,200 Ib. at a cost of $4 a ton. About 160 gal. of water were used per crane a day. The cranes cost $5,000 each and annual interest and depreciation was allowed for at the rate of 15 per cent. B. THE CONTINUOUS BUCKET EXCAVATOR There are several makes of machines built on the principle of the continuous excavator or ladder dredge, which are used for the excava- tion of trenches with vertical sides, widths of from 12 to 78 in. and depths up to 20 ft. Three of the best known will be described. 98. Parsons Traction Trench Excavator. This excavator is built by the G. W. Parsons Co. of Newton, Iowa, and is commonly used on trench work for sewer and water pipes throughout the central West. The machine consists of two frames, the rear and main frame is sup- PARSONS TRENCH EXCAVATOR 255 ported on four steel broad-tired wheels and carries the engines, the boiler, coal box and water tank, the front frame is supported on two steel wheels and its rear end is attached to the main frame while the front end carries the digging ladder. The two frames are hinged to- gether so that in moving over hilly or uneven ground the ladder may Parsons Trench Excavator. Figure 116. be kept to grade and in a fixed position. The entire machine is built of steel and weighs from 22 to 24 tons, depending on the width of the buckets. Fig. 116 shows the construction of the excavator. The coal box and water-tank are made of steel plates and are carried on the rear of the main frame over the rear wheels. They are of suf- ficient capacity to carry fuel and water for one-half day's work. The boiler is placed on the central portion of the main frame and is 256 TRENCH EXCAVATORS a vertical tubular boiler of standard make. The engines are set in front of the boiler and nearly over the central wheels of the machine. These are of the single cylinder vertical type and supply power through gears and sprocket chains to the bucket chain, the disposal conveyor and the central axle for traction. A triangular steel framework is supported from the front of the front frame and carries the bucket chain on three sets of sprocket wheels. The chain is made up of 22 to 24 buckets connected together by heavy steel links. As will be seen from Fig. 117, each bucket is made up of four sections, the first section having five teeth bolted to it and the Bucket of the Parsons Trench Excavator. Figure 117. other sections forming the body of the bucket to contain the ex- cavated material. The sections are each connected to the links by steel pins which give flexibility and readily conform to the excavation of material of varying density and easily dump the material, always leaving the bucket clean. The excavating ladder swings automatically from one side to the other of the rear frame and thus with the smaller size of machine trenches with widths from 29 to 60 in. may be dug. With the larger machine a width of trench up to 78 in. can be excavated. This has PARSONS TRENCH EXCAVATOR 257 the advantage of varying the width of cut without changing the buckets and also the making of a manhole at any point without delay. When obstructions are met during the excavation of a trench, such as boulders, roots, etc., the excavating wheel may be raised over them and fed down into the earth on the other side. While in operation the excavator occupies a space of 8 ft. at the top and 3 ft. at the bottom of the trench. The rear of the chain is in nearly a vertical position and pipe can be laid to within 3 ft. of the face of the trench. This face or head has a slope of 4 ft. in a depth of 20 ft. Q8a. Cost of Operation. The manufacturers, as a result of several years' use of their machines, have compiled the following table of com- parison between machine and hand labor in trench excavation: HAND WORK Foreman, Per day, $4 . oo Timberman, Per day, Helper, Per day, Pipe layer, Per day, Helper, Per day, 40 laborers @ $2 . oo Per day, Total, $95-00 MACHINE WORK Engineer, Per day, $4.00 Fireman, Per day, 2.50 Coal, Per day 5.00 Oil and waste, Per day, i . oo Water, Per day, i . oo Team, Per day, 4.00 Foreman, Per day, 4 . oo Pipe layer, Per day, 3.00 Helper, Per day, 2.50 Timberman, Per day, 3.00 Helper, Per day, 2 . 50 2 teams back-filling," @ $4 Per day, 8 . oo 2 Helpers, @ $2 Per day, 4.00 Total, $44-50 Interest, depreciation and repairs, $10.00 Total for machine work, $54 50 Total for hand work, $95 -o Saving per day, $40. 50 On the assumption that by hand labor each man excavates 7 cu. 17 258 TRENCH EXCAVATORS yd. per day, a total excavation of 3 1 5 cu. yd. per day will be made. On a trench 28 in. wide and 12 ft. deep, this crew will dig 315 lin. ft. of trench per day. At 7 cents per cubic yard for back-filling, the latter will cost $22 for the return of the 315 cu. yd. to the trench. This will make a total cost of $117 for a day's work. Assuming that the machine excavates 250 lin. ft. of the same size trench in a day's work of 10 hours duration, the cost of operation, fuel, oil, waste, water, interest on investment, repairs and depreciation will be $25. The cost of laying pipe, timbering trench, back-filling trench, etc., will amount to $29.50 per day, making the total cost $54.50. The above statement indicates that during a lo-hour day an excavator will do about 80 per cent, of the amount of trench excava- tion which can be done by hand labor at about 60 per cent, of the cost. 99. Chicago Trench Excavator. This excavator is made by the F. C. Austin Drainage Excavator Company of Chicago, Illinois. The following table gives the general data of the trench excavators made by this Company. Sizes Nos. oco, oo, Special oo and o are generally used in drainage tile work and will be described in Division II of this chapter. This excavator consists of a steel frame carrying the machinery and at the rear end the excavating chain and its framework. The platform is made up of steel I-beams strongly framed together and supported on four broad-tired wheels. For soft soil excavation the two rear wheels are generally replaced by rolling platform tractors. The boiler is mounted on the front part of the platform and generally of the horizontal, locomotive type. On the top of the boiler is placed a single-cylinder, reversible engine. See Fig. 118. The main shaft of the engine is belt-connected to a shaft on the rear of the frame. On this latter shaft is a sprocket wheel connected with a link-belt driving-chain to the shaft at the head of the cutter frame. Similar vertical chains drive the bevel gears which operate the belt conveyor. A sloping frame extends over the rear of main platform, made up of two channels braced at intervals with cross-pieces. This frame supports the upper end of the excavating chain which is pivoted to a shaft above the rear end of the main platform. The excavating chain is carried by a steel frame with a length of about 20 ft. pivoted (as noted before) at its upper end and free at its lower end. The shafts at the ends of this frame are provided with hexagonal sprocket wheels over which move a pair of endless link-belt chains. These CHICAGO TRENCH EXCAVATOR 259 o J= * o .P S 4 P i- 53 888888888 ^ a bo ^ oo o n- Ti- 10 TJ- o "5 S a? S . "b "o v o "o "o v o "o "o "b 53 rt ^ KH fi > O M H 'S -3 "5 *b ' S HMH- *0 <0 ^i^J.. % w o T3 s Sr*5"5* ^i^^^^^i" 2,*b WOiO ^-^Tj-rfTi-vO HMM^ CSCSWW^" > ^ ^3 II oovbooooo*b a 73 Ooo OO otoioioo M M H M M aj a oo ^ vo o o o H N co ro . uo LO 1 a S I CA> oo 10 to to o H 0* CO PO Tj- 1 J c^ 8 gO^OMMMMQ C^ 260 TRENCH EXCAVATORS Chicago Trench Excavator. Figure 118. Chicago (Austin) Trench Excavator Digging a Trench 26 inches wide and 15 feet deep. Figure 119. CHICAGO TRENCH EXCAVATOR 261 chains are made up of steel drop-forged links connected by cross bars and the steel cutters or scrapers. See Figs. 1 18 and 119. The scrapers are made oval in shape and extend slightly beyond the sides of the chains to trim the side of the trench and give clearance for the cutter frame. At the rear end . of the inclined frame are two vertical bars, the lower ends of which are attached to the cutter frame. These bars have racks on one side, and are operated by pinions driven by gears. The lowering of these bars forces the excavating chain into the soil and furnishes a crowding motion for keeping the chain always against the face and bottom of the trench. The excavating chain is of the up-digging type, similar to all chain and wheel machines in general use at the present time. The cutters travel up along the face or head of the trench removing a thin slice of material as they move up- ward. At the top sprocket the buckets turn over and deposit the excavated material on a moving belt conveyor. The latter carries the material to one side of the trench and deposits it in a spoil bank. The depth of cut is regulated by raising and lowering the free end of the frame. When obstructions are met with in the trench, the chain may be raised over them and fed down into the earth on the other side. This excavator will dig trenches with widths of from 24 to 72 in. and up to a depth of 20 ft. The front axle carries a sprocket wheel driven by a link-belt chain. The traction speed of the machine when in operation is given in Table XXV on page 259, and when moving over ordinary streets with the excavating wheel raised, the speed is about i mile per hour. 9Qa. Use in Illinois. Two Chicago Sewer Excavators were used in Glencoe, Illinois for the excavation of trenches for a sewer sys- tem. The following gives a statement of the character of the work done: 15,500 lin. ft. of 8-in. pipe from 8- to i2-ft. cut. 5,600 lin. ft. of ro-in. pipe from 7- to i3-ft. cut. 250 lin. ft. of i2-in. pipe of about i3-ft. cut. 1,000 lin. ft. of i5-in. pipe of about i6-ft. cut. 4,700 lin. ft. of i8-in. pipe of shallow to 30-ft. cut. The deepest cut of 30 ft. was made by grading down the street 3 to 4 ft. and then using the excavator for the next 25 ft. The re- maining foot or two was removed by hand in the bottom of the trench and the earth thrown into the boom or back upon the laid Abstracted from Engineering-Contracting, April 5, 1911. 262 TRENCH EXCA VA TORS pipe. The width of trench cut was 33 in., the sides were cut smooth and vertical and braced with vertical plank and pack screws placed about 3 ft. apart in the deep trenches. The soil excavated was a hard clay. The upper 1 5 ft. was a brown- ish clay with slight traces of sand. During the fall and winter months this material became hard, too hard to be dug by hand without the use of a pick. The excavator removed stones up to i ft. in size when wholly within the trench. When partly outside of the trench or when stones of larger size were encountered, they were removed by blasting. The ground was frozen at times up to a depth of from 14 to 16 in. but did not delay the work. The work was carried on from August i, 1910, to January i, 1911. The following table gives the cost per day for the excavation of a trench 25 ft. deep, the laying of i8-in. pipe and back-filling. i foreman, $8.00 Excavating machine including operator, 40.00 i engineer, 4.00 1 fireman, 3-co 5 trenchmen @ $3, 15.00 20 laborers, back-filling @ $2.50, 50.00 2 teams @ $6, 12.00 Coal, 5 . oo Repairs and sundry expenses, 10.00 Total, $147.00 Length of trench excavated per day, So ft. Cost of work, $1.837 per lineal foot. 100. Buckeye Traction Ditcher. This excavator is made by the Buckeye Traction Ditcher Company of Findlay, Ohio. A descrip- tion of it is given in Division 2 of this chapter. looa. Use in Colorado. A Buckeye ditcher, equipped with a 28-in. by 7^-ft. excavating-bucket chain, was used in the excava- tion of the earth section of a trench for a wooden water-pipe line in Greeley, Colorado. The trench was 30 in. wide and 4 ft. deep and about 35^ miles long. The material for 8 miles was gravel, occasionally cemented together and containing many stones. For the remainder of the distance, the material was a tough clay. The following data gives the amount of excavation, cost of opera- tion of ditcher and of excavation. Total length of ditch excavated, 188,080 ft. Total amount of excavation, 69,659 cu. yd. BUCKEYE TRACTION DITCHER 263 Total time employed, 300 lo-hour days. Maximum excavation in gravel, per day, 370 cu. yd. Maximum excavation in clay, per day, 925 cu. yd. Average daily excavation, 232 cu. yd. Average daily progress, 627 lin. ft. Labor: i engineer @ $5 per day, $1,500.00 3 helpers @ $3 per day, 2,700.00 Total labor cost, $4200.00, ' Fuel: 300 tons of coal @ $5, $1,500.00 Miscellaneous : Interest, depreciation and repairs @ $6, Total operating expense for 300 days, The cost per lineal foot of trench was as follows: Engineer, $0.008 Helpers, 0.014 Coal, 0.008 Plant, o.oio Total cost per lineal foot, $0.040 The cost per cubic yard of material excavated was as follows: Engineer, $0.021 Helpers, 0.040 Coal, 0.021 Plant, 0.025 Total cost per cubic yard, $o. 107 The above cost data do not include general expenses, back-filling, moving the ditcher to and from the job, etc. The original cost of the machine was $5,200 and its working weight about 17 tons. The plant charges were estimated at about 30 per cent, per annum on the original cost and assuming the life of the machine as five years. C. THE TRESTLE CABLE EXCAVATOR 101. General Description. This type of excavator has been in use in this country during the past 30 years for the excavation and 264 TRENCH EXCAVATORS filling of trenches for waterworks and sewer systems. It has be- come quite popular and is very efficient. Its advantages are the restriction of the work to the immediate area of the trench, the non-obstruction of a part of the street, allowing public traffic to go on, and the easy and safe method of operation. The excavator consists of an overhead track supported by a series of trestles or bents, which rest on the ground or on a track. Along this track one or more carriers are moved by a cable, operated by a common double-drum friction hoisting engine. The carriers support tubs or buckets which are filled by the men in the trench, raised up simultaneously, moved horizontally as far as is desired and dumped by being tilted over the completed work or into wagons. The empty tubs are then returned to the excavation, lowered into the trench and replaced by other tubs, which are filled while the first set is being removed and emptied. For trenches up to 60 in. in width a single track is generally used, but for wider trenches a double track is found to be economical. The whole framework rests on wheels, including the platform carrying the machinery and as soon as the excavation in one divi- sion of the trench is completed, the excavator moves forward by its own power to a new section of track. The framework can be arranged to work at railroad crossings without interference with trains and can also work around curves. The following table gives a description of the six standard sizes which are generally used. Figure 1 20 shows a six-bucket machine used in the excavation of a sewer trench in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The manufacturers make the following recommendations as regards the sizes of machine to be used on different classes of work. "For trenches 6 ft. or less in width, and for all trenches where decided curves or right-angle turns are to be made, we recommend a single machine. Either our Four Traveler Machine (" Argus "), working a section 32 ft. long, or our Six Traveler Machine, ("Youth"), working a section 48 ft. long can be used, depending upon the rapidity with which the work is to be pushed. Where hard material is met with, it is often desirable with the Four Traveler Machine, to use three sets of tubs and work two bottoms or 64 ft. at a time, the tubs being hoisted first from one section and then from another. For trenches 6 ft. wide or wider we recommend our Eight Traveler Double Machine ("Bolt") as an all-around one, and often two bottoms are worked at a time with it, the tubs being taken first from one. section and then from another, or it may be that one section is excavated to a convenient depth and TRESTLE CABLE EXCAVATOR 265 PQ W S M O! 3 ^ 1 c o | . t l o ^ 4) 1) fc 3 ^ | O O O O O O O4 d CO CN (N OO i a" ^C 3 >_ _trt o M g c c O N 00 O t d d c 3 T3 o J'fji X X 00 00 >> g ^ JO G 'y 'So o o *H CX <3J 8 g 3 8 *8 oo" 00" 2 d 3 ^j 3 y M-* 3 j->. u W PQ *H bo 55 00 00 O C 3 M M S o X X CO M M OJ ^ ^ ^ G .2 d o '5b ^ I p< ^ ^ .s -o -a *T 'T il d G O y *o oo" oo 1 . *s 1 y 1 c^ O CN O tn rt n 2 O H J.I o "o K S CN 5 1 ^ *^ ( MI ^ is c o t> 00 00 o ^ i CN IN O $3 JR j 00 00 ^ fe * J M M /, ^ .a 4 ** So 1 'OJ X U CM 268 TRENCH EXCAVATORS A view of a " Carson-Trainor Machine" excavating a sewer trench in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, is shown in Fig. 121. The following detailed specifications are for a single traveler machine equipped with tubs of i cu. yd. capacity and working 288 ft. of trench. Carson-Trainor" Trench Excavator on Sewer Trench Construction. Figure 121. ENGINE This engine has 8j-in. by zo-in. double cylinders, with cranks con- nected at an angle of 90 degrees, and is fitted with reversible link mo- tion. The drums are of the Beekman patent friction type, one carries the hoisting rope, and the other is turned with a curved surface, and carries the endless rope. The endless rope is wrapped around the drum seven times enough to secure sufficient friction to keep it from slipping in the opposite direction to that in which the drum is turn- ing and the ends are passed over sheave wheels on the trestles, and made fast to the front and rear of the traveling carriage. The hoisting drum is entirely independent of the other, and, being of the same diameter, winds at the same rate of speed, and keeps the load at the same height while conveying, if desired. This drum also has a self-acting bank brake, by means of which the load can be held positively. It will thus be seen that this independent action f the drums gives the operator perfect command over the apparatus, TRESTLE CABLE EXCAVATOR 269 as he can use the drums together, or he can hold either of them and use the other. The reversing lever, friction, and brake levers are all brought to a convenient position, so that the operator can work all of them without difficulty. The engine is fitted with two winch heads. BOILER One vertical boiler, 42 in. diameter, by 90 in. high, containing 80 2 -in. tubes, securely bolted and braced to bed plate of engine, and provided with safety-valve, steam-gage, water-gage, three gage- cocks, blow-off cock, injector, stack, steam-pipe connection to cylin- ders, with throttle-valve, exhaust-pipe into stack, set of grates, and two fire tools. ENGINE CAR The engine end of conveyor has a platform 18 ft. wide by 16 ft. long, built of eight pieces of 6 by 10 stock running crosswise, and four pieces running lengthwise, securely bolted together and mounted on four car wheels 15 in. diameter, with steel pins and cast bearings. Flooring is of 2-in. plank, on which is erected a suitable house, built in sections and covered with two-ply roofing felt. The head trestle of the machine rests upon and is securely braced to this engine car, and is equipped with the necessary sheaves, shafts, etc. TRESTLES Nineteen A-shaped trestles, i6-ft. gage, made of 6 by 8 stock, with 4 by 10 headers, 20 ft. high, braced and bolted, and provided with castor frames, wheels, etc. CONNECTING BARS Thirty-eight connecting bars made of two and one-half inch tubular steel with connections and bolts complete. HOISTING AND TRAVERSING ROPES Hoisting and traversing ropes are of crucible steel f in. diameter, and of sufficient length to operate machine and allow for hoisting from any point in a trench 35 ft. deep. One Manila rope of sufficient length to pull machine 100 ft. ahead is furnished. 270 TRENCH EXCAVATORS THE RAILS Enough T-rail, 25 Ib. per yard, on which to place machine and move it ahead 100 ft. GIRDERS Twenty girders for upper track, made of solid, riveted, double- section, 15 Ib. to the foot, lo-in. steel channel beams, with hangers and shackle plates. HANGERS The steel girders are suspended from the trestles and clamped together by our patented Mills adjustable angle-iron hangers, which, giving the girders a bottom bearing, prevent any unevenness in the track, and also keep the girders from twisting. TRAVELER The carriage or traveler is made of Norway iron, has eight single flange running wheels, and a i6-in. hoisting wheel, with steel bolts, pins, and shackles complete. BLOCK Fall block is of our heavy type with i6-in. sheave, and loose swivel hook, with safety handle attached. TUBS Five sheet-steel tubs of 27 cu. ft. capacity, with double bottoms, and provided with automatic catches. These tubs are self-dumping, when unlatched, and self-righting. DUTY This machine, when set up complete, is capable of hoisting 5,000 Ib., at a speed of 225 ft. per minute, and conveying the same at a speed of 450 ft. per minute. Under ordinary conditions, it will be profitable to use a trench machine when the work is of sufficient magnitude to pay for the invest- ment in the plant and where the trenching will average over 9 ft. in depth. As the^depth increases the cost of excavation by hand labor increases rapidly, while the cost by machine is nearly the same per linear foot of trench without regard to depth. TRESTLE CA BLE EXCA VA TOR 27 1 loia. Use in Connecticut. A six-tub trench machine was used about 20 years ago in the construction of the boulevard sewer in New Haven, Connecticut. The following is the report of Mr. Henry H. Gladding, C. E., who had charge of this work: DETAILS OF WORK AND CAPACITY OF MACHINE Width of trench, 10 ft. Depth of trench, 30 to 31 ft. Material, clean sand. Distance carried back, 208 ft. Number of men shovelling, 6. Engine, Lidgerwood, 20 h.p. Steam pressure, 100 Ib. Number of upper tracks, 2. Number of travellers, each track, 6. Number of buckets, each track, 6. Number of buckets in use, 18. Number of buckets per trip, 6. Ordinary load, per bucket, 4.2 cu. ft. Ordinary load, per trip, 0.93 cu. yd. Average time per trip, i min. 14 sec. Number of trips per hour, 48.7. Amount handled per hour, 45.3 cu. yd. Length of day, 10 hours. Deduct for moving engine ahead, adjusting buffer, tightening bolts, and all delays incidental to operating the machine, \ hour. Effective time per day, q\ hours. Capacity per day, 430 cu. yd. Best time observed, 9 trips in 10 min. Quickest trip observed, i min. 2 sec. Frequent runs of four to five hours are made, stopping only to shift from one section to another. Four hundred and thirty cubic yards per day is a fair, conservative estimate of the capacity of the machine under the conditions here existing. It is based on a considerable number of observations when working at different stages from the surface to the full depth of the trench; the time in the middle third being somewhat better than the average of the top and bottom. The deepest part of the work has not yet been reached; it will exceed 40 ft. Assuming nine trips in 10 minutes the best time observed, the output would be at the rate of 427 cu. yd per day; this would be likely to occur only with the minimum vertical travel, and therefore only for a short time in each section. With this condition, and with all circumstances favorable, it might be possible to push the machine to a rate of 500 cu. yd. per day; but it is doubtful if any net increase in economy would result from a speed much in excess of the average given in this report, owing to the excessive wear and strain developed in the engine and framework, and also on account of the greater number of men required to fill and empty the buckets. 272 TRENCH EXCAVATORS OPERATING EXPENSES, ETC. Engineer, $2.50 per day Fireman, i . 50 per day Six shovellers @ $i . 50, 9 . oo per day Signal man, i . 50 per day Dump man, i . 35 per day \ ton of coal @ $3 . 80, i . 90 per day Rent of machine, 10.00 per day Rent of engine, 2 . 50 per day Total, $30. 25 per day Daily capacity of machine, 430 cu. yd. Cost per cubic yard for shovelling into tubs, raising from an average depth of 17 ft, carrying back about 208 ft, 7 cents. This conclusion is upon the supposition that the machine is running all the time, with no delay for sheathing and bracing; a condition never realized in practice. In this particular instance it requires scarcely half as long to excavate a section as to tight-sheath, brace, and bulkhead the same as thoroughly as is demanded by the depth of the trench and the looseness of the material, five tier of sheathing being required. During perhaps one-half of this idle time, which comes in short spells, the shovellers, signal man, and dump man can be employed on other work, thus deducting, say, $2.75 from the daily expense for handling the sand; so that the actual cost per cubic yard, reckoning only half duty from the machine, would be $27. 50-^215 = 13 cents. October 16 the trench was advancing an average distance of 151*0 ft. per day, and had a depth of 37 ft., with the constant width of 10 ft., making the daily excavation about 211 cu. yd., nearly the same as deduced above. While it is hardly practicable to obtain a very precise rating of the performance of such a machine, I believe the figures and deductions given herewith are substantially correct D. THE TOWER CABLEWAY i 1 02. General Description. The tower cableway excavator is a hoisting and conveying device using a suspended wire cable as a track- way. The steel cable or rope is fastened at each end to a tower or trestle about 30 ft. in height. The towers are placed about 250 ft. apart so that 200 ft. of sewer can be completed at one set up. Upon the cable one or more travelers are operated. They are held in posi- tion or moved backward and forward by an endless steel traversing rope attached to a special drum of the engine. The hoisting is done by an independent steel rope operated by the regular drum of the engine. At one end of the excavation is placed the machinery, consisting of the boiler and engine, mounted on a covered car which moves along on a track. 103. Carson-Lidgerwood Cableway. This excavator is made in the four sizes given in the following table: TOWER CABLEWAY EXCAVATOR 273 1 M ^O vo \o vO X X X X o o o o M " M M ^ fl g 'Sb T3 *O C OJ ON X X X X w -Q TJ S ^ So 10 10 10 4-1 Crt bo -*H 73 '53 O M ta 4^ *a \jj w ^ ^ gj $. 8 g co tn >-> D C ^ "*"* -4-J -+J 4-3 +J O O O O l o o 10 o rt *- P CJ '" ^ O ^^ S ^ ^ 2 3 ^ 8 3 o || W fe O M 1 18 274 TRENCH EXCA VA TORS The following specifications will give a detailed description of the design and construction of this excavator: Single traveler, 3oo-ft. span. Tubs of i cu. yd. capacity. ENGINE The engine has 8jXio-in. double cylinders, with cranks con- nected at an angle of 90 degrees, and is fitted with reversible link motion. The drums are of the Beekman patent friction type, one carrying the hoisting rope, and the other is turned with a curved sur- face and carries the endless rope. The endless rope is wrapped around the drum five or more times enough to secure sufficient friction to keep it from slipping in the opposite direction to that in which the drum is turning and the ends are passed over sheave wheels on the trestles and made fast to the front and rear of the traveling carriage. The hoisting drum is entirely independent of the other, and, being of the same diameter, winds at the same rate of speed, and keeps the load at the same height while conveying, if so desired. This drum also has a self-acting band brake, by means of which the load can be held positively. It will thus be seen that this independent action of the drums gives the operator perfect command over the apparatus, as he can use the drums together, or he can hold either of them, and use the other. The reversing lever, friction, and brake levers are all brought to a convenient position, so that the operator can work all of them without difficulty. The engine is fitted with two winch heads. BOILER One vertical boiler 42 in. diameter by 90 in. high, containing 80 2-in. tubes, securely bolted and braced to bed plate of engine, and provided with safety-valve, steam-gage, water-gage, three gage-cocks, blow-off cock, injector, stack, steam-pipe connection to cylinders with throttle-valve, exhaust-pipe into stack, set of grates and three fire tools. CABLE The main cable is of crucible steel, ij in. diameter, and suffi- ciently long to allow for a span of 300 ft. between trestles, and to reach anchors placed 60 ft. from each trestle, it is provided with four loops each 26 ft. long, with thimble spliced in each end. Hoisting and traversing ropes are of crucible, steel f in. diameter, CABLEWAY EXCAVATORS 275 and of sufficient length to operate machine and allow for a trench 35 ft. deep. One turnbuckle, ?J in. diameter, 30 in. long, is placed at one end of cable to take up slack. TRAVELER The traveler is made of f X3 in. wrought iron, securely bolted and braced, with i2-in. top sheaves, and i6-in. hoisting sheave. It has one or more patented fall rope carriers with suitable at- tachments and fittings. One fall block with 16 in. sheave and substantial hook, with safety handle attached. TUBS Five sheet-steel tubs of 27 cu. ft. capacity, with double bottoms, and provided with automatic catches. ENGINE HOUSE Platform of engine house is 10 ft. wide by 16 ft. long, built of eight pieces of 6X10 spruce running crosswise, and four pieces of spruce running lengthwise, securely bolted together and mounted on four car wheels, 15 in. in diameter, with steel pins and cast bearings. Flooring is of spruce 2 in. thick, on which is erected a suitable house built in sections, and covered with two-ply roofing felt. Six pieces of 25-lb. T-rail with fishplates and spikes. TRESTLES Two spruce trestles made of 8X10, 30 ft. high, braced, bolted, and strapped, and provided with saddles, sheaves, shafts, eyebolts, galvanized guys i in. in diameter, of sufficient length to hold frames in position, clips and shackles. DUTY This cableway when set up complete is capable of hoisting 5,000 Ib. at a speed of 225 ft. per minute, and of conveying same at a speed of 450 ft. per minute. Figure 122 shows a cableway excavating sewer trench at St. Joseph, Missouri. 276 TRENCH EXCAVATORS Use in Washington, D.C. The following report is given to show the use of one of these cableways, for the excavation of a sewer trench in Washington, D. C., about 18 years ago (1895). Cableway Excavator Digging a Sewer Trench. Figure 122. GENERAL DESCRIPTION or THE WORK The Easby's Point sewer for about 1,100 ft. from the outlet is D-shaped, n ft. 3 in. in width and n ft. 3 in. in height, and rests on a pile foundation. This is followed by a circular section n ft. 3 in. in diameter for a distance of about 2,400 ft., then about 1,000 ft. of 10 ft. 6 in., then about 1,600 ft. of 9 ft. 6 in. The first 1,200 ft. of the n ft. 3 in. circular is in a cut varying from 12 ft. to 40 ft. in depth, with about 10 ft. of clay and rotten rock on top of solid rock. This rock, while very hard, is badly broken up by seams running in every direc- tion and at all angles with the horizon. In spite of the most careful blasting and heavy bracing, the line of fracture would follow these seams to .the surface, bringing in large masses outside the regular width of excavation. About 1,000 lin. ft. of this work were done by steafn derricks, and in places the slides were so extensive that the top width was more than 50 ft. The normal width of the trench was 18 ft. As it was determined to increase the plant, a study of the different forms of trench machines was made, and the trench machines spanning the ditch were rejected for the following reasons. CABLEWA Y EXCA VA TORS 277 1. Experience had shown that it would not be safe to do the heavy blasting required under them. 2. On account of the width of the trench, 18 ft., heavy timbering would be required to carry the machine, and in event of a slide the machine would be almost certain to go into the ditch. 3. As about 3,000 ft. of the remaining distance would be through made ground where the banks could not be depended upon, it was not thought advisable to put any extra weight upon them or to subject them to the vibrations which would be occasioned by a machine spanning the trench. As a cableway was not open to any of these objections, an order was given for one of the following: GENERAL DIMENSIONS Length between end frames, 300 ft. Total length between anchorages, 430 ft. Height of frames, 32 ft. Diameter of main cable (steel), i^ in. CYLINDER DIMENSIONS Engine, Lidgerwood, SfXio in. Speed of hoisting, 250 ft. per minute. Speed of conveying, 400 ft. per minute. Lifting capacity, 5,000 Ib. Size of buckets, i cu. yd. CHARACTER AND AMOUNT OF WORK Width of trench, 18 ft. Depth of lower shelf of trench on which cableway was started, 15 ft. Distance of carriage, 150 ft. Number of trips per hour, 35. Number of hours per day, 8. Number of cubic yards excavated per day, 280. The material was cemented gravel and rotten rock which could have been removed cheaper by blasting than by picking. OPERATING EXPENSES PER DAY Engineer, $2.00 Fireman, I 2 5 Signal man, I Two dumpers @ $i 2.00 Coal, oil, and waste, i 5 Interest and maintenance (estimated), 7- $14-75 Cost of picking and shoveling into tubs, 30 men, at $i, $30.00 $44-75 278 TRENCH EXCAVATORS Cost of picking, shoveling into tubs, hoisting from trench 15 ft. deep, conveying 150 ft. and dumping into wagons, 16 cents per cubic yard. Cost for hoisting, conveying, and dumping, 5 T 3 ff cents per cubic yard. At the same time the excavating was going on, bracing and sheathing was being .done, so that this represents what can be done in the regular order of working, and was not a spurt to see what the machine could do when pressed. In fact, none of the men knew that the machine was being timed. The conditions under which the machine was working were not favorable for making a record, as the bracing in the trench was too close together for the size of tub used. The engineer was a new man at the machine, although used to running a hoisting engine. Dumping into wagons consumed much more time than would have been required to dump on the work. I think 300 cu. yd. can easily be handled in a day of eight hours in fairly good material in regular work, and no doubt under favorable circumstances the machine could be pushed much beyond this limit for a short time. The machine has been at work about three weeks, but owing to the depth of the trench, 30 to 40 ft., and the quantity of rock to be removed, it has not been moved. I am therefore unable to say how long this would take, but think the machine could be taken down, moved, and set up in a day or less. Since the engine was fairly in working order the machine has not been stopped 10 minutes for repairs or adjustment. (Signed) FRANK P. DAVIS, 'Civil Engineer. 104. S. Flory Cableway. The S. Flory Mfg. Co. of Bangor, Pa., has been supplying cableways for the slate quarries of eastern Pennsylvania for the last 30 years. Recently, it has supplied a system for use on trench excavation. Fig. 123 shows a cableway of 4oo-ft. span, being used in the construction of a large trunk sewer. A special engine is used, geared for high speed when traversing and lower speed for hoisting. The hoisting rope is taken over the front sheave in the carriage, around the fall block and over the back sheave in the carriage and then fastened back to the end tower. This elimi- nates the fall rope carriers and forms a two-part hoisting line. In operation, the bucket is filled and then raised above the excava- tion hy the hoisting drum, which is then thrown out of gear and held with a brake. The traversing line is then put in operation and con- veyed in either direction. When the bucket has reached the place of disposal, the traversing drum is thrown out of gear and the bucket lowered by means of the brake band on the hoisting drum. E. THE TRESTLE TRACK EXCAVATOR 105. General Description. This type of excavator is similar in its method of operation to the trestle cable excavator, described under division C. Instead of the buckets being suspended from carriers TRESTLE TRACK EXCAVATOR 279 which move along a track, they are carried along on the platform of a car or carriage, which moves along a track resting on the tops of the trestles. 106. Potter Trench Machine. This excavator is manufactured by the Potter Manufacturing Company of Indianapolis, Indiana. A series of light steel trestles of trapezoidal shape are spaced about 10 ft. 6 in. on centers and are about 8 ft. high. These trestles are Cableway used on Construction of Large Sewer. Figure 123. mounted on double-flanged wheels, which run on rails, laid on either side of the trench. On the tops of the trestles are framed two channels which form a continuous track for a carriage to run on. The car or carriage is a steel-framed structure supported on four wheels, which run on the trestle track, and is operated by means of cables from the hoisting engine and also from the hoist. See Fig. 124. Each car operates two tilting buckets which are filled by men in the trench, raised by the hoist to the car, and then carried along to the 280 TRENCH EXCAVATORS dumping place. Two men on the car operate the hoist, which can raise or lower either one or both of the buckets at a time. The buckets are made in three sizes; J, f and i cu. yd. capacities. At one end of the trestle is placed a housed-in'platform containing Trestle Track Excavator. Figure 124. the boiler and engine. The platform is mounted on wheels and the whole framework can be moved along under its own power. The machine covers 272 ft. of trench at a time. The machine requires three men for operation, one to operate the hoisting engine and two on the carriage. io6a. Use in Illinois. 1 A Potter Trench Machine was used during the season of 1907 in the excavation of a large sewer trench in Chicago, Illinois. 1 Abstracted from Engineering-Contracting, October 9, 1907.' TILE TRENCH EXCAVATORS 281 The trench had a width of 21 ft. and an average depth of 30.5 ft. The materials excavated were, a top layer of black soil, then 15 ft. of soft blue clay, 6 to 8 ft. of stiff blue clay, i ft. of sandy loam and finally about 2 ft. of hard blue clay. The trench machine followed a derrick crane and excavated the last 1 2 to 14 ft. in depth. Six buckets with a capacity of J cu. yd. each were used and so arranged that four were in the trench being filled while the remaining two were being carried away on the carriage and dumped. The following table gives the cost of excavation on the basis of an eight-hour working day: Labor: i engineer, fireman, carriage operator, carriage helper, 20 laborers in trench, @ $2. 75, laborer on dump, foreman, Total labor cost, $75 . 50 Fuel: % ton coal @ $5, $2.50 Rent of machine @ $125 per month, $4. 80 Total, $82.80 Average daily excavation, 175 cu. yd. Average cost of excavation; $82. 80 -1-175 =$0.47 P er cubic yard. SECTION II. TILE TRENCH EXCAVATORS no. Field of Work. Until about n years ago (1902), most of the trench excavation for drain tile was made by hand labor. As this class of drainage work became more general, especially in the states of Illinois, Iowa and Minnesota, various forms of machinery were devised to meet the increased need. At the present time, there are at least three tile ditchers which have demonstrated their efficiency under favorable conditions. Where the ground is fairly level, free from large, heavy obstructions and not too hard, these machines will be found very efficient and more economical than hand labor. in. The Buckeye Tile Ditcher. The Buckeye Tile Ditcher is a traction engine on the rear end of which is hinged a frame which 282 TRENCH EXCAVATORS carries an excavating wheel provided with buckets placed around its periphery. These machines are made in a number of sizes as given by the following table: Number Size Approximate wt. in tons i i,iin.X4ift. 5* 2 14^ in.X4l ft. 61 3 15 in.X5s ft. 85 4 20 in.Xsl ft- ii 5 20 in.Xy-i- ft. 13^ 7 24 in.Xy^ ft. 15 8 28 in.Xylft. 18 9 32 in. X 7* ft. 20^ 10 36 in.XyHt. 24 ii 42 in.Xyfft. 27 12 48 in.XyHt. 29 13 54 in.XyHt. 32 These various numbers are all made alike, differing only in size and a detailed description of No. 2 will suffice for all. This machine will excavate a trench 14^ in. wide and 4^ ft. deep. It consists of a steel frame 12 ft. long and 4 ft. wide supported on four wide steel wheels. The wheel centers of each pair are 6 ft. 4 in. apart and the axles are 7 ft. on centers. As will be seen from an inspection of Fig. 125, the rear axle has a sprocket which carries a chain belt operated by a set of gears on the engine. On the front end of the truck is placed an 8-h.p. vertical boiler, which furnishes steam for the 6-h.p. single engine located directly back of it. Attached to the rear end of the truck is the wheel frame, connected with a cross-bar, which moves vertically between two posts. The front part of the frame can be raised and lowered by means of a ratchet wheel. The rear part of the frame is connected to sheaves at the top of the vertical frame by cables, which may be operated to raise the wheel from the ground when it is desired to move the machine from one trench to another. The wheel frame carries an open wheel 8 ft. in diameter and i2\ in. wide. This wheel has no axle, but revolves by means of four anti-friction wheels placed inside the rim. See (8) and (9) in Fig. 126. On the outer rim of the wheel are placed 14 buckets as shown by BUCKEYE TRACTION DITCHER 283 Buckeye Traction Ditcher. Figure 125. '/y/*v w At/ t _ N , j.0 1 . /^// "' I ^l^'// 8 I rcv ^^r . s\/vis 53r353j>'r' ,IJX X -X / I V > .*<* 14 Diagram of Excavating Wheel of Buckeye Traction Ditcher. Figure 126. 284 TRENCH EXCA VA TORS (3). These buckets have a top and back, but no bottom. 1 They are shaped somewhat like the bowl of a drag-scraper; and, in fact, they act very much like a drag-scraper in digging ; for as the excavating wheel revolves, each bucket cuts off a slice of earth of its own capacity. Now, this earth would fall out when the bucket rises above the surface of the ground if it were not for the high-carbon steel arc, marked (13) in Fig. 126. This arc does not revolve, as it is not fastened to the wheel. When an excavating bucket reaches the end of the arc near the top of the wheel, the dirt falls out of the bucket upon the belt conveyor. This conveyor, which is marked (10), carries the dirt off outside of the trench where it piles up. It will be noted that the dirt slides over the stationary arc (13) only a short distance near the top of the wheel, hence there is very little wear on the arc. As we have said, the excavating wheel does not have an axle; it is made to revolve by a pair of driving sprockets (7), which mesh with the segmental gearing (6). It should be noted that the driving sprocket (7) is directly above the point where the earth is being excavated, so that the force is applied directly. Thus the weight of the excavat- ing wheel is far less than would be necessary were it driven from an axle, involving also great torsional strain. What is even more impor- tant, the -excavating wheel can dig into the ground to a depth of nearly two-thirds its diameter, so that with a comparatively small wheel a great depth of trench is secured. "It will be seen that the excavating wheel is supported between two beams, marked (n), which can be raised and lowered. The rear end of the frame is supported by a post, to the lower end of which is fastened a shoe (14). This shoe slides along the bottom of the finished trench, thus giving great stability to the wheel and preventing wabbling. The side cutters (5), are bolted to the rims of the excavating wheel. They serve to slice the earth from the sides of the trench, and prevent the excavating buckets from sticking or becoming bound in the trench. Moreover, they scrape all the dirt toward the center of the trench, where the buckets pick it up, leaving a perfectly clean cut." When excavating in a trench the machine moves continuously forward, and thus gradually feeds the wheel into the soil. The cutting speed can be varied by shifting the sprocket wheels. The depth of cut is regulated by the operator, who sights over a sight-arm, on the side of the wheel frame, at a series of targets on flag-poles. By turning a hand wheel he raises and lowers the excavating wheel until the sight-arm is at the proper level. The alignment is kept 1 This description and Fig. 126 are taken from the catalogue of the Buckeye Traction Ditcher Co. BUCKEYE TRACTION DITCHER 285 by lining in the centers of the front and rear wheels with the flag- poles. Where the ground is fairly level, a true line and grade can be easily kept, but when the surface is rolling or uneven, constant attention is necessary. The fuel is kept in a box in front of the boiler and the water in a tank under the engine. Two men are generally necessary to run a steam-operated ditcher, one to tend the boiler and engine and the other to operate the excavating wheel. It is often more economical of fuel and labor to use a machine operated by a gasoline engine. Such a tile ditcher is shown in Fig. 127. Buckeye Traction Ditcher with Gasoline Power. Figure 127. The traction speed of the machine when not digging is i mile per hour but on account of the necessary stops to take on coal and water, to fill dead furrows, etc., an average speed of f mile per hour is all that can be attained. ma. Use in Minnesota. 1 The following record of tile trenching on the Northwest Experiment farm of the University of Minnesota at Crookston, Minnesota. This work was done in 1903 by a Buckeye traction ditcher of the size described in the previous article. The machine cost $1,400 and has since been improved so that this record is rather conservative. It is also evident from the report given in the Bulletin, that the machine was poorly operated. The natural conditions on this farm were generally favorable for a 1 Abstracted from Bulletin no, Northwest Experiment Farm, University of Minnesota. 286 TRENCH EXCAVATORS machine trencher. The surface was uniformly level and the soil was free from stones, roots and sloughs. The surface was almost entirely covered with sod and in many places the soil was sticky and "gumbo" in character. The trenches had an average depth of 4J ft. Example I. The machine dug 8,750 ft. of trench in 10 working days, making an average progress of 875 ft. per day. Following is a table giving the cost of excavation and tile laying: Cost per 100 ft. Labor of operating machine, $0.457 Coal, o.i 88 Water, 0.126 Oil, 0.012 Repairs, 0.112 Cost of excavation, $o . 895 Laying tile, $o. 183 Blinding, 0.048 Incidentals, 0.092 Cost of laying, etc., $0.323 Total cost of tile work, $1.218 Example 2. In this case the soil conditions were more favorable than in Example i, as the sod was thin and the soil dry. The following table is based on a total length of trench excavation of 10,450 ft. Cost per 100 ft. Labor of operating machine, $o. 409 Coal, 0.190 Water, 0.087 Oil, o.oio Repairs, o.ioo Cost of excavation, Laying tile, Blinding, Incidentals, Cost of laying, etc., $0.280 Total cost of tile work, $i . 076 Example 3. In this case the soil was generally wet and covered with a broken sod. The following table is based on a total length of excavated trench of 14,298 ft. BUCKEYE TRACTION DITCHER 287 Cost per 100 ft. Labor of operating machine, $0.516 Coal, 0.263 Water, 0.126 Oil, 0.014 Repairs, 0.200 Cost of excavation, $1.119 Laying tile, $0.235 Blinding, 0.062 Incidentals, 0.012 Cost of laying, etc., $0.309 Total cost of tile work, $i .428 The average cost of all the machine work done was $1.25 per 100 ft., while the cost of trench work done by hand labor on the same farm, was $3.88 per 100 ft. This comparison of costs shows the advantage of a machine excavator for title trench work, even under the adverse conditions of an early type of ditcher and inefficient operation. i nb. Use in Ohio/ During the year 1910 a Buckeye ditcher equipped with a gasoline engine and capable of digging a trench 14^ in. wide by 4^ ft. deep (see Fig. 127) has been used near New London, Ohio. About 1 2 miles of trench were dug, with an average depth of 2\ ft. The soil excavated was loam and clay, which was rather hard during the dry season and sticky when wet. The excavator was equipped with apron or caterpillar tractions and passed through several swamps. The following table gives the average cost of excavation for the. season : Cost per red Operator, $o . 03 Gasoline @ 13 cents per gallon, 0.018 Repairs, 0.024 Oil and grease, o.ooi Total cost per rod excavated, $0.073 One man was found sufficient to operate the machine satisfac- torily. The average cost of excavation of tile trenches by hand in the same locality the previous season was 35 cents per rod. Near Fremont, Ohio, the following record was kept of the use of a Buckeye ditcher during an n-hour working day in September, 288 TRENCH EXCA VA TORS 1910. The excavator was a steam-power machine with a capacity of nj in. wide by 4^ ft. deep. See Fig. 125. The total excavation made was 270 rods of trench with an average depth of 2 ft. 4 in. The following table gives the cost of the work for the n-hour day: Operator, $2 . 50 Fireman, i . 50 Cylinder oil, 0.23 Machine oil, o. 10 Total cost of excavation, $4-33 Fuel and water were supplied by the land owner. inc. Use in Iowa. Near Dawson, Iowa, a Buckeye ditcher, with steam power and with a capacity of 15 in. by 5^ ft., excavated no rods of trench to an average depth of 4 ft. during two y-hour working days. The operating cost was as follows: Cost per day Operator, $2.50 Fireman, 2 . 50 Coal, ton ; $3.25, 1.625 Oil, 0.125 Total cost per day, $6 . 750 Average daily excavation, 55 rods. Cost of excavation per rod, $6.75 -f- 55 = $0.123 nid. Use in Kansas. Near Oswego, Kansas, a Buckeye ditcher with steam equipment and capacity of nj in. by 4^ ft. operated suc- cessfully in various soils for several seasons. The average excavation made in a clay loam soil under favorable conditions was about 60 rods of trench 3 ft. in depth in three hours. The following is an estimate of the cost of excavation per working day of eight hours. Operator, $3 . oo Fireman, i . oo Coal, I ton @ $4, i . oo Oil and waste, 0.15 Total cost per day, $5 . 15 H2. Hovland Tile Ditcher. The Ho viand tile ditcher made by the St. Paul Machinery Manufacturing Company of St. Paul, Minnesota, is a machine which not only excavates a trench, but also automatically lays tile up to i2-in. diameter. HOVLAND TILE DITCHER 289 This excavator is made in two parts, the front traction platform which carries the power equipment and the rear traction platform which carries the excavating chain. Both platforms are made of a steel framework supported on two continuous apron tractors. In order to afford a better grip on the surface, steel channels with the flanges out, are used instead of the ordinary wooden blocks. The length of each traction is 22 ft. and the width out to out of tractions is 10 ft. A complete outfit is shown in Fig. 128. The main or rear tractor consists of a platform 26 ft. long and 10 ft. wide, which supports a steel framework. From this is suspended the excavating chain and its supporting framework. The latter consists of a small upper wheel and a large lower wheel or drum, about which the Hovland Tile Ditcher. Figure 128. excavating chain revolves. The larger and lower drum is suspended by chains from the rear of the framework and can be raised and lowered by a gear-operated shaft. The upper and smaller wheel is on a shaft which is chain driven from the engine located on the forward tractor. A small wheel is suspended from a gear-operated shaft near the center of the top of the framework and takes up the slack of the upper portion of the chain. The excavating chain consists of two continuous chains which carry a continuous set of hinged links. To the vertical sections of these links may be bolted knives or cutters of any width from 5 in. to 30 in. These links are so hinged, that when a cutter strikes a stone or other obstruction in a trench the chain gives, and the cutter slides over the stone without injury. Above the 19 290 TRENCH EXCAVATORS upper wheel, which is toothed on each side to receive the side chains, is placed an automatic cleaning device. This consists of a projecting arm so placed that its outer end scrapes over the surface of each bucket as it reaches the top wheel. The excavated material is thus cleaned off the cutter and falls upon a continuous belt conveyor located underneath the excavating chain at its upper end. Fig. 129 and 130 show in a diagrammatic form how the excavating chain is supported and operated. An adjustable steel-frame curbing can be fastened to the rear of the excavating tractor and drawn along the completed trench. This curbing is adjusted to the width of the trench and made high enough Diagram of Excavating Chain of Hovland Tile Ditcher. Figure 129. to project above the ground surface. A steel spout is placed on the inner and curved portion and as the machine progresses, a man places the tile in at the top of the spout, which is curved so as to allow the tile to slide out in place along the bottom of the finished trench. The forward tractor carries the power equipment consisting of a three-cylinder, vertical, gasoline engine. The main shaft of the engine is connected by sprocket chains to the driving shafts of the tractions of the excavating belt and the belt conveyor. Two men are required to operate the machine, one for the engine and the other for the excavator. Two sizes of machine are made, one called a "single- wheel" machine and the other a " double- wheel " machine. The former has a 45-h.p., three-cylinder, gasoline engine and can excavate a trench with a width HOVLAND TILE DITCHER 291 of from 10 to 20 in. and depth of from 3 to 12 ft. The latter has a 6o-h.p., four-cylinder, gasoline engine and can excavate a trench with a width of from 14 to 30 in. and a depth of from 3 to 6 ft. The machines when excavating can move at a speed varying from 25 ft. to 100 ft. per hour depending on the depth of trench and soil conditions. When moving across country, the machines can move at an average rate of about three-fourths of a mile per hour. Diagram showing the Operation of the Excavating Chain of the Hovland Tile Ditcher. Figure 130. H2a. Use in Minnesota. During the summer of 1910, a Hovland tile ditcher operated by a 45-h.p. gasoline engine, was used for the excavation of a system of county ditches in Lac Qui Parle County, Minnesota. The fastest speed made by the machine while excavating was 100 ft. in 35 minutes, while the slowest speed was about 120 ft. per hour. The country in which the work was done was of a rolling charac- ter. The surface was dotted with pot holes from 2 to ?o acres in area, many of them filled with water to the depth of from 2 in. to 4 ft. The soil was a brown silt and a black-clay loam, from 2 to 5 ft. deep, underlaid with a sandy-clay sub-soil containing a very large percentage of sand. A few field stones were encountered and in places a very hard clay sub-soil was found. The latter was not difficult to excavate with the ditcher. The soil had a tendency to cave when wet or when the depth of the ditch was over 6 ft. The equipment for this work and its cost is given in the following table: 292 TREXCH EXCA VA TORS i "single- wheel" Hovland die ditcher, 3 shacks on wagons, Equipment for shacks, i team, wagon, harness and light buggy, i oil wagon, Tools, etc., $6065 . oo The first piece of work done was the digging of a ditch 6,630 ft. long and 26 in. wide. Cutters or digger reamers 24 in. wide w r ere used on the excavating wheel. The ditch was made for a line of i8-in. hard-burned bell tile, with a diameter, outside of bell, of 25^ in. The steel curbing furnished with the machine could not be used on account of these extreme conditions, and the ditch caved badly. About 100 per cent, more earth was removed from the trench than is ordinarily necessary. Near the upper end of the ditch was a pond 400 ft. wide. The ditch through this pond was cut by a capstan plow. The time required for the excavation of this ditch was 21 working days. The depth of the ditch varied from 2 ft. at the outlet to 7 ft. at the upper end, the average cut being about 4! ft. The following crew was used on the work: i foreman i level man i engineer 2 laborers i machine operator i cook i tile layer i team v Board, washing, etc. for the camp cost $100 per month. In- cidental expenses, repairs, etc. cost $80 per month. In the opera- tion of the machine for the digging of this ditch, 368.5 gal. of gaso- line were used. To this should be added 15 per cent, which was wasted. The second job was the excavation of a ditch 4,600 ft. long and 17 in. wide for i?-in. tile. The minimum cut was 3 ft. at the head of the ditch and the maximum 7 ft. near the center. The average cut was 5 ft. The crew used and the general expenses were the same as in the first case. The excavation of the entire ditch required 5 days. The soil did not cave and the steel curbing was not used. Fifty- five gallons of gasoline were consumed in this operation. 113. Austin Tile Ditcher. This excavator is especially built for the digging of tile trenches by the F. C. Austin Drainage Excavator A USTIN TILE DITCHER 293 Co. of Chicago, 111. The machine consists of a steel-frame plat- form supported upon two trucks and carrying the machinery and digging appliance. The platform is a steel framework made up of steel channels for the sides and braced with steel angles and plates. The two trucks which support the machine are placed under the front and rear ends of the platform. The front truck is composed of two steel wheels with flanged tires to prevent slipping. The rear truck is provided either with large wide-tired steel wheels or roller plat- form traction. The latter is generally used as it better distributes the weight of the machinery and excavating chain over soft ground. Each tractor has a bearing area of 10 sq. ft. and will support an excavator over ground that will carry the weight of a man. The power equipment is placed upon the forward end of the platform, over the forward truck. This generally consists of a gasoline engine, although a steam engine and boiler are furnished if desired. The gasoline engine is of the vertical water-cooled type and provided with two, three, or four cylinders 7 in. by 9 in. and generating from 10 to 50 h.p. These engines are very strongly built and have the following features: the valves are forged from chrome steel with large egress and ingress and operated by rocker arms from the engine cam-shaft, the cams are made from tempered tool steel, the crank-shaft is made of forged high-carbon steel, a Schebler carbureter and force feed oiling system. The fuel con- sumption of one of these engines is about one-tenth of a gallon of gasoline per horse-power per hour. In front of the engine is placed the gasoline-supply and water- supply tanks. This arrangement is clearly shown in Fig. 131. Over the rear truck, on the platform of the excavator, is placed the operating machinery. This consists of a typical friction-drum engine belt connected to the gasoline engine. A set of gears are used to reduce the speed and a heavy sprocket chain transmits the power to the excavating chain and the belt conveyor. The rear end of the platform supports a steel box, from the upper and outer corner of which is suspended the steel frame, which carries the excavating chain. The frame is pivoted near its upper end on the axle of the driving sprocket and can be raised and lowered by means of a threaded rod attached to the upper end of the frame and the engine below. Note this detail in Fig. 131. The excavating chain consists of two link chains and a series of from 9 to 12 buckets. These chains are spaced a distance apart, 294 TRENCH EXCAVATORS depending on the width of trench to be excavated, and pass con- tinuously over sprocket wheels at the upper and low ends of the frame. The links are connected by steel pins and are provided with an outer collar of manganese steel. A broken link can be readily and easily removed and replaced with a new one. The buckets are of the open and scoop type and are provided with tool steel lips or cutting edges. For digging hard soil, manganese steel Austin Tile Ditcher. Figure 131. reams are attached to the buckets. The chain is supported at intermediate points on smooth steel rollers and revolves continu- ously. Each bucket in its downward path comes into contact with the bottom of the trench and on its upward path removes a slice of earth, which falls out onto a moving belt conveyor, when the bucket turns over and starts again on its downward path. A fixed scraper is placed so that it automatically cleans out each bucket as it starts to revolve about the upper wheel. This scraper is especially useful when sticky or gumbo soil is being excavated. Fig. 132 is a detail line drawing of the Farm Tile Machine, Size No. oooo. This drawing clearly shows the construction and princi- ples of operation of the excavating chain. The excavator moves ahead under its own power by means of a gear and chain drive connecting the engine with the axle of the front truck. The average traction speed, when not digging is about TILE TRENCH EXCA VA TORS 295 i mile per hour. When digging the speed varies with the width and depth of the trench and the size of the excavator, the smaller machines moving about 9 ft. per minute and the larger ones about 6 ft. per minute. One man is generally all that is required to operate one of these excavators. In many cases it has been found advantageous to have a boy as a general helper to the operator. The table on page 296 gives detailed information concerning the trench excavators and their capacities. Austin Farm Tile Machine. Figure 132. 114. Resume. The tile trench excavator has become a thor- oughly practical and economical machine for the excavation of drainage tile trenches. In the loam and clay soils of the average low wet land requiring drainage, this type of excavator, equipped with caterpillar traction, works very efficiently. Where obstruc- tions such as large stone, roots, etc., abound, a large amount of extra hand labor is required. The tile box or templet, which follows the machine and auto- matically lays the tile in the bottom of the trench, is a useful device. However, it requires careful adjustment and attention on the part of the operator to secure good results. As a general thing hand-laid tile is more accurate as to alignment and fitting of joints than when laid by machine. 296 TRENCH EXCAVATORS x S p 3 ,d o 8 8 8 '5 li if 00~ 0^ oo" 5 o" cc" o^ -i-J < S c ~ b ~ 5*0 'I S ffi > o O o "(N "rj- > ^ ^ OJ 'Z 6 w 60 -S 2 rt , = "o "o "o "o 52 bi) 1 1 ~OC . "ON "o "o "o o <-G S 6 o g <5 bo o t a 3 -S > ri c J3 J3 ^c ^ TJ- jS Q 'S w W w w 5 | S | -o "M a l-o I 3| J S*;l i HM ! ! I 1 1 1 1 ^O **^ -4-* u ** "IB cx S T* ^" S CJ *^H J+H W) G M ^ -i I'll! "s "o "o, V "o M "o V3 *^ rH ^ w a M QJ rt o 111 3 00 ^j. ^. PP 2 a u Vj (N >z: 2 "c 3 rt ^ ^ S e* ^ S ' s 33 X3 ^ T3 'S| f s g-s i "o "o oo i "d "o "o ^ ^ c/5 4-> * ^ bo 2 'S S ^3 ^ -5 >-i 'O fe M 00 M cs CO % O 10 6 1 o G C/5 c/D O d 00 00 X/-j ^ l-i 35 M CO bO .S? .2 ^ Q a 8 M M 9 .S c/3 8 . en 8 s TILE TRENCH EXCAVATORS 297 The author would suggest that these machines be provided with a longitudinal carrier or conveyor, which would receive the exca- vated material from the buckets and carry it back over the trench and dump it over the laid tile. Thus the excavating and back-filling would be carried on simultaneously and at a greatly reduced cost. It would be necessary to carry the material back far enough to leave room between the back-filling and the excavator for the tile layer. To arrive at an approximate estimate of the capacity and cost of operation, let it be assumed that a trench machine of the i4^-in. by 4^-ft. size is to be used for the excavating of tile trenches on fairly level land. The soil will be loam and clay, with gumbo in spots. The working conditions be taken as those generally met with. Labor: Per day i operator @ $125 per month, $2.50 i fireman, 2 . oo i helper, 2 . oo Total labor cost, $6 . 50 Fuel and Supplies : 10 gal. of gasoline @ $o. 16, $i . 60 Oil, waste, etc., 0.30 Total fuel and supply cost, $i .90 Miscellaneous : Interest @ 6 per cent, (based on invest- ment of $5,200) $2.00 Depreciation, 150 working days a year for eight-year life, 4. 50 Repairs and maintenance, i . 50 Total miscellaneous, l Total operating cost per day, Average progress per day, !,3oo ft. Average daily excavation, 260 cu. yd. / $0.013 per foot. Average cost of excavation, | $Q ^ per 298 TRENCH EXCAVATORS 115. Bibliography. For additional information, see the following: BOOKS 1. Earth and Rock Excavation, by Charles Prelini, published in 1905 by D. Van Nostrand, New York. 421 pages, 167 figures, 6 by 9 in., cost $3. 2. Earthwork and Its Cost, by H. P. Gillette, published in 1910 by Engineer- ing News Publishing Co., New York. 254 pages, 54 figures, 5! by 7 in., cost $2. 3. Handbook of Cost Data, by H. P. Gillette, published in 1910 by Myron C. Clark Publishing Co., Chicago. 1,900 pages, 4! by 7 in., cost $5. MAGAZINE ARTICLES 1. The Buckeye Traction Ditcher, Frank C. Perkins; Scientific American, September 10, 1904. Illustrated, 1,500 words. 2. Cost of Trenching with Sewer Excavator in Moundsville, W. Va., A. W. Peters; Engineering-Contracting, February 28, 1912, 1,500 words. 3. Ditching and Trenching Machinery, E. E. R. Tratman; Proceedings of the Illinois Society of Engineers and Surveyors, 1911. Illustrated, 6,500 words. 4. Excavators and Steam Shovels in Sewer Construction, Frank C. Perkins; Municipal Engineering, June, 1908. Illustrated, 1,200 words. 5. An Important Legal Decision Regarding Trench Excavation; Editorial on the decision given by the U. S. Circuit Court of Appeals in the case of Gam- mino vs. Town of Dedham; Engineering Record, January 2, 1909. 1,200 words. 6. A Machine for Excavating Narrow Ditches, Eugen Eichel; Zeitschrift des Vereines Deutscher Ingenieure, January 13, 1906. 1,000 words. 7. Methods and Cost of Trench Excavation with a Trench Digging Machine, H. P. Gillette; Engineering Record, December 30, 1905. 1,800 words. 8. The Practical Working of Trench Excavating Machinery, Ernest McCul- lough; Engineering News, December 24, 1903. Illustrated, 2,500 words. 9. Sewerage Construction Work; Municipal Journal and Engineer, May i, 1907. Illustrated, 2,500 words. 10. Some New Excavating Machines; Engineering News, March 16, 191 1. Illustrated, 2,000 words. 11. Steam Shovels for Trench Excavation; Engineering News, November 7, 1901. Illustrated, 1,400 words. 12. Trench Excavation by Steam Shovel; Municipal Journal and Engineer, January 4, 1912. Illustrated, 1,800 words. CHAPTER IX LEVEE BUILDERS 118. Field of Work. In certain sections of the country, it is necessary to build levees or dikes along the rivers and smaller streams to prevent their periodic overflow. This is especially true of the streams of the central West; the Mississippi, the Missouri, and their tributaries. These streams, particularly in their lower reaches, pass through broad level valleys and are very tortuous. During the spring and early summer floods, these streams inundate the neighbor- ing lowlands and are often very destructive. Hence, measures must be devised to prevent these inundations. One method consists in straightening and enlarging the channels; another, by building earthen embankments or dikes. Sometimes the two methods are combined in one project. This chapter will deal solely with the excavating machinery used in the construction of levees. Various kinds of earth excavating and moving machinery have been used in the construction of levees. Twenty-five or thirty years ago this* class of earthwork was done principally with wheelbarrows, teams, and scrapers. In .recent years, however, except in the case of small work, the various types of dredges and specially constructed machinery have almost universally replaced the cruder and slower methods. In the following paragraphs, the various kinds of machines for levee building will be discussed. The levee builder will be described, but the other machines, which have been described in previous chapters, will be only briefly referred to in connection with their adaptability to this particular class of work. 119. Scrapers. Scrapers are very efficient machines in the building of levees, when the work is on too small a scale for the installation of larger machinery. Both Fresno and wheel scrapers have been used. A great deal of the levee construction of the lower Mississippi River has been made with wheel scrapers, and this method was found preferable to the use of the wheelbarrow. Earth put up in a bank with the use of wheelbarrows is at first comparatively loose, porous and subject to considerable erosion. Engineers generally allow at least 20 per cent, shrinkage for wheelbarrow work. However, levees 299 300 LEVEE BUILDERS made with the scrapers are fairly firm and hard and readily shed water. About 10 per cent, shrinkage is allowed for scraper work. 120. Fresno Scrapers in Arizona. The construction of the levee below the Colorado River break, in 1907, w r as made with four-horse Fresno scrapers. Muck ditches were constructed with 6- to lo-ft. bases and with 2 \ to i slopes, and then levees with lo-ft. top width and 3 to i slopes were built. The material which was an adobe or dark clay and loam, was taken from the borro\v pits on the land side. These pits were made with a 4o-ft. embankment berm, a depth of 4 ft. on the inside and a slope of i in 50 to the outside. At intervals of 400 to 500 ft. were left checks 17! ft. wide, across the pits. About 150 Fresno scrapers and 600 head of stock were employed continuously on this work. During the month of February, 1907, 270,000 cu. yd. were moved and an average of 7,000 cu. yd. were moved per day. 121. Use of Dump Cars in Massachusetts. A tidal dike was built, during the latter part of 1908 and 1909, at Wellfleet, on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. This dike was a sand embankment, having a length of about 900 ft., top width of 22 ft. and side slopes of \\ to i. The maximum bottom width was 68 ft. The material was borrowed from pits in hills at each end of the dike. A 2o-in. gage track was laid from either end of the dike on an incline, so that the dump cars would run out of the borrow pits and on to the dike by gravity. The empty cars were pulled back by means of a cable and hoisting engine. Automatic side dump cars of 3 cu. yd. capacity were used. The maximum haul was 450 ft. and the labor cost was 8 cents per cubic yard. NOTE. The reader is referred to Paragraph 2b, Chapter I, for an account of levee construction with Frenso scrapers. 122. Floating Dipper Dredge. The floating dipper dredge has been successfully used in the construction of levees where the latter are small but it is not a practicable excavator where the levees are large. The dipper dredge must excavate all the borrowed material in front of itself and this means the excavation of a deeper pit than is advisable. This pit would generally be too near the toe of the levee for safety. The dipper dredge has a comparatively short boom and dipper handle and where the cross-section of the levee has over 1,000 cu. yd. per 100 ft. in length, the use of this type of dredge would be impracticable and inefficient. 123. Clam-shell Dredge in California. Where levees are con- structed along large rivers or artificial channels, it is often advisable to use some type of floating dredges. The disadvantages of the dipper dredge have been overcome by the use of a long boom and a clam- TRACTION DREDGE 301 shell bucket. Such a dredge has been used in the reclamation of the delta lands at the junction of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers with San Francisco Bay. I23a. Description of Dredge. This dredge had a hull whose length was 140 ft., width 50 ft. and depth 10 ft. It was made with two longi- tudinal and two cross bulkheads, extending from keels to deck. The hull was built of i2-in. square timbers. There were two side and one rear stationary spuds and one fleeting spud. All the spuds were built of single timbers, each 30 in. square and 70 ft. long. The boom was made up of 24-in. square timbers spliced in the center and forming a structure 150 ft. long. The bucket had a spread of 14 ft. and was capable of lifting 14 cu. yd. of excavated material, weighing 25 tons, at one time. Diagram showing the Use of a Traction Dredge in Levee Construction. Figure 133. Power was furnished by a double-cylinder, compound, high-pressure engine of about 500 h.p. The engine was equipped with two i4-in. high-pressure cylinders working into one 4i-in. low-pressure cylinder. Steam was furnished by boilers of the Scotch Marine type, having lengths of 13 J ft. and heights of 7 ft. Crude petroleum oil was used for fuel. i23b. Operation of Dredge. The soil was sand and clay and was easily and efficiently excavated with this type of dredge. When working uniformly, the bucket made a round trip in about one minute. The work was carried on in two n-hour shifts for each working day and the average excavation was 8,000 cu. yd. The maximum excava- tion made in a day was about 10,500 cu. yd. 124. Dry-land Dredge in Louisiana. When the banks of a stream 302 LEVEE BUILDERS which is to be diked are of dry and firm soil, a dry-land excavator is used to good advantage. During recent years a number of these exca- vators, mounted on skids and rollers and equipped with clam-shell or orange-peel buckets, have been operating in Louisiana. The diagram in Fig. 133 will show the method of operation of a traction dredge. I24a. Operation of Dredge. 1 The following table gives the cost of operation of a traction dredge, equipped with a 2\ cu. yd. orange- peel bucket. These figures are for a typical piece of levee construction in alluvial soil and where clearing is not required. Labor: i engineer @ $120 per month, $120.00 i fireman @ $50 per month, 50.00 i track foreman @ $2 per day, 52.00 4 trackmen @ $1.75 per day each, 182.00 i pumpman, 39.00 Total labor cost, $443 oo The above is the labor schedule for one ii-hour shift. The night shift cost would be the same: $443 oo General Supplies: i team and driver for hauling coal, $91 .00 i ,040 barrels of Pittsburgh coal @ $0.3 7, 384 . 80 Oil and waste, 10.40 Repairs and breakage, 78 . oo Total cost of supplies, $564. 20 Total operating expenses for i month, $1,450.20 Average amount of excavation for i month, 38,000 cu. yd. Average cost of excavation per cubic yard, $o . 038 125. Hydraulic and Ladder Dredges. Hydraulic and ladder dredges have not been used with much success in levee building, except under peculiarly favorable conditions. The material, which these types of dredges excavate, is in such a fluid condition that it will not remain in place in the form of an embankment. The only method that can be used to hold this fluid material in place is first to build two parallel ridges of dry earth or other convenient material, as the toes of the slopes, and then fill in between with the wet material up to the top of the ridges. After the wet filling dries out and solidifies, two more ridges can be built and filled in. This method is continued until the levee is carried to the proper elevation and completed. This process 1 Abstracted from Circular 74, U. S. De,pt> of Agriculture. HYDRAULIC DREDGE 303 is satisfactory in the result, but slow and expensive. When it is necessary to construct levees on wet land and where the excavated material has to be transported a considerable distance, the hydraulic dredge is very useful and efficient. 126. Hydraulic Dredge at Cairo, 111. 1 The low areas of land in the city of Cairo, Illinois, have been rilled in recently by hydraulic dredg- ing from the Mississippi River. At first, the levees, to contain the fluid-dredge material, were constructed by means of slip scrapers, but later on, a novel scheme was adopted. The method adopted was based on the fact that the material moving in the discharge pipe moves in strata with the gravel and heavy sand at the bottom, the lighter sand above and the water in the upper sec- tion of the pipe. The velocity of the material has been found to be inversely proportional to its density. This motion is not uniform in the pipe, but goes on like wave action with a series of crests and hollows. Several lengths of the discharge pipe were provided with openings on the lower side, 3 in. by 4 in., with the 4-in. dimension longitudinal, and spaced about 3 ft. apart. These openings could be regulated in size or closed by shutters, which were made of No. 8 sheet steel and worked in cast grooves bolted to the outside of the pipe. The shutters of several openings were opened, the excavated material issued in the consistency of a thick mortar, which would assume in the bank about a i to i slope. By opening the shutters farther the escaping material could be made more fluid, and flatten out the slopes of the levee. The end of the discharge pipe was carried to a considerable distance from the levee, so that the escaping fluid material and water would not affect the work. 127. Austin Levee Builder. The Austin Levee Builder is a templet excavator, built on the same general principles as those described in Chapter VI, Section B. These excavators can be adapted to levee construction by making a few simple modifications. The levee builder consists of a moving platform, which supports an excavator frame at one end and a levee runway at the other end. The platform is generally built of timber and has a length of 22 ft. and a width of 20 ft. It carries the power equipment, which is gener- ally housed in. Fig. 134 shows one of the machines at work. The platform moves on a track made up of i2-in. by i2-in. timbers, 200 ft. in length. On the tops of these are spiked T-rails which take the flanged wheels of the platform trucks. For soft ground, roller platform traction is used. 1 Abstracted from Engineering-Contracting, Feb. 16, 1910. 304 LEVEE BUILDERS The power equipment consists of a steam-boiler and engine. The boiler is a 5<>h.p. fire-box locomotive type weighing 10,500 Ib. The engine is a 4o-h.p. reversible, double-cylinder, double-friction drum, hoisting engine, provided with steel gearing. The engine weighs about 12,000 Ib. The makers will furnish a gasoline engine instead of the regular steam equipment if desired. A four-legged A-frame, made up of structural steel members is sup- ported on the platform. From the top of this frame, cables pass over steel sheaves to the outer ends of the excavator frame and the levee runway. These cables are connected to the drums of the hoisting engine and thus control the raising and lowering of these two frames. On the outer or borrow pit end of the platform is hinged a steel frame or guideway, which has the general shape of a ditch cross-section, Austin Levee Builder. Figure 134. and can be raised and lowered by the operator by means of steel wire cables passing over a sheave at the outer end of the frame, thence to a sheave at the top of the A-frame and thence to the engine. This frame forms a track over which a bucket passes. The bucket commences at the farther outside bearing of the runway and is drawn by a w r ire cable attached to the engine drum toward the machine, passing along the guideway and then across the berm and up the levee runway and dumped. Thus the bucket in its path moves over a continuous guide- way or steel track which extends from the outer point of the borrow pit, in front of the platform and to the center of the levee. The bucket after dumping is pulled back along its track to the outer point of the cutting frame, where it commences the excavation of another slice of earth. The frame is gradually lowered as the bucket excavates, until AUSTIN LEVEE BUILDER 305 the bottom of the frame is horizontal. Then the frame is raised and the whole machine moves ahead about 3 ft. and another section of the pit is excavated. The bucket used is made of steel plate with heavy manganese steel cutting edge. Its length is 48 in., depth 36 in. and width 43 in. Buckets having capacities of from if to i\ cu. yd. each, can be used on this machine. The approximate weight of a 2 cu. yd. bucket is 3,000 Ib. This levee builder is made to excavate borrow pits with i \ to i or with i to i side slopes. With \\ to i side slopes, the machine can excavate a pit having a maximum depth of 20 ft. and bottom width of 20 ft., and a minimum bottom width of 5 ft. With i to i side slopes, the maximum depth would be 30 ft. and corresponding maximum bottom width of 30 ft., and a minimum bottom width of 6 ft. The width of berm varies from 20 ft. to 40 ft. depending on the amount of material to be placed in the levee and local conditions. Under favorable conditions this machine will excavate and dump about 1,000 cu. yd. of earth per lo-hour day. The labor required is an operator, a fireman, a track gang composed of two men and a team of horses and a man and team for hauling supplies, fuel, etc. When roller platform traction is used the track gang is not neces- sary, except when the soil is very soft and one or two extra laborers are required for planking. About 2 tons of coal are used in a 10- hour shift. The operating cost for a lo-hour day would vary from $25 to $30, when the soil conditions were favorable. The F. C. Austin Drainage Excavator Co. have also designed a multiple bucket excavator for levee work. This machine consists of two moving platforms, each carrying its operating machine and excavator. The excavator consists of a triangular-shaped steel- truss frame supported at its inner end on the platform and also near its center by a cable from a crane, extending from the platform out over the excavator frame. The latter carries a continuous chain equipped with steel buckets, which cut out the soil as the frame is gradually lowered. At the platform end of the bucket chain, the buckets dump their loads as they turn over. The excavated material is dropped on a moving belt conveyor, which carries the material to the levee. The excavator frame and belt conveyor can be raised and lowered by the operator. This excavator can be duplicated on the other side and a double levee constructed as is often necessary in straightening out and enlarging a natural watercourse. Each machine is designed to dig 20 306 LEVEE BUILDERS a pit having a bottom width of 40 ft., depth of 20 ft., and side slope of 2 to i. The berm would vary from 40 ft. to 60 ft. 128. Resume. In the choice of an excavator for levee con- struction, the principal considerations are capacity, ability to quickly transport material over wide spaces and provision for re- moving water before material is deposited in spoil bank. In the early days of levee building, the wheelbarrow and the scraper were used entirely. Recently, the machine excavator has to a great extent supplanted the earlier types and with very satis- factory results. The floating dipper dredge is useful in the building of small levees along the smaller streams. However, when the levee con- tains over 1,000 cu. yd. per station of 100 ft., the boom of the dipper dredge is not long enough to properly excavate the borrow pit and place the levee. For large levees, the dry-land excavator is the best suited for average conditions. The clam-shell bucket traction excavator with a long boom is generally the most efficient type. These ma- chines are built with booms up to 125 ft. in length and with a capacity of 3,000 cu. yd. per n-hour shift. Recently, a templet machine has come into use and under favor- able conditions, operates very satisfactorily. It is not adapted to use in hard soil or where there are many large stones, stumps, or other obstructions. It digs a borrow pit of smooth and uniform cross-section and deposits the material by means of an adjustable belt conveyor, at any desired distance from the pit. The work which this machine does is nearly mechanically perfect,, and has a much more finished appearance than that done with a dredge. The author prefers a levee made with scrapers on account of the constant compacting given the embankment during construction, by the moving over it of the teams. Although the material falls from a machine excavator with considerable force, yet the resulting consolidation in the bank is usually "spotty" and uneven. The capacity of an excavator in levee construction depends on local conditions, size of excavator, operation, supervision, etc. A machine excavator equipped with a ij-cu. yd. bucket or dipper, under average working conditions should excavate and place about 1,000 cu. yd. during a lo-hour day at an average operating cost of about 5 cents. The^average cost of construction with scrapers would be about 8 cents. BIBLIOGRAPHY 307 129. Bibliography. For further information, the reader is re- ferred to the following: . BOOKS 1. The Dikes of Holland by G. H. Matthes. 2. Excavating Machinery by J. O. Wright. Bulletin published in 1904 by Department of Drainage Investigation of U. S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. MAGAZINE ARTICLES 1. The Construction of the Levee Below the Recent Colorado River Break, C. W. Ozias; Engineering News, May 16, 1907. Illustrated, 1,800 words. 2. Dike at Herring River, Wellfleet, Massachusetts, Frank W. Hodgdon; Engineering News, August n, 1910. 1,200 words. 3. Dredges for Levee Building, Enos Brown; Scientific American, December 20, 1902. Illustrated. 500 words. 4. Method of Constructing and Maintaining Peat Levees, Nathaniel Ellery; Engineering-Contracting, October 27, 1909. CHAPTER X THE COMPARATIVE USE OF EXCAVATING MACHINERY 132. General Considerations. It is clearly impossible to lay down any rules or state any formulae by means of which an excavator could be arbitrarily selected for any proposed work. There are always so many variable conditions and unknown and unforeseen factors to consider, that it is to a great extent a matter of judgment. This essential but rare quality is born in some people, but by most of us must be acquired by experience. One of the primary considerations in the choice of an excavator for any particular piece of work is the size of the job or the amount of excavation to be made. Unless the work is of sufficient magni- tude, it would not pay to use a dredge which must be shipped knocked down or in a dismantled condition, transported to the site of the proposed work, and erected. All this is expensive and re- quires some weeks and sometimes several months. This outlay must be added to the operating expenses in order to determine the total cost of the work. Hence, it is not generally economical to use a dredge on a job where not more than 50,000 cu. yd. of ex- cavation can be handled with one set-up of the machine. A small work, such as an isolated ditch or levee, is often a difficult thing to construct, because the average contractor does not care to take the trouble to ship an excavator to the site of the work for the possible small profit. The author recalls several cases where it was necessary, after long delays, to interest and instruct local parties in the use of simple types of excavators, in order to get ditches built. There is at present (1913), a great field throughout the South and West for excavators adapted for small ditches. A machine of the wheel ex- cavator type, as described in Section C, Chapter VI, is probably the best for such work. A contractor generally uses the machinery which he happens to have on hand, sometimes without regard to its adaptability for the proposed work. To contractors with small capital this is perhaps an economic necessity. But, as a rule, it is for the interest of the contractor, the client and all concerned, that the most suitable 308 MASSENA CANAL, NEW YORK 309 and efficient machine shall be used, and used intelligently on every piece of work. To that end, the engineer should recommend the type of excavator to be employed and the client should see that his contract with the contractor contains a clause requiring that proper and efficient machinery shall be used at all times on all parts of the work. The following tables of the comparative costs of the various types of excavators are given to supply in a purely relative manner this information on a few representative jobs, where such information has been accurately compiled. 133. Massena Canal, New York. A large hydraulic power canal in St. Lawrence County, N. Y., was constructed from 1897 to 1901, to divert water from the St. Lawrence River for power purposes. The canal has a length of about 3 miles, top width of 225 ft. and average depth of 25 ft. The material excavated was mostly sand, clay and gravel, but considerable indurated clay and boulders were removed. HYDRAULIC DREDGE NO. I This dredge had a southern pine hull, 65 ft. long, 30 ft. wide, and 6 ft. deep. The A-frame was of 12X12. -in. timbers 45 ft. high and there were two spuds of 9X16 in. and 40 ft. long. The wrought-iron suction and discharge pipes were i ft. in diameter and the suction pipe was equipped with a rotary cutter to loosen the material. Steam was supplied by a i25~h.p. boiler to a Lidgerwood, compound, con- densing engine of 125 h.p. The excavated material was lifted to a height of 30 ft. above the water level, excavated to a depth of 22 ft. below the water surface and discharged 1,200 ft. The average dis- charge contained 25 per cent, of solid material, ranging from 7 to 30 per cent. This dredge successfully excavated sand, clay and gravel but could not remove the indurated clay. The total working time was three seasons of about eight months each, six days per week and two shifts of n hours each per day. Each shift contained the following labor : i captain i engineer i fireman i oiler i deckhand foreman 3 laborers @ 15 cents The total labor cost for an n-hour shift was $17-95- 310 THE USE OF EXCAVATING MACHINERY The daily operating cost is as follows : Labor and supervision, 9 tons coal @ $3, Oil, waste, etc., Interest, repairs and renewals, 1 Care during winter, $209, Total for 22-hour day, $95. 70 Average daily output, 1,125 cu. yd. Cost of excavation per cubic yard, 8. 5 cents. HYDRAULIC DREDGE NO. II This dredge was provided with i8-in. diameter suction and discharge pipes and was similar to Dredge No. I, except that it was larger in every way. The material and distance to which it was moved were the same. A spudman was required extra for this larger dredge, making the total labor cost, for an n-hour shift, $20.95. The same rates of interest and depreciation were assumed but based on an initial cost of $60,000. The daily operating cost is as follows : Labor and supervision, $41 . 90 1 8 tons coal @ $3, 54 .00 Oil, waste, etc., 8.00 Interest, repairs and renewals, 40. 19 Care during winter, i . oo Total for 22-hour day, $145.09 Average daily output, i 544 cu. yd. Cost of excavation per cubic yard, 9 . 4 cents. DIPPER DREDGE This dredge had a hull 85 ft. long, 28 ft. wide and 10 ft. deep. Three timber spuds, 20 in. square were used. The dipper arm was 28 ft. long of timber sheathed with steel and carrying a dipper of 2 \ cu. yd. capacity. The cutting edge of the dipper was provided with three steel teeth, about 6X5 in. The excavated material w r as deposited in two scows, each having a dropping pocket with a capacity of 140 cu. yd. A tug towed the scows into the St. Lawrence River, 1 The annual depreciation and repairs were assumed as 10 per cent, on the initial cost of $40,000 or $4,000. Interest on the investment was taken at 4 per cent, or $1,600. This makes a total overhead charge of $5,600, which at 209 working days per year, gives a daily expense of $26.80. COLBERT SHOALS CANAL, ALABAMA 311 an average distance of about 5,500 ft. The daily wages of the crew of dredge, tug and scows, the cost of coal, supplies, etc., amounted to $30.56 for 10 hours. The daily operating cost is as follows : Labor, supervision, coal and supplies, $30.56 Interest repairs and renewals, 1 28.80 Care during winter, i.oo Total for lo-hour day, $60.36 Average daily output, 754 C u. yd. Cost of excavation per cubic yard, 8 . o cents. Two other dredges worked one season. The larger dredge had a 6-cu. yd. dipper, while the smaller one had a i ^-cu. yd. dipper. The cost of operation was practically the same as for the 2 J-cu. yd. dredge. The dipper dredges were successful in the handling of the indurated clay and boulders. The former had to be blasted when dry in order that the dredge could excavate it. 134. The Colbert Shoals Canal, Alabama. 2 The Colbert Shoals Canal was constructed several years ago (1905-06-07), along the south bank of the Tennessee River to overcome the obstructions to navigation offered by the Colbert and Bee Tree Shoals in the river. The lower end of the canal is near Riverton, Alabama. The section of the canal to be considered lies through the bottom-lands of the river valley. These lands were of an alluvial formation and were low away from the river along the hills. Part of the canal was located in this lowland and this necessitated the wasting of all the material on the river side of the canal. The canal (section under consideration) has a length of 5.3 miles, a bottom width of 112 ft. and side slopes of 2 to i. Berms of 15 ft. width were left on both sides of the canal and the berm on the river side was brought to a height of 95 ft. above low water in the canal. Several kinds of excavators were used in this work and were used successively as occasion demanded for the excavation of different classes of material. The wheel scrapers, elevating graders and steam shovel were used to remove the upper and loose soil, while the drag- line excavators were applied to the lower and harder soil. The 1 The annual depreciation and repairs were assumed as 10 per cent, on the initial cost of dredge, tug and two scows, of $43,000 or $4,300. Interest on the investment was taken at 4 per cent, or $1,720. This makes a total overhead charge of $6,020, which at 212 working days per year, gives a daily expense of $28.80. Abstracted from Professional Memoirs, U. S. Engineers, Oct.-Dec. 1911. 312 THE USE OF EXCAVATING MACHINERY latter were also found to be more efficient in excavating in pits con- taining 2 to 3 ft. of water, and heavy rains did not interfere with their operation. This was found to be the only type of excavator which could worl^: continuously through the day with two or three shifts. Following is a detailed description of the various types of excavators used. Wheel Scrapers and Elevating Graders. The wheel scrapers used were standard two- wheel scrapers with two-horse teams. The elevating graders used were the "Standard Western Elevating Graders," equipped with 2i-ft. elevators and using extra heavy plows. The scrapers were used to assist the elevating graders in excavating and filling runways, stripping the surface of sod and cornstalks and in preparing roadways for the traction engines, which hauled the elevating graders. The latter were served by eight four-horse dump wagons for each machine. The only portions of the canal completed by the graders were the two sections from Stations 10 to 20 and from Stations 145 to 163. The graders were found impracticable in exca- vating sticky "gumbo" soil, and hard pan. On the section from Stations 222 to 290, the graders with the assistance of the scrapers made an excavation no to 120 ft. in width and from 8 to 10 ft. in depth. This left a berm of about 30 ft. in width on each side for the drag-line excavators to work from in completing the excavation. Drag-line Bucket Excavators. Two Armstrong excavators equip- ped with 2-cu. yd. Page buckets were used. These machines were of the standard revolving traction type and were equipped with 8i-ft. booms and double-drum hoisting engines with ioXi2-in. cylinders. A third drag-line excavator known as the McMyler machine, was used in coordination with the two Armstrong excavators. This excavator was equipped with a i J-cu. yd. bucket. These machines moved along the berms left by the scrapers and elevating graders and completed the excavation in the following manner. One Armstrong machine operated in front taking out the section from the center of the ditch to the foot of the side slope, the McMyler machine followed and trimmed the slope and the other Armstrong excavator followed on the other berm and removed the remainder of the material. Steam Shovel. The steam-shovel outfit consisted of a 65-ton Marion shovel, one 25-ton and one 20- ton dinkey locomotive, light "Oliver" i2-yd. side-dump cars, about if miles of standard-gage track, a tank, pipe line and pump. COLBERT SHOALS CANAL, ALABAMA 313 ex. >< H Dd P O X * X < X > w a 3 '43 T3 G d n of ' *v TJ 05 "" Delays waiting for cars. Finished loading and ready to move. bb a 1 1 U 1 fi Time moving. Other delays. >> 13 ^4 *o S u From To Time. Time. Mins. Time. Mins. No. No. Mins. Time. Time. Mins. Total Inspector. 324 SPECIFICATIONS FOR STEAM SHOVELS Second: A Daily Report for local office use in reporting amount of work done with itemized costs. DAILY STEAM-SHOVEL REPORT STEAM SHOVEL No ........ at ...................... ............. 191 . . Face of Bank ............................. Average Length of Haul ......... DETAILS OF LABOR. CARS LOADED. S. S. Crew commenced wk. . . M. >> . g ^ v S. S. Crew quit work ........ M. % & . ^ Hrs. Rate. Amt. Hart Convert. 34' 80,000 35.6 side .......... S. S. Engineer. ................. ......... 34' 80,000 25 . 3 cent .......... S. S. Fireman .............. Rogers ....... 34' 100,000 29 . 3 .............. S. S. Cranesman ......................... 34' 80,000 29.3 .............. S. S. Watchman ......................... 34' 40,000 .................. S. S. Pitmen ............... Haskell & Car Repairers .............. Barker ....... 40' 80,000 36. 20 ............. Laborers ............................................................... Pumpmen .................. Ingoldsby ..... 42' 100,000 42.4 .............. TOTAL ............................................................. .......................... Flats ............ 80,000 29.3 .............. Spotting Crew com'd work ..... M ............ 60,000 22 .............. Spotting Crew quit work ....... M ............ 50,000 18.3 ............... .......................................... 40,000 14. 7 .............. ........................... Coal ............ 60,000 36 .............. Engine No ................................. 50,000 32.5 ..... ......... Engine No ................ . ................ 40,000 23 .............. Engine No ................. 6 yd. dump cars ........... 6 .............. Conductor ................. 5 yd. dump cars .......... 5 .............. Brakemen .................. TOTAL ................................... Engine Watchmen .......... Loads left over from previous day .............. ............. . ............ Average cost per cubic yard for labor ............ ......................... Average cost per cubic yard for material .......... TOTAL ................. Average cost per cubic yard for superintendence, Superintendence, etc ........ plant, rent, etc .................. ........... GRAND TOTAL .......... TOTAL Average cost per cubic yard ......... SUPPLIES, LOCOMOTIVES, CARS, PUMPS, ETC. Cts. Pts. Cost. Cts. Pts. Cost. Valve Oil ..... ..................... Coal Loco ............................ Engine Oil ......................... Waste C. C .......................... Car Oil ............................ Waste Wool .......................... Signal Oil ........................ . ..................................... Headlight Oil ........................................ ....... . ........... Coal Shovel ....................... . . TOTAL ........................... Kind of material handled ................................................ Character of work performed ............................................. Track Conditions ....................................................... General Conditions ...................................................... Weather. . . SPECIFICATIONS FOR STEAM SHOVELS 325 DELAYS Hrs. Min. Remarks. Waiting for cars Moving Shovel Repairing Shovel Repairing Locomotive. . Other Delays TOTAL DELAYS.. (Signature). 326 MONTHLY STEAM SHOVEL REPORT Third: A Monthly Report for General Office use in reporting details for the period's operation. MONTHLY STEAM-SHOVEL REPORT STEAM SHOVEL No AT MONTH Average Face of Bank Average Length of Haul General: Number of Days Worked Average Daily Car Output Average Cubic Yards per Car Total Cubic Yards Average Cubic Yards per Day - Actual Time Worked by S. S Time Delayed Percentage of Delays Number and Kind of Cars Used Number and Kind of Engines Kind of Material Character of Work Performed Track Conditions General Conditions Weather Total. Per day. Per yard. Labor: Cost Shovel Service , Cost Train Service Cost Car Repairs Cost Dumping Cars Cost of Superintendence and Plant Rental TOTAL Cost Labor Used Cost Total cost, per day. per day. Supplies: Valve Oil Engine Oil Car Oil Signal Oil Headlight Oil Coal for Shovel Coal for Engine Waste C. C. and Wool TOTAL Supplies Per yard. Per day. Total: Total Cost Labor Total Cost Supplies Total CostS. S. Work.. APPENDIX B TESTS OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER COMMISSION FOR HYDRAULIC DREDGES The dredges Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, Zeta, Iota, Kappa, and Henry Flad, used in the construction of a channel in the Mississippi River below Cairo were subjected to the following tests, as adopted by the committee on dredges and dredging, of the Mississippi River Commission, dated July 24, 1902: "(i) Such test 1 shall be made as may be necessary to determine the efficiency of boilers, engines, and sand pumps of each of the dredges. The relative efficiency of the several types of jet pumps, with due consideration of the results required in economical dredging work, should also be care- fully determined. "(2) As a basis for determining the mechanical efficiency of engines and pumps under working load, it is necessary to first determine their frictional horse-power when running at normal speed without load. " (3) The pump tests shall be made by pumping water with the intake submerged to the normal depth and the pump running at normal speed, and also at known speeds both higher and lower than the normal, in order to ascertain the effect of variations in speed. " (4) In order to ascertain, as far as practicable, the effect of the form of suction head, tests shall be made both with and without the suction head, where these are so attached as to be readily removable. "(5) Each test shall embrace the determination of the indicated horse- power of engines, the number of revolutions of pump per minute, the velocity of flow in suction and discharge pipes, the suction and discharge pressures. " (6) In addition to the pressure gages now in use, mercury manometers should be attached to suction and discharge pipes near pump for the accurate determination of suction and discharge pressures. " (7) The velocity of flow in suction and discharge pipe shall be care- fully measured, and their determinations made at several points in the cross-section of discharge pipe, so as to determine whether or not the whole of the discharge section is effective under normal pumping conditions. This test can, however, only be made when pumping sand, but it would not interfere materially with the regular field work, if done when dredges l From Annual Report of the War Department, 1903. Vol 13. 327 328 TESTS OF HYDRAULIC DREDGES are in operation. Pilot's tubes are recommended for use in making veloc- ity observations. " (8) The loss of head due to friction in the discharge pipe shall be deter- mined. It is also desirable to carry this investigation further, if found practicable, so as to include the effect of curved sections, rough joints, etc. " (9) It is also desirable to measure, as far as practicable, the relative efficiency of the double and single intake to ascertain whether the flow of two columns of water from opposite directions and meeting at the center of the pump tends to materially reduce the efficiency. "(10) In conducting the above required investigation, other -lines of inquiry will doubtless be suggested, and if they promise results of value they should be followed up. "(u) When the required observations have been completed, they shall be carefully studied and compared, with a view to determine the most efficient type of engine and pump now in use, and how the best of these could be improved upon in future construction. "(12) The results of the above investigations shall be embodied in a report giving in detail the type and form of boilers, engines, and pumps examined, and the observations made in each case, with a summary show- ing from the results which type or combination of types is the most efficient and best for the conditions met with in the Mississippi River. "(13) It is intended that the investigations and experiments called for above will be made at such times as the dredges are not otherwise em- ployed, as when lying at the bank waiting for suitable stage of water or at the close of the coming dredge season before being laid up for the winter. It is, therefore, desirable to have such preparations made in the way of instruments and measuring appliances and attachments as may be deemed necessary before going into the field." INDEX A-frame, dipper dredge, 177, 188 scraper bucket excavator, 144 steam shovel, 48, 60, 63, 95 Alabama, use of elevating graders, 312, 3i3, 3U use of scraper bucket excavator, 312, 313, 314 use of steam shovel, 312, 313, 315 use of wheel scrapers, 312, 313, 3H Animal motive power for elevating grader, 32 Arizona, use of Fresno scrapers, 300 Atlantic steam shovel, 58 Austin drainage excavator, 136 capacity, 138, 139, 140, 143 cost of operation, 139, 140, 143 limitations of, 137, 138 use in Colorado, 139 use in Illinois, 138 use in Texas, 140 Austin levee builder, boiler, 304 bucket, 305 capacity, 305 engine, 304 operation, 304 operating cost, 305 Austin scraper bucket, 116 Austin tile ditcher, 292 capacity, 296, 297 engine, 293 excavating chain, 293 excavating cost, 297 operating cost, 297 operation, 294 sizes, 296 Austin wheel ditcher, 145 capacity, 146, 148 Avery traction steam shovel, 95 Belt conveyors, 201, 204, 205, 213, 215 Bibliography, dipper dredges, 196 drag and wheel scrapers, 21 elevating graders, 38 hydraulic dredges, 241 ladder dredges, 221 levee builders, 307 rock excavators, 223 scraper-bucket excavators, 135 scrapers, 21 steam shovels, 98 templet excavators, 143 trench excavators, 298 use of excavating machinery, 315 Boiler, dipper dredge, 167, 188 hydraulic dredge, 229, 238, 309 ladder dredge, 202, 210, 213, 215 locomotive crane, 133, 246, 248 scraper-bucket excavator, 107, 301 steam shovel, 46, 60, 61 traveling derrick, 133, 246, 248 Boom, dipper dredge, 168, 169, 170, 171, 181, 185, 187, 188, 191 locomotive crane, 133, 249 scraper-burket excavators, 102, 103, 112, 123, 125, 126, 128, 129, 131, 132 steam shovel, 47 traveling derrick, 133, 249 Browning scraper bucket, 115 Bucket, Austin scraper, 116 Browning scraper, 115 Bucyrus scraper, 116 Clam-shell, 50, 251; 253, 301 Iverson scraper, 116 Martinson scraper, 115 Orange-peel, 49, 252, 253, 302 Page scraper, 114 Weeks scraper, 119 Buckeye traction ditcher, 144, 262, 281 capacity, 263, 286, 287, 288 cost, 145 329 330 INDEX Buckeye traction ditcher, excavating cost, 263, 286', 287, 288 excavating wheel, 282 operating cost, 262, 286, 287, 288 operation, 284 sizes, 282 use in Colorado, 262 use in Iowa, 288 use in Kansas, 288 use in Minnesota, 285 use in Ohio, 287 Bucyrus scraper bucket, 116 steam shovel, 51, 58, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 77, 80, 82, 83 Cable, 274, 278, 321 Cableway excavators, 272 Carson-Lidgerwood, 272 S. Flory, 278 California, use of clam-shell dredge,3oo use of dipper dredge, 192 use of Fresno scrapers, 6 use of scraper-bucket excavator, 126 Canada, use of drill boats, 219 Capstan plow, capacity, 41 cost of operation, 41 description, 40 excavating cost, 42, 315 method of operation, 41 Car-body, steam shovel, 45, 60, 95 Cars, disposal, 320 dump, 300, 320 Carson-Lidgerwood cable way, 272 boiler, 273, 274 cable, 274 capacity, 273, 275, 277 engine, 273, 274 operating cost, 277 operation, 272 traveler, 275 trestle, 273, 275 tubs, 273, 275 use in Washington, D. C., 276 Carson-Lidgerwood excavator, exca- vating cost, 278 Carson-Trainor excavator, 266 Carson trench excavators, boiler, 267, 269 Carson trench excavators, cables, 269 capacity, 265, 267, 270, 272 engine car, 269 engines, 265, 267, 268 excavating cost, 272 operating cost, 272 sizes, 264, 265, 267 trestles, 267, 269 tubs, 265, 267, 270, 271 use in Connecticut, 271 Chicago drainage canal, use of elevat- ing grader, 37 use of steam shovel, 71 use of tower excavator, 155 use of wheel scrapers, u Chicago, 111., use of hydraulic dredge, 236 use of steam shovel, 79 Chicago trench excavator, boiler, 258 bucket, 261 chain, 258 capacity, 259, 261, 262 engine, 258 excavating cost, 262 operating cost, 262 sizes, 259 use in Illinois, 261 Clam-shell bucket, 50, 251, 253, 301 Colbert Shoals Canal, Alabama, 311 Colorado, use of Austin templet ex- cavator, 139 use of Buckeye traction ditcher, 262 use of dipper dredge, 185 use of Fresno scrapers, 5 use of wheel scrapers, 1 7 Comparative use of excavating ma- chinery, 308 Connecticut, use of trestle cable ex- cavator, 271 Continuous bucket excavator, 254 Conveyors, 201, 204, 205, 209, 213, 215 Cost, see the article in question Cutters, hydraulic dredge, 225, 231, 233, 238, 240, 309 Daily steam shovel report, 323 Dipper dredges, 163, 300, 306, 315 A-frame, 177, 188 INDEX 331 Dipper dredges, bibliography, 196 boiler, 167, 188 boom, 181, 185, 187, 188, 191 cables, 184 capacity, 168, 169, 170, 171, 185, 187, 189, 191, 192, 193, 194, 196, 311 cost, 186, 192, 194 dipper, 182, 185, 187, 191, 192, 194, 196, 310, 311 handle, 183, 188, 310 engines, 173, 188 excavating cost, 186, 187, 191, 192, 193, 194, 196,311,315 genera] details, 184 hoisting engine, 173, 188 hull, 163, 185, 187, 310 operation, 174 operating cost, 186, 187, 190, 191, 192, 193, 194, 196, 311 sheaves, 184 sizes, 168, 169, 170, 171 spud engine, 179 spuds, 179, 188 swinging engine, 174, 188 use in California, 192 use in Colorado, 185 use in Florida, 187 use in Illinois, 191 use in Louisiana, 194 use in South Dakota, 187 use on Massena Canal, N. Y., 310 Double tower excavator, 155 Drag-line excavators, 104,312 Drag scrapers, i, 299, 306, see slip scrapers cost, i description of, i excavating costs, 2, 315 sizes, i use in Minnesota, 3 use in South Dakota, 3 weight, i working capacities, 2 Dredges, classification, 101 dry-land, 102 floating dipper, 163 hydraulic, 224 ladder, 197 Dredges, steel pontoon, 205 walking, 157 Drill boats, 218 bibliography, 223 capacity, 220, 221 operating cost, 220, 221 operation, 218, 219 use in New York, 220 use on St. Lawrence River, Canada, 219 Dry-land excavators, 102, 301 classification, 102 excavating cost, 122, 123, 124, 125, 127, 129, 130, 133, 139, 149, 153, 154, 313 operating cost, 121, 123, 124, 127, 129, 130, 133, 135, 139, 140, 149, 153, 154, 314 use in Alabama, 312 use in California, 126 use in Colorado, 139 use in Florida, 124 use in Illinois, 132, 138 use in Louisiana, 301 use in Minnesota, 161 use in Nebraska, 161 use in Nevada, 125 use in North Dakota, 140 use in South Dakota, 122 use in Texas, 140 use on New York State Barge Canal, 123, 129, 153 Dump cars, 74, 300, 320 Edwards cataract pump, 226 Electrically operated steam shovels, 54, 76 Elevating grader, description, 30 excavating cost, 34, 35, 38, 313, 3i5 operating cost, 33, 34, 35, 38, 314 use in Alabama, 312 use in Minnesota, 36 use in Montana, 35 use in Nebraska, 35 use in South Dakota, 33 use on Chicago Drainage Canal, 37 Ele vator dredges, 197 see ladder dredges 332 INDEX Embankments, 321 Engines, dipper dredge, 168, 169, 170, 171, 173, 188 gasoline, 54, no, 123, 138, 147, 158, 162, 259, 285, 291, 293 hydraulic dredge, 227, 231, 234, 238, 326 ladder dredge, 202, 204, 209, 213, 214 locomotive crane, 133, 246, 248 scraper-bucket excavator, 103, 109, 113, 123, 124 steam shovel, 46, 53, 58, 60, 65, 95 templet excavator, 138, 140 tower excavator, 151, 153 traveling derrick, 133, 246, 248 trench excavators, 256, 258, 259, 265, 267, 268, 273, 274, 285, 290, 293, 296 walking dredge, 158, 161, 162 wheel excavators, 147 Excavating cost with cableway exca- vator, 277 with capstan plow, 42, 315 with continuous bucket excavator, 257, 262, 263 with dipper dredge, 187, 191, 192, 193, 194, 196, 311, 315 with drill boats, 220, 221 with elevating graders, 34, 35, 36, 3iS with Fresno scraper, 5, 6, 7, 8 with hydraulic dredge, 236, 310 with ladder dredge, 207, 208, 213, 216 with locomotive crane, 134, 253, 254 with Maney four-wheel scraper, 17, 18, 19, 20 with Reclamation grader, 29 with scraper-bucket excavator, 123, 124, 125, 127, 129, 130, 132, 134, 135 with slip scraper, 2, 21, 315 with steam shovel, 68, 69, 71, 77, 78, 79, 81, 82, 84, 85, 86, 87, 91, 93, 94, 95, 96, 315 with templet excavator, 139, 143 Excavating cost with tile trench ex- cavators, 286, 287, 288, 292, 297 with tower excavator, 154, 155 with traction dredge, 302, 313, 314 with traveling derrick, 134, 253, 254 with trench excavators, 134, 253, 254, 257, 262, 263, 272, 277, 281 with trestle cable excavator, 272 with trestle track excavator, 281 with two-wheel grader, 24 with wheel excavator, 149 with wheel scraper, 10, n, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 21 Excavators, Atlantic steam shovel, 58 Austin drainage excavator, 136 Austin levee builder, 303 Austin tile ditcher, 292 Austin wheel ditcher, 145 Avery traction steam shovel, 95 Buckeye traction ditcher, 144, 262 Bucyrus steam shovel, 51, 58, 70, 71,72,73,74,75,77,80,82,83 capstan plow, 40 Carson-Trainor, 266 Carson-Lidgerwood cableway, 272 Chicago trench, 258 continuous bucket, 254 dipper dredges, 163 double-tower, 155 drag-line, 104, 312 drill boats, 218 elevator dredges, 197 floating, 163 Fresno scraper, 4, 300 Gopher ditching, 103 graders, 23 elevating, 30 Ho viand tile ditcher, 289 hydraulic dredges, 224 ladder dredges, 197 Jacobs guided-drag-line, 130 Junkin ditcher, 140 levee builders, 299 limitations of scraper-bucket, 135 Lobintz rock cutters, 217 INDEX 333 Excavators, locomotive crane, 133, 245 Maney four-wheel scraper, 16 Marion-Osgood steam shovel, 71, 72, 74, 75, 312 Otis-Chapman steam shovel, 61, 84,94 Parsons traction trench, 254 Potter trench, 279 Reclamation grader, 25 rock, 217 S. Flory cable way, 278 scrapers, drag and wheel, i scraper, with two booms, 102 sewer trench, 245, 254, 263, 272, 278 steam shovels, 43 templet, 136 Thew automatic revolving steam shovel, 58, 79, 85, 86 tile trench, 281 tower, 150 cableway, 272 traveling derrick, 133, 245 trench, 245, 254, 263, 272, 278 Carson, 264 trestle cable, 263 trestle track, 278 Victor steam shovel, 71, 75 Vulcan steam shovel, 76, 8 1, 91 walking dredges, 157 water-pipe trench, 245, 254, 263, 272, 268 wheel, 144 wheel scrapers, 9 Feed-pumps, 46 Feed- water heater, 108, 172 Floating excavators, 163 elevator dredges, 197 hydraulic dredges, 224 ladder dredges, 197 Florida, use of dipper dredge, 187 use of scraper-bucket excavator, 124 use of steam shovel, 80 Four-wheel grader, description, 24, 25 Fresno scrapers, 4, 300 cost, 4 Fresno scrapers, description of, 4 excavating cost, 5, 6, 7, 8 sizes, 4 use in Arizona, 300 use in California, 5 use in Colorado, 5 use in Nevada, 6 weight, 4 working capacity, 5, 6, 300 Gantry of ladder dredge, 201, 203, 209 Gasoline engine elevator drive for elevating grader, 31 Gasoline engine power, 31 steam shovels, 54 scraper-bucket excavators, no, 123 templet excavators, 138 trench excavators, 259, 285, 290, 291, 293 walking dredge, 158, 162 wheel excavators, 147 Georgia, use of steam shovel, 80 Gopher ditching machine, 103 Grab bucket, 49, 50, 247, 251, 251, 253, 301, 302 Grader, elevating, animal motive power, 32 bibliography, 38 cost, 30 cost of operation, 33, 34, 35, 36,_37,38 description, 30 gasoline-engine elevator drive, 3i traction-engine motive power, 32 use in Minnesota, 36 use in Montana, 35 use in Nebraska, 35 use in South Dakota, 33 use on Chicago Drainage Ca- nal, 37 working capacity, 33, 34, 35, 36,37,38 four-wheel, description, 24 large elevating, description, 30 ligh wheel, 25 cost, 25 334 INDEX Grader, reclamation, cost, 27 cost of road construction with, 29 description, 25 use in Iowa, 27 road or scraping, 23 cost, 24, 25 cost of excavation with, 24, 29 weight, 24, 25 working capacity, 24, 27, 29 small elevating, description, 30 standard elevating, description, 30 standard wheel, 25 cost, 25 two-wheel, 23 cost, 24 description, 23 use in Mississippi, 24 weight, 24 Hovland tile ditcher, 289 capacity, 292 engine, 290 excavating chain, 290 operating cost, 292 operation, 290 sizes, 290 use in Minnesota, 291 Hull, dipper dredge, 163, 168, 169, 170, 171, 185, 187, 310 hydraulic dredge, 229, 231, 232, 2 36, 309, 310 ladder dredge, 199, 302, 205, 208, 212, 215 rock excavators, 218, 219 Hydraulic dredges, 224, 302, 309, 310 bibliography, 241 boiler, 229, 231, 234, 326 capacity, 227, 236, 238, 240, 310 discharge pipe, 229, 234, 238, 240, 326 electric operation, 239 engines, 227, 231, 234, 309, 326 excavating cost, 310 hull, 229, 231, 232, 236 operation, 225 operating cost 236, 310 pump, 226, 231, 234, 237, 240, 326 spud frame, 229, 237, 240 Hydraulic dredges, suction pipe, 226, 231, 233, 238, 326 tests of Mississippi River Com- mission, 326 use in Chicago, III., 236 use in Illinois, 303 use in Washington, 239 use on Massena Canal, N. Y., 309, 310 use on N. Y. State Barge Canal, 230 Illinois, use of Austin templet excava- tor, 138 use of Avery traction shovel, 96 use of Chicago trench excavator, 261 use of dipper dredge, 191 use of hydraulic dredge, 303 use of Jacobs guided-line excava- tor, 132 use of steam shovel, 81 use of trestle track excavator, 280 use of wheel scrapers, 18 Indiana, use of locomotive crane, 252 Iowa, use of Buckeye tile ditcher, 288 use of four-wheel graders, 27 Iverson scraper bucket, 116 Jack-braces, 51 Jacobs guided drag-line bucket exca- vator, 130 cost of excavation, 132, 133 cost of operation, 132 use in Illinois, 132 Junkin ditcher, 140 use in North Dakota, 140 Kansas, use of Buckeye tile ditcher, 288 Kentucky, use of locomotive crane, 253 Ladder dredges, 197, 302 bibliography, 221 boiler, 202, 210, 215 capacity, 207, 208, 211, 213, 216 chain and buckets, 200, 203, 205, 209, 212, 214 cost, 206 INDEX 335 Ladder dredges, electric operation, 215 excavating cost, 207, 208, 214 gantry, 201, 203, 209 hull, 199, 203, 206, 208, 212, 125 ladder, 199, 203, 209, 214 operating cost, 207, 208, 211, 213 operation, 199 spoil conveyors, 201, 204, 205, 209, 213, 215 spuds, 202, 204 use in Mexico, 208 use in Washington, 211 use on Fox River, Wisconsin, 214 use on N. Y. State Barge Canal, 202, 205 Levee builders, 299 Austin levee builder, 303 bibliography, 307 capacity, 306 dipper dredge, 300 dump cars, 300 dry-land dredge, 300 in Louisiana, 301 excavating cost, 306 Fresno scrapers, 300 hydraulic dredge, 302 in Illinois, 303 ladder dredge, 302 operating cost, 306 scrapers, 299 Leveler, 321 Limitations of Atlantic steam shovel, 62 of Austin drainage excavator, 137, 138 of drag-line excavator, 135 Lobintz rack cutter, 217 bibliography, 223 capacity, 218 operation, 218 Locomotive crane, 133, 245, see traveling derrick cost of excavating, 134 specifications, 247 use in Indiana, 252 use in Kentucky, 253 use of N. Y. State Barge Canal, i33 Louisiana, use of dipper dredges, 194 Louisiana, use of dry-land dredge, 301 Maine, use of steam shovel, 94 Maney four-wheel scraper, 16 capacity, 17, 18, 19 cost, 17 description of, 16 excavating cost, 17, 18, 20 operating cost, 17, 18, 20 use in Colorado, 1 7 use in Illinois, 18 use in Oregon, 17 use in Wyoming, 16 working capacity, 19 Marion-Osgood steam shovel, 71, 72, 74, 75, 312 Martinson scraper bucket, 115 Massachusetts, use of dump cars, 300 Massena canal, New York, 309 use of hydraulic dredge, 309, 310 use of dipper dredge, 310 Mexico, use of ladder dredge, 208 Minnesota, use of Buckeye tile ditcher, 285 use of elevating grader, 36 use of Hovland tile ditcher, 291 use of slip scrapers, 3 use of walking dredge, 161 Mississippi River Commission, tests of hydraulic dredges, 327 Mississippi, use of two-wheel grader, 24 Missouri, use of steam shovel, 85 Monighan scraper bucket, 115 Montana, use of elevating grader, 35 use of steam shovel, 77 Monthly steam shovel report, 325 Nebraska, use of elevating grader, 35 use of walking dredge, 161 Nevada, use of Fresno scrapers, 6 use of scraper-bucket excavator, 125 New York, use of dipper dredge, 310 use of drill boats, 220 use of electric shovel, 76 use of hydraulic dredge, 309, 310 use of steam shovel, 69 336 INDEX N. Y. State Barge Canal, use of hydrau- lic dredge, 230 use of ladder dredge, 202, 205 use of locomotive crane, 133 use of scraper-bucket excavator, 123, 129 use of tower excavator, 153 North Dakota, use of Junkin ditcher, 140 use of steam shovel, 86 Ohio, use of Buckeye tile ditcher, 287 Ontario, Canada, use of steam shovel, 83,84 Orange-peel bucket, 49, 252, 253, 302 Oregon, use of wheel scrapers, 17 Otis-Chapman steam shovel, 61 machinery, 65 sizes, 62 weights, 62 Page scraper bucket, 114 Panama Canal, use of steam shovel, 87 Parsons traction trench excavator, 254 boiler, 255 bucket, 256 capacity, 258 engines, 256 operating cost, 257 Peleter dump cars, 74 Pennsylvania, use of wheel scrapers, 12 Plow, capstan, 40 Plowing, cost, hard soil, 2 ordinary soil, i Plows, unloading, 320 Potter trench excavator, capacity, 280, 281 excavating cost, 281 operating cost, 281 operation, 279 use in Illinois, 280 Pump, hydraulic dredges, 226, 231, 234, 237, 240, 326 steam shovels, 46 Railroad construction, use of steam shovel, 77, 79, 8 1, 84 use of wheel scrapers, 12 Reclamation grader, cost, 27 Reclamation grader, description, 25 excavating cost, 27, 29 operating cost, 29 use in Iowa, 27 weight, 27 Record forms, for steam shovel work, 323, 324, 326 Report forms for steam shovel work, 323, 324, 326 Revolving steam shovels, 51 Bucyrus shovel, 5 1 operation, 52 power equipment, 53 Thew automatic shovel, 53 thrusting mechanism, 53 Road graders, 23 capacity, 24, 27, 29 cost, 24, 25 excavating cost, 24, 29 light wheel grader, 25 on road construction, 27 operating cost, 29 Reclamation grader, 25 standard wheel grader, 25 use in Iowa, 27 use in Mississippi, 24 weight, 24, 25 Rock excavators, 217 drill boats, 218 Lobintz rock excavator, 217 Scraper-bucket excavators, 102, 312 A-frame, 114 bibliography, 135 boiler, 107 boom, 112 bucket, 114, 115, 116, 119 cable, 121 capacity, 135 cost of excavation, 122, 123, 124, 125, 127, 129, 130, 313, 315 description, 104 electric power, 112, 129 gasoline power, no, 123 Gopher ditching machine, 103 hoisting engine, 109 operating cost, 121, 123, 124, 127, 129, 130, 135, 314 swinging engine, 109 INDEX 337 Scraper-bucket excavators, use in Cali- fornia, 126 use in Florida, 124 use in Nevada, 125 use in South Dakota, 122 use on N. Y. State Barge Canal, 123, 129 working capacities, 122, 124, 125, 126, 127, 129, 130 Scrapers, i, 299, 306 drag, i cost, i description, i excavating cost, 2, 315 sizes, i use in Minnesota, 3 use in South Dakota, 3 weight, i working capacity, i, 2, 3 Fresno, 4, 30 cost, 4 description, 4 excavating cost, 5, 6, 7, 8 sizes, 4 use in Arizona, 300 use in California, 5 use in Colorado, 5 use in Nevada, 6 weight, 4 working capacity, 5, 6, 300 slip, i, see drag scrapers wheel, 9, 299 cost, 8 description of, 8 excavating cost, n, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20, 21, 313 Maney four-wheel scraper, 16 operating cost, 10, n, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 21, 314 sizes, 8 use in Alabama, 312 use in Pennsylvania, 12 use in Wyoming, 10 use on Chicago Drainage Canal, ii use on railroad work, 1 2 weights, 8 working capacities, 9, 10, n, 12, 13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20,313 22 Sewer trench excavation with steam shovel, 69 excavators, 245, 254, 263, 272, 278, see trench excavators S. Flory cableway, 278 operation, 278 Shrinkage in embankments, 321 Slip scrapers, i, 299, 306, ]'see drag scrapers cost, i description, i excavating cost, i, 315 sizes, i use in Minnesota, 3 use in South Dakota, 3 weight, i working capacity, i, 2, 3 South Dakota, use of Avery traction shovel, 96 use of dipper dredge, 187 use of elevating grader, 33 . use of scraper-bucket excavator, 122 use of slip scrapers, 3 use of steam shovel, 91 Specifications for locomotive crane, 247 steam-shovels, 58, 60, 318 tower cableway excavator, 274 trestle cable excavator, 268 Spoil conveyors, 201, 204, 205, 209, 213, 215 Spreader, 321 Spuds, 229, 231, 237, 240 dipper dredge, 178, 188 ladder dredge, 202, 204, 214 rock excavators, 218 Steam shovels, A-frame, 48, 63 Atlantic type, 58 Avery traction, 95 use in South Dakota, 96 use in Illinois, 96 bibliography, 98 boiler, 46 boom, 47 Bucyrus, 51, 58, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 77, 80, 82, 83 car-body, 45, 51, 60 classification, 43 338 INDEX Steam shovels, compressed air for power, 86 cost of excavation with, 69, 78, 79, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 92, ^93, 94, 95, 313, 3iS cost of operation, 67, 69, 71, 78, "79, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 92, 93, 94, 95, 315 dipper, 48 handle, 48 electric operation, 54, 76 engines, 46, 58, 60, 63, 66 jack-braces, 51 Marion-Osgood, 71, 72, 74, 75, 312 Otis-Chapman, 61, 84, 94 operation, 65 pump, 46 power equipment, 53 record forms, 323, 324, 326 revolving, 51 specifications, 58, 6c, 318 Thew revolving, 58, 79, 85, 86 track, 320 tools, 319 use in Alabama, 312 use in Chicago, 111., 70 use in Georgia, 80 use in Cleveland, Ohio, 79 use in Illinois, 81 use in Maine, 94 use in Montana, 77 use*in Missouri, 85 use in New York, 69, 76 use in North Dakota, 86 use on Panama Canal, 87 use in Ontario, Canada, 83 use in South Dakota, 91 use in Texas, 69 use in Utah, 70 use on Chicago Drainage Canal, 7i Victor, 71, 75 Vulcan,, 76, 8 1, 91 weight, 58, 61, 62, 63 working capacities, 62, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 8 1, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 93, 94, 96, 97, 98 Steel dredge hull, 167 pontoon dredge, 205 Templet excavators, 136 Austin excavators, 136 bibliography, 143 capacity, 138, 139, 140, 141, 143 cost of excavation, 139, 143 coat of operation, 139, 140, 143 Junkin ditcher, 140 limitations of, 137, 138 operation, 138, 141 power equipment, 138, 140 use in Colorado, 139 use in Illinois, 138 use in North Dakota, 140 use in Texas, 140 weight, 142 Tests of Mississippi River Commission , 327 Texas, use of Austin templet excavator, 140 use of steam shovel, 69 Thew revolving steam shovel, 58, 79 , 85, 86 Tile trench excavators, 281 Austin tile ditcher, 292 bibliography, 298 Buckeye tile ditcher, 281 capacity, 286, 287, 288, 292, 296, 297 cost, 145 engine, 290, 293 excavating chain, 290, 293 excavating cost, 286, 287, 288, 297 excavating wheel, 282 Hovland tile ditcher, 289 operating cost, 286, 287, 288, 292, 297 operation, 284, 294 sizes, 282, 290, 296 use in Colorado, 262 use in Iowa, 288 use in Kansas, 288 use in Minnesota, 285, 291 use in Ohio, 287 Tower cableway, 272 boiler, 273, 274 INDEX 339 Tower cable way, cable, 274, 278 capacity, 273, 278 Carson-Lidgerwood cableway, 272 description, 272 duty, 273, 275, 277 engine, 273, 274, 277, 278 excavating cost, 277, 278 operating cost, 277, 278 operation, 272, 278 S. Flory cableway, 278 specifications, 274 traveller, 275 tubs, 273, 275 use in Washington, D. C., 276 Tower excavator, 150 bucket, 152, 156 capacity, 153, 154, 155 cost, 153 double, capacity, 156 cost of excavation, 153, 154, 155 cost of operation, 153, 154 operation, 152, 156 tower equipment, 151, 155 tower, 150, 155 use on N. Y. State Barge Canal, i53 double, use on Chicago Drainage Canal, 156 Traveling derrick, 133, 245, see loco- motive crane boiler, 248 boom, 249 bucket, 251, 252, 253 capacity, 253, 254 clutches, 250 cost, 254 engines, 248, 252 excavating cost, 134, 253, 254 operation, 246, 252, 253 operating cost, 253, 254 specifications, 247 trucks, 248 use in Indiana, 252 use in Kentucky, 253 use of N. Y. State Barge Canal, i33 Trench excavation, 253, 254, 257, 262, 263, 272, 277, 281, 286, 287, 288, 292, 298 Trench excavators, 245, see the exca- vator in question Austin tile ditcher, 292 bibliography, 298 Buckeye ditcher, 262 Buckeye tile ditcher, 281 Carson, 264 Carson-Lidgerwood cableway, 272 Chicago, 258 Hovland tile ditcher, 288 Parsons, 254 Potter, 279 S. Flory cableway, 278 Trestle cable excavator, 263 boiler, 266, 269 cable, 269 capacity, 265, 267, 271, 272 Carson trench excavator, 264 Caison-Trainor excavator, 267,268 description, 264 duty, 265, 267, 270 engine, 265, 266, 267, 268, 271 excavating cost, 272 operating cost, 272 operation, 264, 266 specifications, 268 traveler, 270 trestles, 269 tubs, 270 use in Connecticut, 271 Trestle track excavator, 278 buckets, 279, 280 capacity, 281 car, 279 description, 279 excavating cost, 281 operating cost, 281 operation, 279 Potter trench excavator, 279 use in Illinois, 280 Twentieth century grader, 24 Two-wheel grader, 23 cost of construction with, 24 description of, 23 Twentieth Century grader, 24 use in Mississippi, 24 Use of excavating machinery, 308 bibliography, 315 340 INDEX Utah, use of steam shovel, 70 Victor steam shovel, 71, 75 Vulcan steam shovel, 76, 81, gi Walking dredges, 157 bucket, 160 capacity, 161, 162 description, 157 method of operation, 159, 161 power equipment, 158, 161, 162 use in Minnesota, 161 use in Nebraska, 161 Washington, D. C., use of cableway excavator, 276 Washington, use of hydraulic dredge, 239 use of ladder dredge, 211 Water-pipe trench excavator, 245, 254, 263, 272, 278 Weeks drag-line shovel, 119 Weight, see the excavator in question Wheel excavators, 144 Austin wheel dicher, 145 Buckeye traction ditcher, 144 capacity, 148, 149 cost, 145 Wheel excavators, cost of excavation, 149 cost of operation, 149 method of operation, 144, 145. power equipment, 146, 147 specifications, 146 weight, 146 Wheel scrapers, 9, 299 cost, 8 description of, 8 excavation cost, n, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20, 21, 313 Maney four-wheel scraper, 16 operating cost, 10, n, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 21, 314 sizes, 8 use in Alabama, 312 use on Chicago Drainage Canal, 1 1 use in Pennsylvania, 12 use in Wyoming, 10 use on railroad work, 12 weights, 8 working capacities, 9, 10, n, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18. 19, 20, 3i3 Wisconsin, use of ladder dredge, 214 Wyoming, use of wheel scrapers, 10 Val t lity Implement/" PigsADitcK LevelsTheland RepairsPoads The 1-Man 2-Horse Machine HERE is just the machine you need. 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