Jason,
Thanks for the photo update and the link. God protect and bless you all in the storm path.
Mike
9 Likes
Watching the news on Texas flooding. I hope you’re all safe - Ray, Jason…
Meanwhile in Sweden…
Mining is expanding. The whole 17 000 people town of Kiruna is being moved.
Steel production from the mine is 25 million metric tons a year. I wonder how many firetubes that is?
3 Likes
Heard from my brother-in-law in Houston. He’s been stuck in his house for several days as the roads are all under 4 feet of water where he is, but they’re all still fine. They even have power and internet and everything. There is some concern in parts of the city about the city water supply becoming contaminated as the ground is saturated and under standing water, but so far where he is the people are ok. Maybe they’ll need to dump a few extra barrels of sodium hypochlorite. It wouldbe nice if we could find a better way to purify our drinking water in this country. 
He was planning a trip here next week. He thinks he will be able to sneak out to the north and come around the long way. We’ll see. Raining here too. Today is third day of three trainings we are doing for the nursing programs at UAB and Auburn U. Only one sunny day Tuesday). good times 
4 Likes
When you say “Mining is expanding” Is that a government program or a company expanding. We have a company trying to open a copper mine in our area. It is a private company so they have to “fight” government regulations at every turn. I would guess if the government is expanding the mine there would be no problem with “government” regulations.
We may need all those fire tubes you are going to be able to supply. I forgot the exact figures but something like 1/3 of the gasoline refineries in the US are in the flood area and are mostly out of business. Gasoline jumped 14 cents a gallon yesterday. TomC
2 Likes
Mining in this region bagan in the mid 1600s. In 1888 the railroad to the Norwegian harbour in Narvik was finished. Todays company, LKAB, was founded in 1890.
Economic diffculties made the state become 100% shareholder in 1976, which turned out to be a very good deal for Sweden as a whole.
Steel and wood products have always been important to Swedish economy. Both come in handy when into gasification 
8 Likes
I have a townhouse project being built in my township by an Amish crew that has a valley gutter concrete street poured by hand. The concrete screed is moved by hand winches and has a gasoline engine that belt drives a vibrator shaft that runs the length of the screed. The concrete is 7 and one half inches thick and 24 feet wide and they poured 400 cubic yards that day.
13 Likes
Normally I would just “like” and not take up space replying, but this thing is sheer genius! I bet they can change the width without too much trouble. If they had enough able hands, they could build a 6 lane freeway with this process! Thanks, Don for posting, made my morning! Lets watch it again! 
1 Like
Why are they not using any steel in this concrete? No welded wire mesh, no rebar? Also, the mix seems to have too much water. It would fail the slump test for roads. What exactly is a “valley gutter concrete street”?
2 Likes
Ray, they are using industrial fibermesh FIBERMESH | Page not found in the mix plus plasticiser additive which makes it act like low slump concrete. Modern mixes make work a lot easier than when I did it.
A valley gutter drains water to the center of the street where the storm grates are instead of the crown in the center and the storm grates at the curbs. If you look closely at that screed you can see the center lower than the sides.
This is a private street for a townhouse development so they don’t have to follow county and state rules.
6 Likes
Never a dull moment , last week it was hay cutter repair and this week it has been hay roller repair 
Last picture is rattle snake vs poker rod . I like LONG poker rods.
8 Likes
supper…
4 Likes
Hey Billy ,
I once was asked what rattlesnake tastes like .
I said , Bout like copperhead
9 Likes
Wow you can keep those snakes down south. They give the the shivers just looking at the photos.
Man looks like your having a hard summer the kind I had last year. Hopefully next year all your repairs will give you an easy summer.
My equipment has run good this summer but it has rained soo much I don’t know if I will get the last field cut or what I would do with it now maybe sell it for mulch that is all it is good for.
We got our first frost here last night or atleast spots it killed some of my squash. I picked my tomatoes yesterday I have green tomatoes everywhere waiting to rippen.
8 Likes
I agree, Ray. Too much water weakens concrete. Small aggregate also “weakens concrete”. What tensile strength does hair like fiberglass fibers have? Zippo compared to steel. This stuff is supposed to “control” cracking, but a well compacted, tested to standards sub base is paramount also. What kind of traffic will there be. What kind of weather will this be subjected to is also important. Michigan seems to have mostly above zero weather, a plus. The jury is out for me on this one, but I must say I’m not optimistic. I’d like to see some surface picks in 6 months and 12 months and 2 years.
2 Likes
We gave up on the fiber in concrete on our jobs several years ago. Seems to easily crack, often flakes, and is a little harder to finish. What used to work still works = steel. Gotta keep those Sweedes mining right JO_Olsson. ??
(Yeah I know, we probably aren’t buying much Sweedish steel for re-bar)
Wayne, I would agree. Rattle snake tastes pretty much like copper head and chicken snake. And anaconda for that matter.
I have a cousin making a good side-job-living hunting iguanas and pythons in south Florida and selling them to the Asian population there. People have released pets that grew too big and they are taking over the everglades.
5 Likes
Right, we export only high grade, expensive steels. Importing all the cheap standard Business is business.
Just look at Mr Wayne. Output - high performance shaft power and high quality beef. Input - junked out water heaters and snake for food
Tons of work added in the processing.
6 Likes
This one is for brother Steve.
And another for Gary Charmore.
7 Likes
Dan I'm with you the picture of that snake gave me the shivers to.I heard some of those got hauled up here to Michigan in pipes for oil wells from Texas haven;t seen any of them though.sure couldn't get myself to eat one of the darn things. Larry West Branch Mi.
2 Likes
Ha! Ha! Lost on my Yahoo-news e-mail sign-in page to the next track heading for the US east coast hurricane is the Columbia River Gorge last three days latest wildfire event.
A holiday, MemorialDay hiker youth just had to set off a left-over 4th of July fireworks.
Now one interstate hyway shut down. Numerous state hyways shut down through this most-major-of mountains gap choke point.
Choke-point the operative word as two days of hardly seen red-sun and sky falling wood ash 60 mile away, here. Very bad airs quality. Closer down they are being ash coated.
Three towns/cities now mandatory evacuated. Numerous school districts shut down.
Lots and Lots of tree sequestered Carbons being freed out, up, and away; lost to any man-useful works.
Lots of wood charcoal being made. And Oregon Greens will insisting this left remaining, lay-in-place.
And this too shall pass.
tree-farmer Steve unruh
6 Likes
Stay safe over there Steve. Looks like a lot of wildfires out West.
1 Like