Vintage work crew photos

[Beserkleyboy]

Jon
Here is one of many photos taken of the Serra Palada gold mines in Brazil. It looks 'historical', as in old...but this is 1980. I first found one of these pics on the covers of Jerry Harrison's Casual Gods LP in '88. Harrison was a founding member of the Modern Lovers with Jonathan Richman, local faves on Beserkeley Records in the 70's...and on to Talking Heads in the 80's. The story of the gold mine is fascinating, and a revealing look into the 3rd world, human greed and exploitation...Cheers
https://rarehistoricalphotos.com/hel...-pelada-1980s/
Jim in sunny south coast NSW

[Jon]

Winchester barrel shop. 1912.

Fullsize image: https://diqn32j8nouaz.cloudfront.net...w_fullsize.jpg

[Beserkleyboy]

WOW! There's a lotta line shafts happening there! Great pics...I bought a 26" Crescent bandsaw in about 1995 for $200, and it had a lineshaft pulley on the bottom wheel. Sadly, I had to take it off and get a pulley to connect to 3hp induction motor..Great machine, that one, alas gone now...
Jim

[Toolmaker51]

At least 6 line shafts and who knows how many belts, really can't tell. Layout of floor appears some operators tend two lathes, notice the carriage handwheels. Seems like they are very close together, that seems odd. Look at center right of photo. Guy in a white shirt is peering through a barrel, likely a mere visual check, plenty of gauging later in the process. All that occurs before final straightening. In those days most barrels may have been straightened at least twice.

Straightening is an interesting process. The barrel man works a screw-driven press, the tube in vee-blocks, aimed at a window. In front of the glass, a thin wire suspends a weight, like a plumb-bob. Any discrepancy in straightness is visible where image of wire jogs, or looks broken. Drilling and turning interrupt integrity of the blank rod. Often the barrel is only curved, but other conditions occur. As barrel is rotated in the blocks, and high spot gets to 12 O'clock, then screw brought to bear on that position. The screw's wheel is styled like a ship's helm, with spokes radiating beyond rim, a little ways above operators head. The adjustments take little pressure to bend the tube about twice the deviation. Pressure relieved, change can be seen and re-applied need be.

[mklotz]

At least 6 line shafts and who knows how many belts, really can't tell. Layout of floor appears some operators tend two lathes, notice the carriage handwheels. Seems like they are very close together, that seems odd

Is it possible that those machines in the foreground are rifling machines and not boring lathes? They don't look like lathes to me.

[Toolmaker51]

Is it possible that those machines in the foreground are rifling machines and not boring lathes? They don't look like lathes to me.

I think, judging by the larger overhead sheaves on the right, those are rifling or chambering. There'd be at least four operations; 1] turn, 2] drill-ream-crown, 3] rifling, 4] chamber.
Unsure if gun-drills [single straight flute, hole-riding body, pressurized cutting oil] had been developed yet. Of course the drill needs to be pushed. Good quality reaming is pulled, eliminating flex as an extended drill does. Those 'benches' could be similar.
I don't see sine-bar or spiral guided rifling machines in view. By 1912, Pratt & Whitney might have been producing riflers, made zillions over the years.

And rifling is another art, many techniques practiced by as many manufacturers.
In mass production, Colt could produce unbelievably fine barrels. A little more modern is Lothar Walther. In custom work, Harry Pope represents epitome in target barrels. And other fun discussions! People continue with handmade cut rifling heads, and custom shops sell broaching buttons on Ebay....

[owen moore]

I believe those machines are drilling and reaming. I don't think any rifling is going on in the picture, as rifling machines took up more space and could not have been located that close to one another. Interestingly enough, Colt performed a lot of their rifling vertically. I believe Mr. Root of Colt invented that procedure. (IE- the Colt Root).

[ranald]

all very impressive. Imagine how these days, occupational health and safety would view all those exposed belts & cogs/gears.

Wonder if they did hex barrels like a winchester rifle I used to own?

[PJs]

The machine at the far right may be a riffling machine as it goes off screen and has different controls as well as the belt on the opposite end. The others or boring and reaming ops, imho. Perhaps the guy on the far left is doing the crown work.

Love this picture and the workers seem happy and content...I would be despite any Osha Hazzard we might impose today. Those guys seem smart enough to stay out of the way of belts and such...had to be.

[Frank S]

One thing is for sure there was not a spare foot of unused floor space.

It does look as though there are 2 machines per man. that would mean 4 barrels at a time per man whether they are boring reaming or crowning or riffling it really makes no difference that is a highly stressful situation done hour in hour out every working day. Then think about having to do the same thing all of the time.
in the past I had often kept several of my machines running at the same time each with a different set up doing certain stages of what ever the run happened to be. and my wife almost always had 1 or 2 band saws going while running the radial drill-press but the differences there was we didn't have our machines almost stacked on top of each other and every run was different.
Doing what those guys were doing would have driven me over the edge in 1 day.