| BLOG | DIRECTIONS | SCHEDULE | STORE |
|
|
| BLOG | DIRECTIONS | SCHEDULE | STORE | |
Monday, November 26. 2012CGW 4061 update The beginning of the day. On Friday, November 23rd, Brian Swan and I made it out to the shop for part of the day. The main task was to further the vestibule end of the combine that the wednesday special projects group was unable to finish. This end is the last of the welding and fabricating to be done before the carbody can be painted. We focused on needle chipping and cleaning up the frame and accessories under the vestibule platform, and under the door threshold. The diaphragm had been cut off this end long before it came to IRM, and the parts that were left in were rusting and heaving up the deck. The parts in the center were removed and stored, and the plan was to clean everything up, prime and paint it all on the inside and then replace the deck and other sheet metal that is rusted through.  More rust to be removed.  Prepped for new steel.  The end of the day. Brian started to prep the corner by torching out the rusted sections and cleaning up the cuts for new steel. We started digging through all the sheets of steel we have in stock, trying to find the right sheet to use, which happened to be some leftovers that were originally used on CB&Q 504. Brian started cutting the stock to shape and prepped and primed what will be the insides. Meanwhile I continued priming everything in the frame and all the remaining springs and parts within the frame. The next step will be to weld the deck back on and start working on the side sheets on both sides of the vestibule steps. We are still looking for some additional welders, and anyone that would like to help in the shop for that matter. If you are interested, please contact me. thanks, Jamie. Monday, November 19. 2012Diesel department weekend updateSaturday was a short day due to the monthly board meeting. Afterwards, Dan, Rod and I switched track 104 to clear it so a few cars could be moved out of track 4 in Barn 10. This was done so the B&G department can store the Santa Fe sign in a safe place indoors. It will be stored there until such time as there is funding and a location to restore and display the sign properly. For Sunday, the morning started with Jim and myself helping out Will and Jen to finish the tear down of the Terror cars on the west wye. The bridge that allows people to walk between the baggage car side door and the box car door had to be disassembled and the modules stacked in the box car. Between the walls and the deck, they are pretty large pieces that take a few people to move. Once that was completed, me, Jim and Kyle moved to the days planned activity of moving the ComEd 15 (EMD SW1) over the electric car department pit on track 41 to work on the #1 gear box.  ComEd 15 no. 1 gear box Earlier in the year, CE 15 was taken out of service due to some derailment damage to the #1 gear box and a broken pin on the brake rigging. The brake rigging pin was replaced to allow the unit to make two passes for the Diesel Days Parade of Power back in July. The bottom of the gear box was bent and split open from a failed weld on a side sheet to the bottom. We were planning on removing it for repairs to be made, but found a way to do the job in place. We welded a large eye bolt to the center of the pan under where the gear was and used a bar and hydraulic jack to force and bend the bottom of the pan close to its original position and welded the seam that was cracked open. A few packs of gear lube was added and the loco was moved back to yard 2 to be prelubed and started. We then switched a few more cars around, using CE 15. The last four Terror cars on the west wye were put away on the turntable leads and there were three flat cars in yard 13 that were in the way of ballasting track 134, so they were moved to the yard 13 lead. The loco was put away and we retired to dinner at a reasonable time for once. I hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving! Monday, July 16. 2012Friday, December 9. 2011BN 9908, more of the same...Here we are again with the update from Thursday nights progress... we had help from Riley Ladd, Thomas Rubeck, Jim West and myself tonight. Riley and Thomas continued on the surface/paint cleanup on the engineers side from the cab all the way back. Riley moved on to the MILW 33C after completing a few more panels and Thomas spent the remainder of the night completing this side. Jim West began painting the floor inside the engine room, starting with some of the trim areas. I continued on the nose repairs, welding two more pieces. One on the door hinge support and the other on the lower left side of the door. I also prepped the opening on the last spot on the engineers side nose corner. A few pictures are below, with more shown here with the most recent being shown first.
Wednesday, December 7. 2011BN 9908, more steel... E units are long. Tuesday night several more steel parts were measured and cut out into the shapes that are needed for the patches around the nose. A couple of them will need a 95 degree bend for the nose door opening. One of the patches was welded into place on the firemans side of the nose. A few other areas that will never be accessible again were cleaned up and primed and/or undercoated. There are a few photos of the before and after on the carbody paint cleanup. There are more photos available shown here with the most recent being shown first.
Wednesday, December 7. 2011USA 8537 cab work
The United States Army 8537, a GE 45 ton diesel locomotive, was brought into the shop at the same time as the BN 9908. The purpose is to finish updating the cab interior by installing the new cab lights, a two way radio, permanently wiring the cab heaters, finish the painting inside the cab, and several other items. On Saturday the 3rd, the cab lights were installed, which are a standard EMD style. This required pulling all the old wire out of the conduit to the existing cab light and roof beacon and pulling it all back into the conduit, just to add one wire to provide constant power to the new lights. The lights are done now, along with the wiring to the cab heaters, which was run along the existing wiring in the electrical cabinet. They had been temporarily wired last year just to get heat in the winter months.
A number of years ago, Dan Currens installed a DC to DC isolated converter that took the 36V positive ground loco system to a 12V negative ground. The truck stlye cab heater motors, a priming fuel pump, and the two way radio run off the 12VDC system. The next step will be to wire in the radio and mount the AAR radio plate to the console. After that, more painting in the cab.
Monday, December 5. 2011BN 9908, shining and new steel
There was a bit of progress made on the 9908 in the past few days. On Thursday, the first section of new steel was formed and welded into place on the firemans side of the nose. This was done by cutting a flat sheet to the correct dimensions and placing a close bend to fit the horizontal curve of the nose. The flat portion was welded into place on the side, and then some relief cuts made in a few places to allow the patch to bend on the vertical curve. All the seams were V'ed and welded into place. On Friday night, Riley and Jeron began to wipe the panels on the engineers side, making them shine right up. The BN used Imron paint, so some rags with lacquer thinner does a great job cleaning off the rust streaks and dead paint. They completed about 4 side sheet panels in a short time. There are many more photos available than are shown in this blog, and are shown here with the most recent being shown first.
|
Blog AdministrationFind us on FacebookCalendar
QuicksearchArchivesSyndicate This Blog |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Comments
Thu, 05-16-2013 21:52
Looking good Bob! I hope to come out soon once I'm done with school.
Wed, 05-15-2013 21:28
I was not around at the time. General discussion suggests that it was "pretty marginal" in a number of areas. Nigel
Mon, 05-13-2013 11:08
"THUMBS UP!"
Fri, 05-10-2013 02:15
No, it will not be necessary to hold any of the work waiting for the plow to be turned, end for end. Weather will be the major factor, but there will [...]
Thu, 05-09-2013 19:54
The CGW X-38 plow is really coming to life. Bob Kutella and Vic and crew need to be very proud of your collective efforts. I am very appreciative of [...]
Thu, 05-09-2013 15:20
The snowplow looks great! Are you going to apply the door and upper windows befor it is turned to continue work?
Thu, 05-09-2013 09:09
Max, Is there any progress to report yet, in regards to the installation of the poles and overhead wires? Have a good day, sir.
Wed, 05-08-2013 18:40
Thanks for the update! I still don't understand why Commonwealth #5 was removed from service. Do you know why?
Tue, 05-07-2013 09:28
Mr. Kolanowski.....I was just wondering if the Spaulding webcam will be up and running soon for us stay-at-homes. Thanks!2FP
Mon, 05-06-2013 23:04
Max, Has work begun yet on the construction phase of erecting the poles and putting up the wire? Wish I could be there to watch it happen.
Mon, 05-06-2013 23:02
Keep up the good work, Bob. Wish I could be there to help!!!!!!!
Sun, 05-05-2013 18:53
Ah yes, I have made such Jibs myself. If it were me, I would add in each corner an angled piece from the base to the Jib to act as sway bracing. [...]