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Monday, July 27. 2015Trolley Bus/Motor Bus Department Update 07/27/2015
In the Trolley Bus Department: Thanks to the hard work of Richard Schauer,
Rod Turner, Greg Kepka and Nick Espevik (I'm sure I'm leaving out others,
sorry), the drag link on Chicago Marmon 9553 has been repaired and
reinstalled. The coach has been given a
bath inside and out and Richard has just completed the inspection. It has been on several test trips with no
issues. Thanks guys!!!
Bill Wagner will be visiting in two weeks for the official dedication of the Wagner Loop. We are scheduled to hold a brief ceremony on Saturday, August 08 at 11:00am. We may provide some service with the Chicago Marmon that day.
If all goes as planned, the Chicago Marmon, along with other coaches, will be in service for Member's Day on Saturday, September 19. We will be having regularly scheduled trolley bus operations in 2016. Watch for the museum calendar coming with your December issue of Rail & Wire for the schedule.
In the Motor Bus Department: Master mechanic Vince Allen, along with Fred McGullam and John LeBeau, continue to work on the CMC 605. It is now at the point where it starts reliably. They are currently working on the transmission which appears to be the final hurdle in getting it fully operational.
Julie Piesciuk has been working feverishly on emptying and cleaning all the motor coaches. She has done a fantastic job on the CMC 605, and the CTA 8715. She has also done the Chicago Marmon trolley coach 9553 and will shortly complete the Janesville 412. We hope to have several of these open and available for inspection during our Vintage Transport Extravaganza on Sunday, August 02.
We are in the process of cleaning and reorganizing the Hoffman Garage (and the immediate area around it). Thanks to everyone mentioned above for helping out in this endeavor, plus B&G Superintendent Dave Diamond. If you visit over the next few months, don't be surprised if you see empty space inside, vehicles outside, vehicles inside not in perfect rows, and things in unusual locations. We hope to have this project complete by winter to make the garage and surroundings a little more visitor-friendly in 2016.
A huge THANK YOU to everyone who has helped us out and the show of support from other volunteers and visitors alike. We look forward to continued progress!!!
Friday, July 24. 2015What's happening in the Ely?
Buzz has been focusing on the further restoration and upgrades of our famous "private varnish" passenger car The Ely. While working on the ceiling in the Ely he noticed the 32 volt light fixtures had paper insulators that were deteriorating from heat built up and old age. He searched various web sites and ordered new replacements but had to modify them to fit.
 Crumbling insulator led to socket rebuilding  85 yr old sockets are made well but they do deteriorate Here you see the broken porcelain  Here is the results of his efforts a cleaned and rebuilt light fixture  Rebuilt fixture connected to wire leads  Light fixture back in service Beautiful job  Elys white observation ceiling showing its pin stripping. Very Fancy  Latch/hinge mechanism  Recently reinstalled in the Porters hallway to it like new appearance Tuesday, July 21. 2015Update on the CGW X38 Plow
This is a small CGW X38 plow update sent to me from Buzz Morisette
 Please notice the painted doors. They were painted and restored in our woodshop  Even the smallest details are being addressed Tight quarters under the truck.  Another pic showing the pot belly stove Monday, July 20. 2015Early July RI 2612 update
Here is a little progress report on our job to completely restore the 2612 to operation.
 Here Howard is priming one side of the coach  Loraine is again painting a few parts, namely seat brackets  Dan again is using the sandblaster cabinet to clean parts for painting  Lastly, Austin is needle chipping more of the car end Sunday, July 19. 2015 |
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Comments
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
Wed, 01-06-2021 10:14
Good job on coach updates January 5, 2021. Sincerely, Ethan A.
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
Thu, 08-27-2020 09:53
I worked seasonally on the Cadillac & Lake City while the B-71 was in Lake City, MI, beginning in 1970. My primary job was steward/waiter/car cleaner [...]