Medinah Minerals (MDMN)

[RD759]

Hi Stevej,
what you're looking at is a whinze in photo 1 (an internal shaft that doesn't come to surface), serviced by a kibble presumably (a metal bucket for removing broken rock at the base of the whinze and doubling as a 'lift' in and out for the miner and his gear, given the absence of ladders in the picture). The kibble is lowered and raised by an electric whinch (photo 3).

Photos 2 and 5 show the top of the whinze, with shuttering and staging to stop collapse at the collar and act as a platform for swinging the kibble (dumping into a wagon or scooptram). The whinze looks to be braced all the way down.

Photo 4 shows part of a drive with a cuddy (storage area) for drill steels and some coiled hoses; the electric lighting is a nice touch - you don't see that very often!

In terms of looking professional, the whinze certainly does; I don't think I've come across one so well presented before (and I've seen a few). The workings look in good condition and the ground in the pictures is holding up well (note the absence of meshing and roof bolts); however no shiftboss of my acquaintance would ever let them get away with a floor like that in photo 4 - failure to tidy that up would result in terrible punishment usually involving thick detergent-repellent grease, a high degree of nudity and having a ball and chain welded to your ankle. I'll leave the rest to your imagination