Here’s a synopsis of what has been taking place in the Trolley Bus Department over the last several weeks. Yesterday Bob Bourne came in from Iowa and operated Chicago Marmon 9553 in the afternoon. We are planning on running that coach again for Chicago Day in 2 weeks. While that was going on, we were visited by (Regular Member #1) Charlie King, which spurred Richard Schauer and Jerry Saunders to drill and mount brand new trolley boards on the CSL 84 and reconnected the trolley poles/bases. The newly refurbished air compressor came back to life and sounded great! We are working on getting some wheel studs to reattach the curbside rear wheels in order to get it rolling again.
In previous weeks, Richard Schauer and I have been going through our stored parts, looking for where we can consolidate and rearrange. Howard Geier spent Memorial Day weekend working on the Curbliner (Des Moines), most notably getting the temporary back doors ready for glass installation. We have also dedicated a couple weekends toward getting the New York subway cars closer than ever to being added to the operating fleet. Recent steps forward were attaching retrievers for both trolley poles, and doing a thorough and much needed cleaning of the interior. There is a little more cleaning left to do as well as a few more loose ends to tie up. Look for them in the Trolley Pageant next month and in service, dare I say, by the end of the season??? (Reminder: These cars are still carrying a debt. If you can, please consider a contribution to the "NY Subway Cars" fund. We would love to get them a decent coat of paint.)
Sorry I haven’t taken pictures for a while. I’ll try and get some for the next entry.
Comments
Sun, 07-27-2014 23:15
In looking at the general exterior condition of the Dynamometer Car you would think that it was a total wreck. It is wonderful that it is operational [...]
Fri, 07-25-2014 20:14
I had a blast riding in X-5000 on Sunday during Diesel Days. Brian was great to talk to. It was cool seeing the comntrol board work. I can't wait for [...]
Fri, 07-25-2014 16:47
Shane, Clean rain water is certainly possible. The snag is that you would need a BIG collection and storage system. We are using around 8000 [...]
Fri, 07-25-2014 16:42
John, Yes. Sadly the tender is in poor shape. She should go under cover as part of the new barn project. There will be much discussion around [...]
Thu, 07-24-2014 21:38
Hello Richard In reply to your question concerning RI 2702. The museum is studying the acquisition but no decision has been yet made.
Thu, 07-24-2014 21:29
Hello Chris The 2702 is under study by those interested at Irm. Unfortunately, the possible acquisition boils down to $. First ,who will support [...]
Thu, 07-24-2014 13:01
Hello, is there anyone that I can contact in the Diesel Department about volunteering? I am studying mechanical engineering and I would love to get [...]
Thu, 07-24-2014 00:01
I will commit something to 2702 if I see a specific fund for it. Supposedly the owners made an effort to keep it original, other than removing seats. [...]
Wed, 07-23-2014 19:54
Hi Nigel, I have some suggestions to enhance the experience of steam railroading for museum visitors: 1) In September 2002, I visited on the [...]
Wed, 07-23-2014 00:17
while watching the Diesel Days parade, i noticed a detail on UP 1848 that stood out to me. it was its cab number, i could tell it had a previous [...]
Mon, 07-21-2014 17:48
The hydraulic drawbar on X-5000 works. Its operation was determined Saturday evening and successfully used all day Sunday. The car measured up to a [...]
Sun, 07-20-2014 13:56
2702 would definitely be a project of a massive effort. It has some sort of giant roadside casino sign installed on it. The interior is completely [...]