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Thursday, May 23. 2013
CGW X38 Update - May 22, 2013 Posted by Robert Kutella
in Chicago Great Western X 38 Russell Snow Plow at
11:37
Comments (0) CGW X38 Update - May 22, 2013The string of two consecutive good weather workdays was broken yesterday with intermittent rain, some of it heavy. So we worked in the shop and inside the plow body. Buzz Morisette was in the shop fabricating and shaping new framing timbers for the cab cupola on the plow. Most of the wood around the windows and sills was rotted and will be replaced. Dave Rogan worked inside the cupola between downpours and needlechipped and wire brushed a lot of the steel. In an afternoon dry spell he is applying primer here, and then the temporary window blanks were re-installed to help keep it dry. Victor Humphreys and I fussed with the next piece of lining inside the plow. For some reason it was troublesome to fit into place. I bet we went through five fits and they gave us fits. Each time the wood notches seemed to expand (high humidity?) to prevent the piece from slipping in cleanly. With the long piece installed below the side window, Victor quickly marched up the wall toward the right front corner. These are some of the pieces measured and cut last weekend and now ready for nailing. Paul Cronin is just completing the last of 32 more new pieces of interior lining and framing for the plow body. Whoever arrives first on Saturday will have some painting ready for them! Thursday, May 23. 2013Wood Shop Update - May 22, 2013Chicago Aurora & Elgin 308 was a visitor to Barn 4 yesterday. Randall Hicks was able to operate the car to here and spot it over the pit for annual inspections and maintenance. This type of behind the scenes labor requires skill and time and is often unnoticed. But very important if we wish to have safe cars to operate for public rides. Pete Galayda is completing the insulator mounting arrangement for the grid boxes on Charles City Western 300, a steeple cab locomotive. That orange is REALLY ORANGE!!! Simon Harrison is mounting window tracks in the openings on the right side of Cleveland Transit System 4223. These were pieces laboriously cleaned up last year in the shop during poor weather conditions and now they are in their rightful place. While Simon worked on the right side, Lorne Tweed raced to stay ahead of him by mounting more of the window post caps on the left side of the car. Other activity on this car included removal of the twelfth light fixture from the old decrepit ceiling panels, removal of all old rusted in screws from those and the steel backer plates, wire brushing the plates ready for paint, and fabricating two more new ceiling panels. Tim Peters is examining some of the side framing on Chicago Rapid Transit 1024. As so often happens, any little thing becomes a much bigger thing. A rotted window sill was removed and this led to the discovery of water damage and rot of two of the cars window posts. Tim is working on the platform at the west end, discovering more needed repairs layer by layer. Here he is down to the steel for supporting the end platform and fitting some reinforcing steel. And this is one of the GOOD corners! We also noticed a lot of infrastructure and site work in process. At least five new steel poles for the electric trolley bus system extension have been painted and are ready to plant in the ground. Concrete forms were being prepared to sink in the holes as soon as they are dug and dry - we hope. Work continued on stump removal from a low area that had 'volunteer' trees and brush growing in it for a decade or more. This will be a big improvement to the parking area, more capacity, and improved drainage. Sunday, May 19. 2013
Steam Department Update 05-18-2013 Posted by Nigel Bennett
in Steam Department at
19:01
Comments (0) Steam Department Update 05-18-2013It was a productive day at the steam shop leading to a fairly short update. We were able to do what we planned to with no significant setbacks, which is always a good thing to be able to say !. On 1630 the focus was on the tube fitting and the set up for riveting: · The remaining 6 super heater flues were expanded into the front tube sheet. After the problem a couple of weeks back I was in the firebox watching very closely for any sign of movement. But nothing happened. They all rolled into the front sheet with no sign of a slide toward the front. So what happened before .... I have no idea. · With those flues in place we moved on to the last 9 small tubes. These were cut to length, ferrules checked and fitted where necessary, then the tubes were expanded into the rear sheet and rolled into the front. After 180 we are getting quite good at this !. So a big milestone, every small tube is now in place and ready for the water test. · The one remaining tube to be fitted is the large one that had to be cut out two weeks ago. This is being safe ended and will be ready for pressure testing next weekend. We prepared for this by filling the water tank in the back of the truck. A week standing in the sun should have the water warm for use in testing next weekend. If the test is successful, we should be able to fit that last tube immediately. · Mike, Tom and Dennis worked on fabricating a frame that will allow the bucker to be held firmly against each rivet as it is formed. It looks as if we are getting close to the set up for fitting the rivets into the patch, which is the last major step before we can fill the boiler and ensure that the tubes are water tight. Repair riveting is about as difficult as it gets!. When the boiler is made or subject of major repair it is riveted upside down or off the locomotive so you have full access to the mud ring. In this case the trick is to ensure that everything can be placed and held in this fairly confined space. So the area has been cleared ready for riveting and the next stage will be to start setting up the fabricated frame to hold the bucker in place. · Dennis repaired the cinder protection plate on the last of the super heater elements. These simple looking pieces of sheet are most important. When the element is in place in the flue, the pipes bending up to the header are in the path of cinders being sucked thru the flue at great speed, so would be subject to extensive erosion. The rough sheets, wrapped around the element are "sacrifice plates" that suffer the erosion rather than the element itself. The picture was taken prior to the repair and shows how a hole has been cut thru the protector by the abrasive effect of hot, fast moving, cinders. · Tom and Cameron worked on machining the guides required to drill the holes for the new firebox stays. In other areas: · The tubes for the Shay were strapped into bundles and moved back to the boxcar, freeing up the space in the fabrication area; · Tom continued machining the wedges for #428 · Stu worked with Phil and Cameron on sizing the rivets for the cab on #428. This is a job that we will fit in when we have spare resources as it will allow the cab to be refitted freeing up a useful area for fabrication; · Stu also continued work on the control system of the planer; · .... and beside this we were able to assist the US Army (re-enactment version) with the odd bit of metal bashing to keep their tents upright! So overall a good day's work. On a less cheerful note, we talked to Rod, who visited Glen during the week. He remains in the ICU at Rockford Memorial and was heavily sedated. The prognosis remains unclear, particularly with regard to one leg which suffered major damage to the knee. Our thoughts and prayers are with him. Nigel Sunday, May 19. 2013
Coach dept.... Ins and outs Posted by Roger Kramer
in Passenger Car Department at
17:24
Comments (0) Coach dept.... Ins and outs
Here are a couple of updates from the Coach dept rolled into one Blog. First, Mike, Ray, and Mark have been completeing the annual assessments and inspections of the operating coach fleet. This takes about a month to month and one half. They have been checking on the functions of brakes, wheels, and the condition of the trucks. This year upon inspection of the Inglehome's wheels and truck frame it has been determined that one truck has a serious defect and it has been taken out of service. Until this is resolved the observation car will not be operating anymore! Taking into consideration that it is more then 100 years old it will need some Major work to be placed back in service. Another project almost finished by the Sunday crew has been and cleaning and repair of the "Silver train." Last week Mike, Ray, amd Shelly installed the portable A/C units into the various car to keep them "Kool" for the Summer viewing public. More guided tours are on the schedule for this year. A note for you folks who enjoy these cars is the fact that Track Storage Charges have not been paid on the LOCH SLOY! If you would like to help erase this debt Please send a donation to the LOCH SLOY FUND. It owes more than $6,000. Thank You!!! This Spring, one more project has again started up. It's the restoration of the women's bathroom in the John Mcloughlin sleeper. Irm is hosting a convention for the Great Northern RR Historical Society in late July of this year and touring John Mcloughlin is on part of the schedule. This gives the small team of Mark, Brian, and Roger an added incentive to make things happen. Would you like to join us? Just stop by any Saturday in back of Barn #3. Look us up! We'll be there!
Interior and exterior brass sash removed from bathroom of the John Mcloughlin. Waiting restoration in my basement Sunday, May 19. 2013
CGW X38 Update - May 18, 2013 Posted by Robert Kutella
in Chicago Great Western X 38 Russell Snow Plow at
15:10
Comments (0) CGW X38 Update - May 18, 2013Buzz Morisette is up inside the control cab as we try to re-engineer how all the windows, sills, and stops will go together. Note that much of this was totally useless and rotted away. He is holding up one of the original windows for size and placement Before too much dismantling was done to replace the bad parts, Buzz took many pictures to help document the areas. Kind of unusual to find instructions painted on the ceiling - but here it is. Here is an experiment in formatting so you may see the front of the cab by stitching together the three views. The left front view shows faint traces of more lettering; the right front view shows "EMERGENCY VALVE" stenciled in red. Lots of piping, electrical, gauges - most of which will have to be removed to replace the spongy wood behind them.
A lot of the work is now started with removal of the window post and corner posts on the left side. Look closely and you will see the empty mounting holes in the steel members. And what a scenic view out the window! Freight cars, of course - that is our department. This view looks downward at the left front corner. the wood has been removed to the bare steel framing. And another trace at the very top of this image of more lettering and flaky paint - we figured this one out - but not without some headscratching and creative railroad archeology. |
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Comments
Sun, 02-21-2021 21:12
Hi Ethan The 428 has been worked on recently but the focus now is on the maintenance and repair on the 1630 and the Shay. This Spring we will [...]
Sun, 02-21-2021 15:10
How is the UP 428 Steam locomotive engine is most done being fixed. OK Roger.
Sun, 02-21-2021 13:18
Hello Max The answer is Yes, the Dover will be used along with our other Pullman cars only in special event operations. When not in use [...]
Sun, 02-21-2021 12:30
Hello Jim We will be operating the Dover this year depending upon its mechanical condition. I hope to use the car in display venue as well as in [...]
Sun, 02-21-2021 12:24
Hello Kirk Hello, Yes the Dover is now in great shape. There are a couple of little projects to accomplish when the weather changes. I am [...]
Sat, 02-20-2021 18:55
Will the DOVER STRAIT be operational for Museum trips
Sat, 02-20-2021 17:06
I’m really impressed with the wonderful job your volunteers are doing to restore this historic passenger car. Once the restoration is complete, does [...]
Sat, 02-20-2021 14:02
It is great to see the work that Bob Hunter and Gene Macowiak started in the 1990’s. Great work done in finishing the two bedrooms and the buffet [...]
Fri, 02-19-2021 18:41
Very good article. I definitely love this website. Continue the good work!
Tue, 02-02-2021 10:15
I know it is wintertime, and the Virus is making getting people in to do work is difficult, so in a few months, when it's warmer, would someone please [...]
Sun, 01-31-2021 14:37
Hello Jack Thank you very much We in the coach dept are working very hard to have these trains restored Thanks Roger
Sat, 01-30-2021 18:45
pre oiler is a great idea saves lots of wear and tear on engines. a pat on the back for the diesel crew