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Monday, June 30. 2014June 25, 26,and 27 report
This last week Gary and I finally installed the last replacement panel in the area that once was the temporary "Potty." We are also installing the last two long bench seat frames. Now the interior is looking like the coach should have looked in the 40's and 50's.  Howard was out last Wednesday priming more exterior  The last panel is in for the test fit. It is the last one. Thank heavens  Here I am spraying the last bulkhead by eastern door  More green is applied  Its all done. Next the door has to be prepped  Gary is installing the third bench seat frame. We had three frames manufactured new by R and B Welding of Woodstock,Ill  I am installing the last panel  Hey, it looks pretty good. I hope our passengers like it.  Here is Gary test fitting the last bench seat frame. It is now primed but will be painted before final installation. Sunday, June 29. 2014June 16, 17,18,19,, and 21 report
This last week we were again out working on the 2612, but this time the weather was so beautiful Gary and Austin and I decided to work for five days.  6-17 I masked off this area and was ready for painting  Job done  All painted from a different angle  What a beautiful addition, John. Thanks  Eric Lorenz and son volunteered for a day on Wed and sanded the eastern door bulkhead above the door so that I could prime it the next day.  This is Austin hard at work starting to chip  Austin is our ACE "  This is one of the young ladies of the crew, Jane.  This is morning of the 21th. Now compare this picture w/ the next.  The two chippers were hard at work. Tuesday, June 24. 20142612, the second week of June.Work is progressing so fast that I will now post the pictures with a caption only. Not much of an explanation is needed because much of the work we are accomplishing is repetitive.  6-11:Ray Erickson sanding part of the area Austin chipped  I am sanding area to be painted  You can see more painted areas than primed ones.  Another area primed and masked ready for paint.  Area above the windows freshly painted  Next week I will paint this primed area.  Gary now is installing one of the newly painted seat frames.  What a picture! The backside of the crew on June 13th Gary, Austin, and myself. Tuesday, June 24. 2014Late May, 2014 and early June
 Off the bar goes into the wild blue yonder  Gary is moving the bar into the field for future destruction.  Here is Gary sweeping the area where the bar once was located.  Looking towards the eastern end of the coach  Austin starts to chip away at the old paint
 The last panel being installed
 Looking east after the last panel has been installed. Tuesday, June 24. 2014Sunday, June 22nd, Passenger Car UpdateIt was a fabulous day. Early in the day Shelly Vanderschaegen and John McKelvey continued the big job of reupholstering seats for the RI 2612 coach. Michael Baksic, Ray Mormann, and Mark Gellman were trying to drill holes for the vestibule door between the Birmingham and the Loch Sloy. They worked on it all day but were unable to make much headway. During the mid-morning Jon Habegger helped Shelly prepare food for the lunch to come. Before his shift as conductor, Michael McCraren and Mark Gellman tackled the number board on the north side of the Pacific Peak. Last weekend work was done on the number board on the south side of the car.  Pacific Peak north side original number board covered with a panel - Photo by Michael McCraren  Mark Gellman drilling out the pop rivets and removing the panel - Photo by Michael McCraren  A one inch wide band of yellow was discovered which was a surprise - Photo by Michael McCraren  Michael McCraren painted the area yellow with UP model railroad paint - Photo by Michael McCraren  Michael masked the area painted black on the south side and sprayed on the yellow paint - Photo by Michael McCraren We had a great turnout for a plaque presentation to Susan, David, and Rob Stepek in honor of Phil Stepek who passed away last year. Shelly Vanderschaegen came up with the idea to create the plaque, Jon Habegger put the words together, and Pauline Trabert helped Shelly choose the plaque and design. Michael Baksic made the presentation to the Stepek family. A second identical plaque will be hung inside the Birmingham diner where Phil spent a great deal of time.  David, Rob, and Susan Stepek in the Birmingham - Photo by Shelly Vanderschaegen  Michael Baksic presents a plaque to Susan Stepek - Photo courtesy of Shelly Vanderschaegen After the plaque presentation, there was a picnic lunch in the Birmingham followed by a ride on the coach train. Later on David and Rob Stepek crushed cans which had been collected by the department. This is David's usual volunteer job. Jon Habegger went to his post in the 1st Exhibit Car following the luncheon.  Jon Habegger wears a Birmingham serving jacket - Photo by Shelly Vanderschaegen  David gives the thumbs up inside the coach train. Behind him are his brother and mother - Photo by Shelly Vanderschaegen Monday, June 23. 20142612, The last week of May, 2014.
Gary and I increased our volunteer hours to five days a week and it sure shows by our progress.  Howard is working at the exterior while Gary is dismantling a seat frame for parts  Part of the exterior is primed  Gary is reassembling a newly painted seat frame A little vasoline helps with the installation  I just finished painting the western door  Gary and I now are installing one of the last three panels to be replaced  I am drilling a new hole for each 1/4-20 screw. Gary follows up by tapping each hole then applying the round head slotted screw into the hole . It takes awhile but the results are worth the effort. 35 screws drill and taped per panel.  Here I am applying more masking tape for yet another painting Sunday is June 1st, 2014, and the start of more painting and seat assembly. School is out soon so we hope to have a few young volunteers to assist us. The next blog will show even more results and its metamorphosis into a Rock Island coach. Thanks Roger
Tuesday, June 17. 2014Saturday June 14th Passenger Car UpdateA glorious day at the Illinois Railway Museum. It was beautiful all day - a bit warm but we'll take it. Mitch O'Brien, Ray Mormann, and Kevin Kriebs each had a screwdiver and removed most of the hardware from two doors purchased to use in the Birmingham diner. Once most of the hardware was removed, Kevin started stripping paint from one of the doors.  Kevin setup for stripping a door - Photo by Michael McCraren  Kevin stripping paint from a door to be used in the Birmingham - Photo by Shelly Vanderschaegen  Kevin had to strip many layers of paint from one door - Photo by Jon Habegger  There is much work required to repair the rust damage at the bottom of this door - Photo by Jon Habegger While Kevin was stripping paint from one door, Michael Baksic, Ray Mormann, and Mark Gellman worked on positioning a second interior door on the kitchen end. Because the kitchen wall is at an angle, installing a door there, mounting it to the car, will be a challenge.  Michael Baksic and Ray Mormann work on the kitchen end door - Photo by Shelly Vanderschaegen  Mark G. and Michael B. kneeling down to work on the kitchen end door - Photo by Michael McCraren  Michael Baksic looks through the Birmingham kitchen door as it is being installed - Photo by Michael McCraren  Because of the wall angle, installing a door at the kitchen end will be challenging - Photo by Jon Habegger From Michael McCraren: All sleeping car and coaches of a long distance passenger train had a number assigned to them in the consist. For example, on "The City of Los Angeles" the first sleeping car would be assigned the number 1031 meaning train #103 (westbound COLA), first sleeping car. This way the passenger would know which car they were in. On the Union Pacific "Peak" series, the number board was located below the porter's room window on one side and below the bathroom window on the other. During the Pacific Peak's time with Amtrak, the number boards were plated over. On Saturday, Mark Gellman, Jon Habegger, and myself removed the plating and exposed the original number boards. They were cleaned, primed and painted black. Glass will be placed over the number boards to complete the work.  Mark Gellman drilling out pop rivets - Photo by Michael McCraren  Mark prying off the plate - Photo by Michael McCraren  Pacific Peak original number board uncovered after some 40 years - Photo by Michael McCraren  After some clean up and priming the board is painted black - Photo by Jon Habegger  The number board taken from the inside the Pacific Peak - Photo by Jon Habegger Shelly was working with John McKelvey in the wood shop all day stripping RI 2612 Henrietta seats down to the frame. Broken metal clips on the springs were replaced, then Shelly epoxied the bottom of the seat frame where the tack strips are located. Meanwhile, John put tarp material over the repaired springs, tacked it down, then applied horsehair padding. A layer of padding was applied over top of the horsehair, then another layer of horsehair was added, then another layer of tarp was applied to cover the layers of padding. Next, the actual upholstery material can be applied. There is a great deal of work involved in reupholstering these old coach seats and this is why we ask passengers to treat them with care.  John McKelvey sewing upholstery padding pieces together - Photo by Shelly Vanderschaegen  John working on layers of seat material for a Henrietta coach seat - Photo by Shelly Vanderschaegen Lunch was in the Birmingham as usual with a small celebration of Michael Baksic's birthday. Elegant Farmer apple pie and whipped cream were enjoyed by the crew. Everyone returned to their respective work for the day after this all too brief intermission.  Kevin Kriebs and Mitch OBrien at lunch - Photo by Michael McCraren  Shelly Vanderschaegen and Michael Baksic with birthday apple pie - Photo by Michael McCraren  Michael B., Buzz Morisette, and Ray Mormann finishing up lunch - Photo by Michael McCraren |
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Comments
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 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 [...]
Sat, 07-19-2014 21:02
Great show today; 100% improved from last year. Ran at a faster pace which kept it interesting. Also, the brief synopsis of each loco made it very [...]
Sat, 07-19-2014 19:39
Missed the push me pull you this year. If you guys do a high noch engine pulling dynamic breaking load the X-5000 should go in the middle. Chuck said [...]
Sat, 07-19-2014 16:42
Roger, Is IRM going to pursue acquisition of RI commuter coach 2702 -- the one for sale for $11,000? It's an important link in the development of [...]
Sat, 07-19-2014 10:37
On the IRM home page, click on "Site Imndex". There you will find, about halfway down, "View a map of the IRM grounds". The Schmidt cutoff is shown [...]
Fri, 07-18-2014 23:45
I do not have a map although the museum office can provide visitor maps. The cut off will run from beside the steam service boxcar to a new switch [...]
Fri, 07-18-2014 23:44
Yes, removing the cab roof is essential if we raise the boiler. The Shay cab was designed to split allowing the upper part to be lifted for this [...]
Fri, 07-18-2014 22:27
Let's just say that you guys have to lift the boiler from the shay to replace the stays, would you guys also have to take off the cab? Also, I really [...]
Fri, 07-18-2014 20:25
How long does the parade of power usually last once it has started, two hours or so?