Just curious how many of the Iron Men of concrete pumping are still around.  This would be before 1980.  Not to take anything away from todays operators - you have to be smart just to figure out how to open the out riggers and use the computers.  But in the day.......

We stood in wonder watching the new BIG booms enter the market - the 2001 Thompson and the upstart 31 Meter Schwing.  Surely nothing could ever be bigger.

Our standard load was 200 feet of 5" and you hoped some of your victualic clamps were not stretched too much or the grooves in the pipe worn out.  A plug up or kinked hose meant half the pipe coming apart.

Instead of the outline of a condom in our wallet we had the outline of a hex key so we could adjust our throttle valves.

Fingers were blistered from manually switching the valve on a Herc pump when the limit switch went out.

Cell Phones - We did not have cell phones to call the mechanic when we had problems - what would have been the purpose - we had no mechanics!

Ahhhh the good old days of driving a 28 Meter on a Ford truck with a 555 Engine up a hill and having grandma go by on a bicycle and flip you off for holding up traffic.

In the Old days in Houston you pumped all day, worked on the pumps all night and then spent the weekend trying to keep up with the Baker boys on mat pours.

Wireless Remote - That was something you might read about in a science fiction magazine.  Many a pour was done manually when your remote cord went out.

Flapper Valves, Gate Machines, Herc Ball Valves, Econo Placer Hopper Valves - The good old days.  Pump all day and rebuild all night.

Some of the real old timers may have even run a famous pump called the "Orange Crush" 

Many a time I would tell the contractor that my jib was broken so I did not have to slide out the hanging basked on the 28 Schwing. 

Cast Elbows!  Did not exist.  Steel Elbows that would last at most 6000 yards.  If yours were worn out you would grab a couple of weld on ends and make some new ones.

With a little duct tape, beer cans, jumper wire you were good to repair most problems on your pump.

Ya, I ran an 80s model 23m schwing on a ford cab. remember keeping a drum of oil on the truck JUST IN CASE!

I build my own 90's now for my line pump I buy 2 1/2 inch electrical galvinized conduit cut off the threaded end the weld the end on easy done.

Yea I remember the "Good" old days! 4" hard hoses instead of elbows, beating Vic ends back into a hose when it blew out,1 1/8" nut on the turret motor of a Whiteman you cranked to operate when the boom pump went down, remote control on the same pump that had more switches than a nuclear sub, kink up hardwire cord,Hydraulic brakes on a 740c Thompsen... 36 years in the trenches for me,and I still love it,but retirement is really looking good! Now if the econmy would turn around,maybe I can...

it didnt have to be pre 1980- some of this quality machinery was still around a decade later, with a $hit more hours on it!!!

Well closest I come to the Ironman thing is operating an 84" 32M Schwing with the good old manual roll and folds and, the 78" 28M gate we still have here. God those pump were form the days where it was actually work. What I always love with the manual outriggers is if you are pitched on the wrong angle folding up or, setting up and the beams arent nice and clean. Work like that will make your grandkids be born naked.

LOL...  I have spilled more out of my hopper then most of u have ever pumped.  I have been around pumps going back to the 60ds.  My first pump was a 640 thomson stiff boom that u had to build lol. The company my dad work for got the very first 2001 thomson. It was a peace of Sh#T. You New guys have so easy!! 99% of my years were working in LA. If I was told i had 300 yards i would ask who how many pumps :) Are turrets only went 180...  not 360. The piston strokes were only 3 feet long. I reminber one day pulling up to this job with a 875 thomason looking at this really big deck and asking were the header was LOL  The labor forman said we were going to pump the hole thing ... AAShit.  750 yds late I just did a water wash started to put the boom away when i ran out of fuel.. I don't ever reminber having to ever refuel a thomason pump EVER. Hell i could go on for hours LOL. I seen this picture , Is what we had to work with BACK then :)

My migraines are back just thinking of those days.Ho how fun they were,reed switches,u-cups,overheating whitemans,ran a case a couple of times,the old sqeezers.The 1 st schwing 28m (I think) was a joke.Anyboby got a pic of that farce?Main straight up but did pump.An old morgan,think around Santa Fe (thanks LCS) for loaning me out that day.Did get close to a Fortuna a few times,I won't say what we called them.

Then the neatest thing on the block,titan 3900.Now that pump was the cats ass,you could do a pour of 100+ and not break down.Then they got smart (not) and the swing away jib was born.Ah the 2001 thompson,now that was really a pretty stable pump but still had to be mix carefull (even the hp).The broken spline shafts or links would drive one crazy.

Back in the early 80's even made reducers and had casts made for all the elbows for schwing (yuk).Wished I had a quarter for every weld on end I put on,be well off.

Yep,we paid the price.Be greatfull for what you have today,not many of us left to explain.

mike does it count if u were a kid watching this same thing and listening to the operators talk about it . then again i was that kid and still pumping right along today.....lol

A test

What's on the end of the tip hose?

A shut off of some sort??

mmmm,keep going

a blow out cap

A fitting to attach water source?

ok ok,here it is.Back in the day (literly) we call them here water caps.It is a predecessor to what we now call a blow out cap.Instead of having a ball valve (some did) it had a 3/4" one way water check valve with a female end for garden hose.

Put ball/spounge in put water in behind it,10-15 gal,stand boom straight up and pull ball.One knew when it was back when the water hit the hopper.There were many variations over time to todays safety orientated blow out cap.Even that old thing saved many of booms.

so what do I win ? LOL Do I get an "A"?

Awsome!! I would like to thank God, because without him................ LMAO!!!!

My dad and I started in '79 with a Thomsen 600 line pump. Not long after we had our first boom, a Thomsen 640. Don't see how we pumped with rubber hoses on the boom instead of steel 90's. Later we had an 847 (Uncle Sam) and two 875's before buying our first Putz 32m, a demo unit mounted on a '76 GMC Astro (What a joke for a truck) in 1984. Boy, what fun we had (NOT) cleaning out those Thomsen hoppers and cylinders (OMG). You button pushers have no idea how esay you have it. I have since moved on from pumping but my dad still operates the pumping business in North Texas (at age 67) with a putz 32, 2 36's, and a 43m. He still has 2 HP890's sitting in the yard #006 and the last one from Thomsen #039.

We had 1 of thoughs to :) with the Bell backends. I made my Dad run it. I hated it. We even had one 600 stiff boom that only had a cable winch to pick it up. I never seen it leave the yard. I think everyone had a 740 thomason back then! Single pump , Then Double pump LOL Look out were moving now.