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Sunday, July 31. 2011
TMS Project - July 30, 2011 Posted by Robert Kutella
in Two Milwaukee Streetcars at
04:53
Comments (0) TMS Project - July 30, 2011We got some publicity for the project this week, and for IRM. The Thursday issue of the Waukegan News Sun had a few pics and information on the CNS&M 354, which once plied the streets of Waukegan. This is the fine looking interior of the 354 with car lighting working again thanks to the Electric Car Department and some troubleshooting. This feature was worked on to show off the interior to best advantage for the photographer shooting the story. Victor Humphreys helped on this task, and here he is distracted, reading some of the very old car card advertising inside the car. This remains an active project and we really need your donations help to bring this back to operation, any amount large or small is still being accepted with our thanks. And we have challenge grant money that will match your contribution dollar for dollar at 100% parity. This is a great way for you to help IRM and stretch your dollars. Please specify fund RTMS on your check. Sunday, July 31. 2011News and Views - July 30, 2011Tim Peters has started making new windows for the CRT 1797, the next round of window work that seems never to be done. In this case I probably have the numbers wrong, but the wood Tim is running through the jointer, and the stack seen behind him and to the right in the picture, will produce 18 new upper sash windows, and for 4 combination window assemblies going outside the door pockets on the end of the car. John Faulhaber has set up his drill fixtures and is busily engaged in drilling and countersinking holes in the rough seat handle castings for the Sand Springs 68. Windows? Did I say windows? Jon Fenlaciki was again on the workbenches, restoring brass sash and windows for the CA&E 451. I believe he said 13 have been completed and placed back into the carbody. Yes, more work on windows. Eric Lorenz has started installing glass in the door windows on our CTS 4223 PCC car. It is hard to try to capture an image of something that is transparent, but the first glass is in, working on the four door leafs at the front of the car. I am going to sneak this image in here rather that make a separate ENTRY for just one photo. Work continues on our B&O wagon top boxcar. In the morning the A end is still in the shade, so Victor Humphreys is up on the scaffold, working to clean and prime more surfaces, before the sun comes around and it gets really hot. He was joined today by Ray Pollice, working around the corner on the north side. Thursday, July 28. 2011Wood Shop Update - July 27, 2011We will start out this entry with a Steam Department report. Jim Opolony from Steamland joined the wood shop crew today to fabricate new wood blocks to protect the ends of superheaters being removed from the Frisco 1630. There were not enough previously on hand (from UP 428) to accommodate the number in the decapod. Jim and Rich Witt have prepared the blocks and are laying out the remaining work. Jim, Rich and Victor Humphreys were boring the last of them by the end of the afternoon. They are complete and ready for the steam team to continuing pulling the superheaters Saturday. We have shown a few pics along the way of John McKelvey recovering seats for the North Shore 757. In case you do not understand the scope of what he has accomplished, working alone, all the seat cushions (bottoms) are done and only nine of the seat backs remain to be worked upon. This is very specialized work and John is willingly volunteering for this large task. As a fill-in job when forces are available, we have been working on the brass trim for the Sand Springs 68. We are apparently in the monsoon season so many of us were chased indoors to the shop, and Pete Galayda joined in the fray. Here he has the rough castings to be drilled and countersunk. John Faulhaber constructed a neat fixture to help the seat handle drilling and here, Pete and John are on the large drill press making brass chips. Victor Humphreys is doing the final touch up on primer paint for the new station door completed in recent months. Earlier in the day Pete applied the first color coat of orange paint to the new running boards destined for the Charles City Western 300 locomotive. Here is a Buzz Morisette photo of the newly restored Milwaukee Road caboose. We all enjoy seeing spanking new clean equipment turned out by the volunteers. In this case, expenses for supplies and materials went beyond our estimates so we are asking for help to complete paying for them. (All labor and skilled work was done by our volunteers.) The fund is R01984 for all you generous supporters of IRM. Monday, July 25. 2011Steam Report - July 23, 2011Images and report are from Jim Opolony - THANKS JIM! Work started at 8:00 in the morning by shop members gathering the materials that would be needed for removal of the 1630's superheaters. Since there was a constant rain, placing of scaffolding in front of the 1630 did not start until 9:30. (Our Mamas told us to stay out of the rain when we were little, so we followed their advice.) Last week, steam team members made sure that the nuts holding the first row of superheater tubes in place, on their hangers, were heated and loosened so that the job of removing the tubes would be easier. The decision was made to use the boom on Glenn's truck to lower the superheaters to the ground. The tubes would be pulled out part way from the tubesheet, strapped and connected to the boom before being completely pulled out of the tubesheet. At the same time, they would have wooden blocks attached to their tapered ends to prevent damage. At 10:00 the center superheater was removed from the tube sheet. To our surprise, the superheater was out of the locomotive and in the shop, on wooden horses, within seven minutes. The entire front row of superheater tubes were out of the locomotive, blocked, stacked, and tagged by 10:35. At this point the work slowed down. The nuts on the second row of superheater hangers had to be heated and loosened. In some cases, this took several attempts before the nuts moved. In addition, since the hanger bolts are cast iron, we had to make sure we did not break them. After the nuts were loose, it took until 2:30 to remove the second row of tubes. An additional problem was that the socket that fit the nuts in the first two rows would not fit into the space between the next row of tubes. Finally, Glenn found a socket that fit. Once on the ground, they would be carried into the shop and tagged by row and their location in the tube sheet. The wooden blocks had been made by Bob Kutella and Victor Humphreys, of the Freight Car Department, for the superheater tubes now in the UP 428's boiler. They will make additional wooden blocks this coming week since the 1630 has more superheaters than the 428. Work ended on the 1630 with members of the steam team working to loosen the nuts on their threaded hangers on the third row of superheater tubes. Next Saturday, when these superheaters are removed, the nuts on the final row of superheaters will still have to be loosened so that the fourth row of superheaters may be removed. Then, the work to remove the other boiler tubes and flues will start. In addition we still need to find the time to remove the lagging and boiler insulation, and other accessories to allow full inspection of the boiler. Monday, July 25. 2011
Barn 4 Work - July 24, 2011 Posted by Robert Kutella
in Electric Car Department at
15:42
Comment (1) Barn 4 Work - July 24, 2011I mentioned in the previous post that I was forced to change plans, and that is why no report for Saturday. Here is the reason, a dim image that greeted me at the first crack of dawn, about three feet of water on our street. Tim Peters is now attacking the carbody posts on the north side of CRT 1797. This wooden L car originally was a semi-convertible design, and Tim has found evidence of that. It seems odd to me that the side windows could be raised up into and stored between the ceiling and roof, but that is the way it was. Imagine an 'open car' on the elevated! Kirk Warner was able to join us for the weekend as part of an intermission on a business trip. We went into the Sand Springs 68 and started the installation of the hardware that the Wednesday shop guys have so perfectly buffed, polished and restored. Kirk is driving the four wood screws per lift on the first window. Then Kirk insisted I take a test drive, and they seemed to work perfectly. |
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Comments
Thu, 01-21-2021 19:44
Hello Jack Yes, the buffers have been installed but the canvas curtains cost about about 1500 each to purchase. Thanks Roger
Wed, 01-20-2021 07:46
is there a eason a lot of passenger cars have no diaphrams on them? i see several have the buffers installed
Fri, 01-15-2021 10:20
Hello Jason. Your comments are very much appreciated. Yes, there is much hard work that goes into all our restorations and maintenance here at the [...]
Fri, 01-15-2021 10:13
Hello Jack Yes, It will be one of our most impressive cars that we have at IRM when its completed. Thanks for the pat on the back! Roger.
Thu, 01-14-2021 21:05
Those cars look great so far guys! Man I wish I had the time to volunteer and become a member at IRM that looks like so much fun especially with how [...]
Tue, 01-12-2021 16:30
the pawnee is looking great a pat on the back to all involved
Mon, 01-04-2021 12:31
Hello Jack Happy New Year from IRM. To my knowledge there was no damage from the minor ice storm that we had in late December, 2020. Some [...]
Sun, 01-03-2021 20:12
the museum area had lots of ice storms in area did the museum get a lot of damage
Thu, 12-24-2020 13:27
roger, Thank you to all of the Passenger car department volunteers. The #109 is going to be a great car when all done! Ted miles, [...]
Sun, 12-06-2020 08:46
Hello Ted We havenot finished lettering the 975 but we are well on the way. Look for a few blogs from me now that the wearther is colder and the [...]
Sat, 12-05-2020 18:36
i watched crew replace switch by diesel shop on dec 5. its good to see museum have equipment to do job and save money
Fri, 12-04-2020 14:56
It has been a long time with no news; have you finished lettering the Southern Pacific locomotive? Please post a picture. Ted Miles, IRM Member