Electronic Fingy's In Mining!

[John]

No I mean't to type "Fingy's"
I was sent on the basic electronics course at the training centre for two weeks. When I got back, my leading hand said right, I've gorra job for you, Get yourself down to 52's face and sort the Winster face signals out, you've got all week to get them working properly.
Being on regular nightshifts, and an apprentice electrician, he had to be joking! A week! When was I going to get my beauty sleep?
Anyway, I accomplished the task all by one fault in a few nights, I got pretty lonely on 52's by myself all shift and only saw the Deputy twice a ashift, so I was done after a few days.
One problem I could never clear, and whoever I asked, the engineer, my instructors at the training centre, cluey electricians, no one could answer why the problem was there or how to cure it. I had two 13 lockout indications on the face! What made it more baffling, was it went 12, 13, 13,14....Defied explanation!
I'd replaced cables, lockout boxes, even on an off chance I'd replace the guts of the main gate console. Still two 13's and it stayed that way right up to pit closure, no one could come up with an explanation.

[dazb]

Dherr..............should have been 12A, nobody ever mention bad luck to you?

[John]

When I finished up at Cleveland Potash's Boulby Mine, I was one of four ore handling electricians, commonly called the Central District, it comprised the U/G workshops, all the trucnk conveyors, the West Links development, U/G control room, both the main vent fans, main U/G substation, both shafts including the automatic skipping equipment top and bottom of the shaft.
One day shift I had a fault on a Huwood MK1A conveyor control unit. All conveyors were on the main returns to keep dust down and the mine was classed as a safety lamp mine.
To isolate the power from the control unit, 240 volts, was a quarter mile walk, so I decided to just "pull" the plug from the control unit, one pin followed the plug, the other stayed in the bus chamber socket. I put the live plug out of the way in a safe place so as no one would come into contact with it while I was working.
I had completed repairs to the unit and was about to plug the power back into the unit when who should come around the corner! The mine Electrical Engineer in Charge with who else but the district Mines Electrical Inspector I was sunk!!!! "Hello John" my boss said, "got problems?"
"No Dave, just about wound it up" I replied to him, with a load of expletives I was whispering under my breath!!!
He was a good boss but always wanted to hang around and have a chat at the most inopportune moments, but having the HMI with him, decided to depart further inbye and leave me to wipe the sweat from my brow!

[limey]

"I've gorra job for you, Get yourself down to 52's face and sort the Winster face signals out, you've got all week to get them working properly."

You may be interested to know that one of the founders of "Winster Products" was Bill Wheatley - who is married to my cousin! He started life rewinding armatures in his mother-in-laws kitchen!

[John]

limey said:

"I've gorra job for you, Get yourself down to 52's face and sort the Winster face signals out, you've got all week to get them working properly."

You may be interested to know that one of the founders of "Winster Products" was Bill Wheatley - who is married to my cousin! He started life rewinding armatures in his mother-in-laws kitchen!

I worked on some of the early Winster products Limey, I was an apprentice then in the early 60's, so it was all new to the industry
We even installed the Winster "manless conveyor system" on our trunk belts, was a disaster!

What ever happened to the company??

I've worked on the Davies of Derby SIVAD system, far superior to the Winster one.

[limey]

The company split in the 70's into "Winster Electronics" - who made all the electronic gear, and "Winster Mining" who made hydraulic hoses and stuff. The electronic part was still in business a few years ago as "Winster Holdings" and was still in Ilkeston. The "Mining" part eventually also made shearer drums and some other stuff - and they were located at Whitby. I think they are now gone. Bill is still alive and his son, Robert, now runs the company but I lost contact with them many years ago.

The "Winster" name comes from WInster in Derbyshire where Bill used to go "pot-holing"!

[John]

limey said:

The company split in the 70's into "Winster Electronics" - who made all the electronic gear, and "Winster Mining" who made hydraulic hoses and stuff. The electronic part was still in business a few years ago as "Winster Holdings" and was still in Ilkeston. The "Mining" part eventually also made shearer drums and some other stuff - and they were located at Whitby. I think they are now gone. Bill is still alive and his son, Robert, now runs the company but I lost contact with them many years ago.

The "Winster" name comes from WInster in Derbyshire where Bill used to go "pot-holing"!

OK, I have done searches and never came up with anything, except leads to my webpage.

I knew they were in Ilkeston for a while with the factory.
Wasn't it set up by an ex pit Manager and Electrician...

[limey]

admin said:

OK, I have done searches and never came up with anything, except leads to my webpage.

I knew they were in Ilkeston for a while with the factory.
Wasn't it set up by an ex pit Manager and Electrician...

Sortof - Bill was a pit electrician, I am not sure what the other guy did - I can't even remember his name at the moment (I'll have to ask my Aunt - she is 94 and remembers everything!). Their big break came when they hired a designer from Davis Derby, basically they pinched Davis' idea for a face communications system.

Check this: museums.leics.gov.uk/collections-on-line/GetObjectAction.do?objectKey=175586

A Google search produced several references to the various Winster companies (Products, Mining, Hose and Engineering) but it looks like only Winster Hose is left - and that taken over by another company.

I'll be back in England at the end of March - I'll ask my aunt - she will know!

[John]

limey said:

admin said:

OK, I have done searches and never came up with anything, except leads to my webpage.

I knew they were in Ilkeston for a while with the factory.
Wasn't it set up by an ex pit Manager and Electrician...

Sortof - Bill was a pit electrician, I am not sure what the other guy did - I can't even remember his name at the moment (I'll have to ask my Aunt - she is 94 and remembers everything!). Their big break came when they hired a designer from Davis Derby, basically they pinched Davis' idea for a face communications system.

Check this: museums.leics.gov.uk/collections-on-line/GetObjectAction.do?objectKey=175586

A Google search produced several references to the various Winster companies (Products, Mining, Hose and Engineering) but it looks like only Winster Hose is left - and that taken over by another company.

I'll be back in England at the end of March - I'll ask my aunt - she will know!

Sure ask her and post all the info here Limey, thats what this site's about, our past history.

I was told years ago, this was when mine Managers used to have the power to purchase their own pit equipment in early 1960's. A Manager and Electrician who knew a few managers set out to produce face signalling equipment, they sold several face loads and thats what got the company going.

The Wicas System was way different to Davies's Sivad though Limey, sure it was a fail to safety lockout system and indicating, but Davies used solid state whereas Winster used telephone type uniselectors.

It was good for it's day I suppose, later even Winster went total solid state, but again, nothing like the Sivad system, which still endures to this day with refinements. Not bad for something first introduced in the 60's! A testament to Davies of Derby!

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