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July 18, 2007

Triple-Triple

This is the third in a fairly pathetic series about Patterson Rig #415. You can read the first part and then read the second part (or read the second THEN read the first - whatever floats your boat!)

(The "triple" part refers to the third post, of course, but the rig is also a "triple" which means it stands back three sections of pipe screwed together. There are smaller rigs that can handle only two lengths and are called "doubles". If I ever take photos of one of those rigs, I'll be limited to only two posts. -wink-)

The guys working the floor finally got used to me and ignored me as I took photos, which was good because I couldn't help but laugh at 'em when they started worrying about where they "were" in running the pipe in the hole. When going in the hole, it's necessary to stop every so often to "circulate" and they were having a hard time trying to figure out just where to stop the first time.

(click any pic for larger view)


This guy, the motorman, was the most experienced of all the crew. Here he's unlatching the elevators but keeping an eye on one of the other hands as he worries with the power tongs.


Those elevators are probably one of the most dangerous things on a rig. I've seen a guy get a tooth knocked out by unlatching before all the weight was off it and have seen, multiple times, someone latch onto pipe, then see their face go ghostly white...they'd latched a finger in with the pipe.

When flesh and iron collide, iron ALWAYS wins.

When going in the hole, just as they're doing here, the derrickhand needs to be very forceful when latching each stand, and always check to make sure the elevators have latched all the way.

If not, the stand can be picked up, that 90 foot length of three screwed together 4 1/2 inch diameter pipes that weighs #16.60 lbs./ft (about 1500 lbs.) and then it can suddenly come loose and drop one, two or even three feet...right onto your foot. Sure, you got steel toed boots on; now your toes are in the steel part, just pull what's left of your foot out of the boot. Your two-steppin's never gonna be the same again.

As I said, I was forbidden to get out on the floor, but disregarding that (I've always had a problem with authority) , I did step out and take a quick shot of the derrick hand as he leaned out to latch the stand.


Since I couldn't wander around the rig taking photos and I was getting hungry and it was getting late in the afternoon, I decided to return my borrowed hard hat and thank the rig boss, the "tool pusher" for allowing me to take some photos. As I was leaving, he hollered at me and asked if I wanted him to take MY picture. "Sure." I told him and struck a pose.


I've got my pants heisted up as far as they will go to keep my pants bottoms out of the mud and crud and dope and grease and this photo makes me look fatter than I actually am. (I'm fairly rotund anyway, but the camera adds pounds, so does a big roll around the tummy)

I enjoyed my brief visit to a drilling rig; I have a good friend living down the street who is a tool pusher for a local drilling contractor and I am going to ask him if I can go out to his rig and take some photos.

This rig is much nicer than most that I worked on, but I have worked on huge, deep-hole rigs, diesel-electrics with all the "comforts of home", refrigerator, microwave, steam heat...things you definitely won't find on the smaller rigs.

Things have changed a lot since I last worked on a rig; there are many more safety precautions than when I was roughnecking and drilling, such as dust masks and chemical aprons for mixing mud, there's a supervisor on the rig at all times, the rig crews hold regular safety meetings and get bonuses for no lost time accidents. I also never had the pleasure of using power tongs while tripping pipe, instead using the "spinning chain", arguably the most dangerous thing on a rig. (well, there's a worm with a water hose, but....) In fact, I can remember times using a rope to make up casing joints and "crummies", huge pipe wrenches, to join together tubing.

Use those crummies for a while, and like me, you too can be your home town arm wrestling champ.

Yup, "old school" for us old-timers. -sigh- Still, rough work requires rough men and that's something that will never change as long as we drill for oil and gas in this manner...and that will be a long, long time.

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