Our mystery object is identified
An example of the tunneling machine
LAST week, we asked for help in identifying an unexplained object discoverd by a dog walker by the side of the road.
The bullet-shaped metal object was stumbled upon as the man walked along Riverside Road Industrial Estate in Newton Stewart and given its size and weight, he wondered if it belonged to someone who was missing it.
So we asked our readers to let us know what it could be, and we were inundated with suggestions.
Ian Wemyss told us this was a ripping tooth from a mechanical road planer which is used to tear up road surfaces.
He said: “The machine operator was probably carrying it as as spare as it looks to be new.”
Alex Hainey, formerly of Stranraer and now in Doncaster, said: “The object you show is a pick which fits, with an array of others, into a revolving cutting head of a tunneling machine or similar, such as a coal cutter on a modern face.
“The softer metal body locates in the head and is retained by pins which slot into the groove in the body. The tip is welded on and is usually Tungsten. They are often sold as scrap metal.”
Some other readers suggested it could be the steel spike, also known as an Alpine spike (less the ferrule) from a walking stick; an item used in brick-laying and also the top from wrought-iron railings.
Thanks for all your feedback.
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Weather for Newton Stewart
Sunday 19 May 2013
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 9 C to 14 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: South
Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: 10 C to 17 C
Wind Speed: 18 mph
Wind direction: West
