File talk:KlondikeDredge.jpg

I am a newbie Wikipedia editor. I would like to change the text for the photograph, but the text would be based on my experience as a winchman on a similar dredge. The dredge for which I was a winchman operated in a dredgepond on a small creek, not in a large, open river like the Klondike River. The text would also be based on my interpretation of the photograph. As far as I know, a reader would not be able to verify that the information that I would like to add was published by a reliable source. Is this allowed? Here is my proposed text: "The photographer was facing the right front corner of the dredge. The bucketline of the dredge is mostly not visible (some buckets can be seen; the bucketline is at the front center of the dredge in the notch in the dredge deck) because it has been lowered to or near the bucketline's maximum depth.  The 'ladder' (the steel structure that has many visible cables in the front center of the dredge) supports the bucketline.  This particular dredge is large, so its maximum digging depth is at least sixteen feet underneath itself. The dredge is rearing back because it is digging hard. Most of its buckets are probably scraping on bedrock in order to get as much gravel as possible into the dredge. The intermittent tailings on and falling from the stacker at the rear of the dredge are evidence that the dredge's bucketline is only intermittently digging up gravel. The dirty-looking stream of water from the end of the sluicebox near the lower-left corner of the photograph indicates that the dredge was working at the instant of the photograph. The bridge-like structure protruding from the right front area of the dredge deck was used for access to and from the dredge. The end of the walkway was capable of being raised or lowered: note the cable attached to the yoke near the end of the walkway. A small boat may have been used for access to this dredge, or the dredge may have been 'parked' for longer periods (during 'cleanup' when the dredge was shut down to retrieve gold from the sluicebox, for example) so the walkway would be accessible from shore. The current of the river can be seen to be flowing; the dredge is facing upstream. The winchroom (where the winchman pulled levers to operate a clutch and a brake for each of a series of winches, thereby controlling the dredge; the bucketline itself required only a clutch) is at the top of the dredge 'house' where the row of six windows can be seen at the front of the dredge. Note the extra lower window directly above the bucketline that allowed the winchman to observe the bucketline." JohnSmithbubba (talk) 18:42, 19 March 2009 (UTC)


 * I think this is fine for the photograph, and certainly adds to my understanding of what's going on. If you want to include some of this material in the article gold dredge, that's fine too -- you're an expert. You may want to add a bit of information at your WP:user page, so it's clear to the interested reader that you have experience in this field. And welcome to Wikipedia! Cheers, Pete Tillman (talk) 22:12, 19 March 2009 (UTC)


 * Pete, thanks for the prompt response and your opinion, and thanks for the suggestion regarding my user page. I will look at that later.  I was only a winchman, not a miner.  The experts are/were the miners.  The miner I know apparently does not want to have a computer and/or internet access.

JohnSmithbubba (talk) 08:33, 21 March 2009 (UTC)