The Silver Spade

Facts and figures

• Began operations - November 1965
• Speed - 1/4 mph
• Bucket capacity - 105 cu yd
• Operating weight - 14,000,000 lb
• Height - 220 ft to top of boom
• Boom length - 200 feet
• Width - 59 ft
• Height of crawlers - 8 ft
• Length of crawlers - 34 ft
• Maximum dumping height - 139 ft
• Maximum dumping radius - 195 ft
• Rating on A.C. motors - 13,500 hp peak
• Entire operation of the shovel is controlled by two hand levers and a pair of foot pedals.
• Digs 315,000 lb of earth in a single bite, swings 180° and deposits the load up to 390 ft away from the digging points at heights up to 140 ft.
• Machine's four hoist ropes total 3,000 ft in length.
• Fourteen main digging cycle motors are capable of developing a combined peak of 13,500 hp at peak load.
• Automatically leveled through four hydraulic jacks.
• Swings a 105 cubic yard dipper from a 200 ft boom and a 122 ft dipper handle.
• The "GEM of Egypt", the other large shovel, has similar statistics concerning size and weight, etc. The primary difference is the bucket and boom. The GEM is a 130 cubic-yard bucket and 170 ft boom, while the Spade sports 105 cubic-yard bucket and 200 ft boom.

  Dipper arm