When I was 12, I spent a summer in the foothills of the central Sierra Nevada mountains, helping my Uncle and my 2 cousins work a dredging team of 3 machines like yours. My Uncle could cast that bucket like he was fishing. Lot's of hard days that summer, they dragged and dredged and hauled away 200 Volvo loads in 10 days. I was a gopher and getter and got to drive my Uncles ex-Marine Corp Dodge 6x6 back and forth all day. I sure wish we had cell phones in them days I could have been a YooToob star showing them guys running that job. My Uncle got paid in gold.. It was a natural lake in the mountains with all the runoff settling over the countless centuries. There was gold in them there hills.

@everestyeti

10 ай бұрын

Even though it sounds like it was a bit of hard work, it was an enjoyable time.

@davidkrueger2987

10 ай бұрын

For a beginner your doing pretty good, by the time the pit is done you'll have it down pat. Good job mbts has some power washing in his future. Ha ha😅

@cliff4695

10 ай бұрын

I'm calling bullshit on parts of your story

@billvandorn5332

10 ай бұрын

Isn't it amazing the things we got to do when we were younger! As time goes by memories start to fade but I still remember working on a bucyrus-erie that was easily converted from a huge backhoe to a crane, operating articulating front end loaders, Drilling and Blasting with dynamite during the hot summers with some uncles. Looking back on all the different jobs it was one of the best I ever had but didn't know it at the time. They operated those machines like it was a part of their body was truly a phenomenal Testament to their abilities!

@motor2of7

10 ай бұрын

@@cliff4695OK. Specifics?

I laughed so hard at the beginning and yes, you had it down pretty well by the end. You & Chris get about the same amount per bucket now with both of you running your old iron. Good job, Mike.

@kevingalat4720

10 ай бұрын

Standing behind the truck when dumping was another great move as well!!!! ROTFLMAO

@mirage4014

10 ай бұрын

One complete scoop between them, but a couple more days they both have it nailed😊 Oh maybe a drag line competition, 3 ways! Think Matt has the edge

Oh boy! You've got one happy 70-year-old enjoying this video! The flag is also quite impressive. Kudos Mike and Aaron!

@DirtPerfect

10 ай бұрын

Thanks

At the end I was taken back 70 odd year when I first saw a drag line working. You were starting to play the controls like a musical instrument. Well done. Hopefully the next time you run it, you will not need a shower to get off the work sight.

WOW!! A steep learning curve with that machine. Ya need to be an octopus to operate a drag line. Looking good!! GREAT CAMERA WORK!!

This has been a blast to watch. Great views with the split screen and shot from the flag looking down at the bucket. Hopefully, we get to see the process of cleaning out Bubba Dump!

Watching this video and thinking about how draglines were the dominate dredging and over burden removal machine going back to when they were steam powered, and are still being used in surface mining today. What an incredable history they have. Thank you so much for your forsite and commitment bringing this old machine back to working condition. Very very enjoyable.

@jackgreen412

10 ай бұрын

Saw a very large one working the coal fields near Paradise Kentucky. This was in the early 70's. It was all electric powered.

You've got a nice neighbour, letting you play with your toy on their property. Always like seeing old iron working and doing the job it was built and designed for. 👍 Definitely need a windscreen. 🤗

Great job Mr Dirt Perfect all the old timers are looking down from above smiling that someone is still using there old style of equipment 👍

@lowercherty

10 ай бұрын

Nothing else can do what a dragline can, especially in soft ground. Wait till you start working on floats. The old timers are laughing at the time they spent like cows on ice when they were new.

@williamdodd5113

10 ай бұрын

Couldn't have said more true er word myself , it's great to see this beauty back working, brings back memories for me too

I, for one, am impressed that you could even fill the bucket, let alone load a truck with a dragline. The skill set is so different than any other type of equipment you have. Really impressive.

Watching the show this morning and told my wife in 1977 had a dragline in my front yard just like yours clearing out trees to make way for electric poles and I still live here and looking out can remember it like was yesterday,great job operating it ,just a little better than Chris and so far haven’t lost your bucket

Its kinda like spoon feeding a baby for the first time, a bit messy to start but as time passes, things get better. Again. thanks for another great video and keep up the interesting work. 😁👍👏💥

Makes you appreciate the old operators skills with those machines, they built a hell of a lot with that tech, bet MBS was glad of the AC. good job Guys

I have to admit it DP I'm impressed with your abilities on the dragline!

@pmiller7886

10 ай бұрын

I gotta second that. DP really has a feel for this old girl, only gonna get better over time😊

You took Chris and Matt to school today. That is how I taught myself. Perfect!

Spilling (and tasting) a little mud while filming, and laughing at yourself, is called humility. That's a nice trait to possess!

Lovely to see a RB working. (In the UK the same machines were Ruston Bucyrus, and were fitted with a Ruston diesel engine. Ruston still lives on as part of General Electric). The picture of the green locomotive in my profile is a Ruston diesel shunting locomotive, which had the same engine as the RB draglines.

I would like to suggest that you position the truck end on to the dragline to improve your drop target and reduce overspills.

@sherylfowler1477

10 ай бұрын

I was thinking the same thing...longer target and don't have to worry about the sidewalls.

This was great to watch. I am 71 now and when I was 18 Just out of High School I sat in that seat learning on a pond job working off of log mats. I remembered the smells and the total experiences watching this video. My boss was about my age now and a true expert. The way he could slope a bank and finish a job was truly amazing... I was never able to match his skills... I only operated this machine for one year and then was Drafted on Christmas Eve 1970 by Uncle Sam the last year of the Draft.,,,,We had to shut down right after Thanksgiving because the ice got too thick on the pond... In the mornings we used the bucket as an ice breaker to get started and the only heat in the machine came from the engine behind us and like your machine we had no windshield or glass in the window of the door...Our days started in the dark and ended in the dark...My best friend was my big Stanley thermos full of hot coffee,,,The advantage of no windshield was that it did not get muddy or covered with frost and snow...One day when it was snowing hard I had a build up of 6 inches of snow on my lap....Oh the good old days ha ha,,, As it was said in the day..... Young, Dumb and full of Cum....

Awesome video. I love seeing you and a few other KZreadrs giving old equipment another lease on life.

Intro is a nice change. In the 1950’s my neighbor dug gravel out of the creek near Manchester, Mo with a Bucyrus Erie machine. This video reminds me of those times. Thanks Guys !!! John

It's awesome seeing those old machines working again!!. One thing that concerns me is, I hope all you guys are wearing ear protection.

Great job.Probably one of the best'first attempts'ever on one of those things.

One thing for sure. DP practice makes perfect and one thing you got going for you least you didn’t lose the bucket like Chris. Stay safe. God bless.

Wowww that was an awesome open and you are getting better at operating it with every load, I did notice MBTS was clean and sludge free unlike yourself, Aaron did have the best job today...LOL. Keep up the good work Mike. The Dragline is working well Sir!!

It certainly is an amazing video on the dragline working - so many fantastic angles. Sloppy goop as well has a habit of going all over the place when dumped :) Took a while but hec it was worth the time and effort to get to this stage - well done.

Aaron giggling like a school girl watching you on the struggle bus. Old Glory flapping into the picture. The muck splattering everywhere. Getting the hang of it and not spilling but a few crumbs in the end.....This was priceless

That first load had me laughing really good. Seeing all the slop splattering you was hysterical. Made my night guys.

Thank you for taking the time to provide us the viewers all the great shots.

@DirtPerfect

10 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching

i look forward to seeing your progress on running the dragline, you made a huge improvement from the 1st load.

That was a lot of feel-good fun. It would be interesting to see that machine moved to the site too. Did the boom have to be partially dismantled?

Ol' Bubba Dump's going to need to bath after this job!!!! It's great a great job you and Aaron did getting that old drag line in working order. Keep on using it and you'll be good at operating it in no time. We're going to have to get a name for her!!!! 👍❤️📹😂🤭😃. It's wonderful watching ol' Glory flying when you go to empty the bucket. 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

@Poppi2006

10 ай бұрын

I’m thinking the Captain might be available for a little pressure washing job. I’m glad that they weren’t using Lt. Dan.

Awesome job Mike! Looks like the track/pads came loose. But damn it didn’t take you long to get everything under control 👍🏼

Well done DP.handled it like a pro.👏👏👏👏👏👏

I get goose bumps when I hear a Jimmy run they sound so sweet ,8 hours of running the old girl should help mike with the needed muscle memory needed to run that drag line , it's all handles and foot peddles ,It's awesome seeing it used on a Job hopefully all the controls are dialed in and work as good as they can be. Now this is a job that will test your depth perception and coordination I wonder how much delay time there is between inputting and actual movement tricky stuff ,what a great video this morning ,The more it's run the better it will become .You guys have done yourselves proud putting the old girl back in operating condition, the camera by the flag pole was a nice touch

You did well Mike . That will get Chris fired up 😂thanks guys 👍🍺🍺

Loved all the different views toward the end. Only thing missing was a camera falling off the boom and MbtS recovering it. ;)

Love to see the ol steel doing what it was made to do again. No doubt with your skills you made the learning curve shorter than alot could have. Looking forward to seeing MBTS giving it a go !! Great video guys !!

First two drags nearly made it into Bubba 😂😂😂 Once you got your eye in and handle on the levers, you were at one with tbe dragline 😃😎 And to see you stood not far enough away from the tip zone 😵🤣🤦‍♂️ I bet Jenna was pleased when you walked through the door 🤣🤣🤣

Gooood morning Mike and Aaron, you look like two kids playing in the mud just with bigger toys

Good one mike, but ain`t it better to have Bubba dumps rear facing you at the loading point so you can see into it better for offloading?

@John-hd5ex

10 ай бұрын

I was thinking it would be easier to load from the rear too

Great to see an old machine running again 😊

Mission accomplished to dragline your first pond. Loading into Bubba worked reasonably well. Got smelly mud away from house.

Some 60 years ago I was driving a 10 wheeler dump truck for a company in Illinois. I used to get loaded at a sand quarry with a drag line very similar to yours. That operator never missed the box or spilled any sand over the side.

Never operated a dredge, my first thought was to have the back of the truck pointed toward the crane so that when you dump the bucket you have a much longer target to aim at. I am sure that you will be successful with practice. Good going DP and you will build muscle memory with running the dredge a little while. Enjoy the opportunity to go along with you gentlemen.

Mike now at least you will only need the 304 to clear the ledge you left 5-7ft off the bank 😅😊. Thanks for another great video, you are definitely getting the hang of that machine.

Deliverance!! The first 2 splats made me laugh!! I swear to God I actually got a whiff of that all the way over here in the UK! You got her working fine with some practise, all credit to you and Aaron, its fabulous to see an old machine doing what it was made to do! Been looking forward to this Vid for a long time and it was awesome guys! Poor ol Bubba Dumps gonna need a bath!Jerry..Uk

The best part is DP. Got smacked with the muck, and Aaron came out free of stink. Thank you for sharing 😂😊

Another new adventure Mike keep them coming, keep smiley with ya he's a hoot

When I was watching a Dragline working they had a flag on the cable for depth. And they were using the track for alignment as they needed to move the dig left or right the within the bucket. Also it made it more stable from a side lifts. You have improved much from the start and the clutch and braking was getting smoother. With each use. Nice job.

What a cool way to see Old Glory fly. When she unfurled during the swings it was priceless. Thanks for bringing a tear to my eye. 👍

There is an oldtimer up in heaven watching his favorite machine running again and laughing his butt off, thanks

I ran a skid steer this weekend that had a backwards to me controls. I felt exactly like that. The work was done about the time I was reset to the controls. Shine on! Tell farmer Chris you have some lime for his fields.

After a couple of hundred hours you’ll be pretty good😮 nice to see it in action .

Mike Aaron it couldn’t have been any better that was a Birdseye view Thanks both of you.

It's great seeing the old girl back at work. That Detroit sounds real smooth and must be in good order. I haven't operated draglines but have spent a lot of hours in cable cranes and am feeling jealous watching you play. I see the cable on one of the winches crossed up which means you aren't catching the slack in the cable quite quick enough. Try to brake the drum a little bit sooner but if it's to soon something could break. I don't mean it as a criticism but as a helpful tip. All you need now is seat time. The grin on your face shows us all how much you are enjoying it. Full marks to the person for giving you a paying job while you're learning to operate it.

You'll get hang of it quick. Just seen a dragline a mile from my house cleaning ponds. Looks in great shape.

@DirtPerfect

10 ай бұрын

Awesome

Great video as always, thank you and MBTS for bring us along. A way you can get a full load in Bubba, is by putting dry dirt at the end where the tailgate would be. It will act as a dam and comes out when you dump. Hope that helps and thanks again for the video.

Great to see the Ole girl doing what she was made for instead of just being abandoned or sent the scrap yard. You are getting the hang of the machine pretty quickly

Great job on the dragline , your the only one that actually put it to work,. Your not just fooling around like the other two😆👍

If you speed up the video, you are one quick slick operator 😮 Great to see the old boy working again. Don't think this is an old girl, due to obvious physical characteristics 😅

More time on the dragline and you will be a pro. I think it is faster than a long reach hoe would be. Well done boys.

Fun to watch you slowly get into your rhythm mike each bucket you got better and better

you could sure use a clam shell bucket for this kind of dredging job. great follow up videos Thanks for sharing.

Takes alot of self-confidence or lack of worry about being dirt perfect to let us watch your learning curve!!!

It's got to be tough to judge the distance when your used to the excavator arm and reach. Great job!

Back in the early 60s I watched them using a dragging to clean out drainage ditches in Central Florida. The skill of that operator was amazing.

It was great to see the old dragline working

I have no doubt that once you get the feel of the machine, you'll be moving right along. That is a lot of hand & foot coordination to get use to. Great job!

Makes you appreciate those hydraulic controls in the Deer and others doesn't it. You're getting better. Keep on smiling.

Those first two tries had me in tears. I'm guessing that smelled like an open septic tank on a hot day in June.

Now that has taken me back many years, in the 50s my father bought a 4acre ballast pit (around 30' deep) they were building the M27 motorway past Portsmouth in Hampshire, Portsmouth is an Island and they had to dredge the creek between the mainland and island, it was all sea mud not unlike what your playing with and probably smells the same. Well they had to put all the mud somewhere so it went in the pit or rather flowed in the pit 30ft deep sloppy mud, you should have seen the weeds and cracks opening up once it had dried, not often you see a 12' high thistle!

Just a tip Mike leave your left hand on the slew lever, push the drag lever with your right hand it should lock in. Look up some old guys on you tube they only dig with their right hand. Overall a great first go, all the best from Australia.

Nice to see that old dragline running again the flagpole addition with the dirt perfect logo looks very cool sitting way up on top waving old glory. Very nice

Mike, not sure you like it but know you LOVE the challenge!!! My late 70's job placed me often close to the draglines removing overburden for strip mine coal in SE Ks and during the return to reload the bucket would literally be thrown away from the machine extending the the load distance! You had an overhead camera shot of operation, at sometime audio what your hands and feet are doing to accomplish operation! Thanks--great job--believe hydraulic hose repair would be simpler!

Great job Mike and Aaron. Don't forget to take Bubba Dump to the truck wash afterward. I think you need to have an MIA, (Missing In Action) flag flying below the American flag for us veterans. Great to see the old girl working again.

I enjoyed watching, because it brought back memories of this machine working along the shoreline of the Chesapeake Bay. This was in the 1950's, filling behind bulkheads and making a pie crust so a large dredge could pump spoil from a channel it was dredging.

Not too bad Mike. Toward the end you started figuring out the momentum needed to throw the bucket to get better loads. That is the major secret to a drag line. Almost a nice job hitting the bed of Bubba Dump. lol Thanks for sharing.

Mike and Aaron, that was awesome to watch. With some more time in the saddle you'll have those controls whipped. Great job!

Nice shot the the first dump Aaron. Dirty got a little muddy. Builds character. Good job running the old crane Mike. Too many levers for me.

You got the hang of that quick... I hope the old iron makes you a bit of money and gets used... great content seeing "her" put to good use.

Great video!! Love seeing the old iron. The learning curve to running that unit is pretty crazy. What kid doesn't want to run a crane? 💯😂🎯👍

Well I have to admit, that I am very impressed by your operating ability. Drag lines are not the easiest thing to operate. Haven't seen one in action since I worked at a rock crusher during the summer when I was in High School. That was the early 70's. Essential to having everything on the drag line working properly. Thanks for sharing.

@DirtPerfect

10 ай бұрын

Thanks

Well you are really working on your eye, hand, foot coordination with the drag line, I believe the proper term for what you are hauling out is soup de jour.

After you have made your "cast" and the bucket is on the bottom, you want to put a little "slack" in the hoist cable, that way the digging end of the bucket will tip into the ground when you bring in the drag line in, then at the end you can use your hoist cable to pick it up. Just my opinion from watching the video, and having worked on those machines years ago. Happy digging!!!😅

The operation was fun to watch, it hurt each time it banged into Bubba. I kept wondering about the camera on the flag mast, just how big a splash it would make on its last "dive" . Great show all around! I think I would have laid the boom on the ground in that kind of weather.

Nice work Mike!👍👍One thing the dredge bucket could be modified for mud and water by welding several steel strips of plate together into a long arch with a back plate to hold a little bit more. Then nothing can fall out the back. Easy shop winter project.🤔🤔

Love the old machines I remember from years ago. Clean everything really well as soon as you can. Many run-off ponds from old mines contain some nasty not good for you stuff in the sludge. Best to limit your exposure as much as possible. Looks like it was a lot of fun.

great job. i hauled meany a load out from under a drag line.the gentalman that ran our's would load trucks from the tail end.love watching you guys. Ed

❤❤❤the dragline with the American flag is awesome 👍🏻😎👋 bud to bad he wasn't standing outside the cab when it landed on top of the cab would been so funny 🤣😁😂😂

Mike , only you can find a place to test the Ol drag line ......... And get paid for it!? That's really cool !! Great video

After you got the controls figured out, I reckon that was a little faster than hip waders and a shovel 😉

With the way the mud flies I foresee Mike getting some plexiglass put in those window frames sometime here pretty quickly.

Great to see the Old Iron working! Thanks Mike & Aaron!

Nice to see the ol' girl getting a bit of exercise. Thanks for sharing.

You are right, getting the truck placed is key to quick cycling. Our experienced drivers on a UK built 22RB could manage to dig 1000 cu/m in a 10 hour day, but with 3 trucks to minimise idle time. Don't do what I did which was to dump the bucket load on the roof of the truck cab----

Man that was awesome, great camera angles, and the purr of that old diesel is just the sweetest sound. Are you just better that Lets dig at everything?

Old Glory rippling gracefully in the wind atop the drag boom. It looks perfect! Perfect vantage point on top the boom. The stirring up of the muck will kill fish for sure as all the acid rain residue and toxins that settled.

Nice work fellas great to see these old machines back in action

Mike the best way to load your truck, with a Dragline, is to back your truck straight toward ‘s the boom , you’ll see it’s much easier to do without the mess👍👍😎 not from the side of the truck