Old Pond publishing days

Massive Earthmoving Machines Part Two

Massive Earthmoving Machines Part 2, DVD by Keith Haddock, approx 70 minutes, now in stock at £15.95.

Filmed in 2007 at Black Thunder mine, Gillette, Wyoming and Garzweiler, Germany. Shows a wide range of exceptionally large machinery at work in these open-cast coalmines. Photographs from Garzweiler are in the post of 20 October 2007.

The detailed narration is scripted by Keith Haddock, retired mining engineer and author of many books and articles about earthmoving equipment.

The following is a list of the main machines which appear. The machines are not in running order.

1. Black Thunder mine, Gillette, Wyoming

Walking dragline

Bucyrus-Erie 2570-WS "Ursa Major", 164 cu yd bucket

Electric shovels

Bucyrus 495HR, 82 cu yd dipper

P&H 2800, 65 cu yd bucket

Haul trucks

Liebherr T282 diesel-electric, 400 ton capacity

Komatsu 930E diesel-electric, 320 ton capacity

Caterpillar 793D mechanical drive, 240 ton capacity

Other equipment

Caterpillar 24H motor grader

Caterpillar 657E twin-engined motor scraper

Le Tourneau L-1800 diesel-electric wheel loader, 33 cu yd capacity

Caterpillar D11R bulldozer

2. RWE, Garzweiler, Germany

Bucketwheel excavators

No. 288, 12,500 cu m per hour

No. 284, 10,400 cu m per hour

Other equipment

Spreader 760

Bucketwheel coal loader

Caterpillar D8R crawler dozer

Caterpillar 824H wheeled dozer

Conveyors, control room, coal train

Massive Earthmoving Machines Part One

Massive Earthmoving Machines Part 1, DVD by Keith Haddock, approx 70 minutes, now in stock at £15.95.

Filmed in 2007 at Belle Ayr mine, Gillette, Wyoming and Beener Coal, Barton, Maryland. Shows a wide range of exceptionally large machinery at work in these open-cast coalmines.

The detailed narration is scripted by Keith Haddock, retired mining engineer and author of many books and articles about earthmoving equipment.

The following is a list of the main machines which appear. The machines are not in running order.

1. Belle Ayr mine, Gillette, Wyoming

Electric shovels

P&H 4100XPB, 82 cu yd dipper

Bucyrus 495HR, 82 cu yd dipper

Marion 301-M, 54 cu yd dipper

Bucyrus-Erie 295-B, 46 cu yd dipper

Haul trucks

Caterpillar 797B, 380 ton capacity

Terex/Unit Rig MT5500, 360 ton capacity

Caterpillar 793B, 240 ton capacity

Unit-Rig MT4000, 240 ton capacity

Other equipment

Caterpiller 24H motor grader

Caterpillar 854G rubber-tyred dozer

Caterpillar 5130 hydraulic backhoe

Unit-Rig MT3700 water tanker

Drilltech D55SP diesel-powered drill

Conveyors, silo and coal train.

2. Beener Coal, Barton, Maryland

Diesel shovel

Bucyrus-Erie 295B series II, 35 cu yd dipper

Haul trucks

Euclid R-120 and R-100, 120- and 100-ton capacities

Bulldozer

Komatsu D575A, 1,150 flywheel horsepower

Other equipment

Fiat-Allis 945-B wheel loader

Tri-axle trucks

Rock crushing and screening plant.

Plant Names Simplified - book

"Dahlia, dah-le-a; named after Andreas Dahl, a Swedish botanist and pupil of Linnaeus. Originally (and still in America) pronounced dah-le-a and not day-le-a as commonly heard. All dahlias usually grown are hybrids from species rarely seen in gardens. Half-hardy tuberous herbaceous plants.

COCCINEA, kok-sin-e-a, scarlet

IMPERIALIS, im-peer-e-a-lis, powerful

JUAREZII, ju-a-re-zei, after Juarez

MERCKII, merk-ei, after Merck

VARIABILIS, var-e-ab-il-is, variable coloured

ZIMAPANII, zim-ap-a-nei, after Zimapan."

This glossary contains over a thousand entries like the one above, the aim of the authors being to remove the 'awkward obstacle' that these names can present. In recent years this classic aid for the gardener and plant lover has been published by Landsmans Bookshop. Old Pond has agreed to take the book over.

Plant Names Simplified, A.T. Johnson & H.A. Smith, paperback 180 x 120 mm, 128 pages. ISBN 978-1-905523-82-5. £7.25. NOW IN STOCK.

Philip Wood is 94 today

In 1970 Philip Wood was appointed as the first Books Manager at Farming Press, becoming sales director of the books division before he retired in 1980. He collaborated particularly successfully with Eddie Straiton, author of the 'TV Vet' series of books.

Philip's career started in 1932 when went to work with Dairy Farmer magazine in Hanover Square, London, as office boy / typist / teamaker / assistant to the ad manager. In 1935 he transferred to the editorial department, based at Ipswich.

Philip was called up for military service in 1940, served in the Middle East, was commissioned and finished the war as a lieutenant. After the war Philip worked again for Dairy Farmer, then went out to South Africa where he joined the South African Farmers Weekly editorial staff. Back in the UK after a couple of years he became, in 1953, the founder editor of Pig Farming magazine.

Philip and his wife, Phyllis, enjoying his 94th birthday in their Ipswich flat.

From 1958 to 1962 Philip was editor-in-chief of the Farming Press group. In 1963 he left to found his own PR business in Ipwich. In 1970 he returned as books manager.

He has always been just as busy outside work as in: former chairman of the East Anglian publicity club and the Ipswich operatic and dramatic society; chairman of Ipswich rotary club; warden of St Matthew's church and former editor of their parish magazine. He sang in a number of choirs, including the police choir and has written booklets of hymns.

(Although Pig Farming magazine is now closed, cmpi still publishes the Dairy Farmer. There is further more information about the history of Farming Press group, the current status of its books and videos and its relationship with Old Pond at Farming Press.)

Japonica Press and Classic Tractor Books

It's eighteen years since Stephen Moate started the specialist distribution company Classic Tractor Books . His range of - and knowledge about - books and DVDs on tractors, farm machinery, earthmoving. logging and allied subjects are unmatched in the UK.

It's also ten years since he launched the companion publishing company Japonica Press. The ex dairy farmer named the company after his favourite cow.

Stephen manning his stand at the Malvern Tractor Show, spring 2008.

Second Parts

We have two books and one DVD published as Parts 1 of  2-volume sets. The position on the second parts is as follows:

The David Brown Tractor Story Part 2 (Stuart Gibbard), hardback. Author at present unable to complete this. Regrettably, no date.

The Nuffield Tractor Story Part 2 (Anthony Clare), hardback. Author has indicated that he will deliver material early in 2009. If so, publication 2009.

Steiger Part Two (Peter D Simpson with Toy Farmer magazine), DVD. They no expect to complete by in the autumn. If so, our release is spring 2009.

Best at Show - Malvern

Plenty of visitors to the Malvern Tractor show on Saturday. Not so many on Sunday - perhaps because it was Mothering Sunday.

Best at show was Mr H Dixon's John Deere 1010W from 1962. Serial number 27154.