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Sunday, March 10. 2013Wood Shop Update - March 9, 2013These reports are fast becoming like a picture book. For awhile my camera was not working very well, and now TOO MANY pics.  Panels The two new doors for Chicago Great Western X 38 have solid raised panels in the bottom half. All are done and Victor Humphreys does some finish sanding on them.  Trim Molding Bill Peterson completed fitting and mitering all the quarter round trim molding on door number two for the plow. Next, primer and paint.  Puzzling We began work to create a new exterior door for our station today. After a visit to the door in question in the depot, Paul Cronin is trying to sort out a puzzle. We have a stack of lumber and a drawing with dimensions. Now, where can each piece be 'harvested' from the oversize planks that were available?  Ripping After jointing a straight edge on all pieces, Paul and Bill are at the table saw ripping the stock to the exact width needed.  Arranging The parts have been cut to rough length and a dado set used to plow the needed grooves in each piece. Paul is checking the arrangement with all the parts arranged in order. This is a BIG door!  Layout The next step involved the three of us confirming the length of each piece and then laying out the needed work for the mortise and tenon jointery. Bill is making sure all marks are transferred accurately and both sides will match.  Brakes The Electric Car Shop just completed new custom sheaves needed for working hand brakes on the Chicago & West Towns 141. This is big news and I managed to snap a pic of Project Manager Frank Sirinek taking a picture of me taking a picture of him tak- - - - -  Template Tim Peters is working on a hardboard curved template for some needed wood parts for Chicago Rapid Transit 1024.  Photo Never loan your camera to ANYBODY! As I downloaded these pics earlier today, what should appear but a followup shot to the above, with me and Tim solving the problems of the day. The grammar does not sound right but the names go left to right as do the people in the image.  Ribbing Buzz Morisette is laying out patterns for new ribbing as he continues to replace roof and ceiling panels in the private car ELY.  A Box Here is new project for Union Telephone & Telegraph, my own made up name for the enterprise being spearheaded by Frank Carraro. Buzz has made a pile of parts of oak, all of which would fit in one hand. It is for a box that will hold jacks for line switching - IN THE OLD STYLE.  See, It Is a Box Here are all those small parts being glued and assembled into something useful by Buzz.
Sunday, March 10. 2013CTS 4223 Update - March 9, 2013We will start with some views of the new work going on in the Cleveland Transit System 4223 PCC car. In the old reports we explained how there are many layers of parts for the interior and windows which must go in a specific order. The critical delay was to have new window post caps made, after it was determined the old ones could not be salvaged and repaired to look and perform well. They have arrived and the team has wasted no time in installing.  Right Side Lorne Tweed is working on the right side of the car, forward of the center door. It is easy to see the finished look and large improvement. If only it was not so cold and damp in the barn I bet you would see more speed.  Right Side Rear Eric Lorenz was just as busy working on the post caps on the right side, to the rear of the center door.  Left Side Then Eric moved to the left side and began working his way forward. Six in a row installed in this image. At the very front and rear of the car and alongside the center door, these sheet metal caps are 'special' requiring more fitting and fussing. Sunday, March 10. 2013Travels to UK steam railwaysA little off the normal topic. During my trip to the UK I managed to spring a few hours away from the office to visit a couple of preserved steam railways. So attached are a few notes and photographs from these visits. On the Saturday I visited the Severn Valley Railway near Birmingham. This line is about 15 miles long running thru beautiful scenery along the river Severn. The train and its locomotive certainly provided pause for thought. I have often looked with amusement at the Thomas locomotive dwarfed by the train of heavyweights that it is "pulling" out of the yard. However 1501, an 0-6-0 pannier tank of Great Western heritage was here preparing to take its 7 car train over the hilly 15 mile line, which it was well able to do. In retrospect, these locomotives used to take the stock for express trains from Paddington terminus to and from the yards so were regularly moving 450 ton trains so this was no great load.
Last week I visited the Mid Hants Railway at Ropley in Hampshire. I follow the blog of the Wednesday volunteer gang there and was pleased to meet them. They made me very welcome and showed me around the workshop and yard. Most impressive what can be achieved when you have the operation to support some full time staff with volunteer support. Mid week the only locomotive in steam was the visiting T9 4-4-0, which was working a photographic charter.
A range of locomotives were in the yard serviceable. In the foreground are 4-6-0 #850 Lord Nelson and schools class 4-4-0 #925 Cheltenham while in the background is 34007 Wadebridge, a Bulleid light Pacific.
Another good looking locomotive was this Stanier "Black 5" 4-6-0 #45379. Now two years in service, Dave tells me she was rebuilt on site from scrap yard condition.
Another locomotive is in course of rebuild from scrap yard condition while others are undergoing periodic general overhaul. If we think the 15 year boiler requirement is bad, in the UK it is only 10 years between required boiler strip downs !. The difference between US and UK locomotive construction and therefore overhaul technique is very obvious. UK locomotive fireboxes usually fit between the fabricated frames so no major boiler overhaul can be carried out without removing the boiler from the frames. So it is common to have a separate boiler shop as they do at Ropley.
Here a number of boilers are in various stages of overhaul. In the background you can see a boiler rotated thru 180 degrees allowing ready access to the base of the firebox and mud ring. If you can do that, riveting the mud ring is less of a challenge than we face with #1630 !
Attached to the main shop they have a nicely laid out machine room
and they even have a planer. One big difference is that theirs works !!. Hopefully ours will soon.
Many thanks to Dave, Colin and the Wednesday gang for your hospitality, Nigel |
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Comments
Fri, 03-29-2024 21:26
We're slackers and spend more time working on the equipment in the shop than keeping all you readers updated. We'll work on it, but I'm sure updates [...]
Thu, 03-14-2024 08:02
What happened to the Department Blog? It's been over 2 years and I still regularly check for updates, but nothing comes...
Mon, 12-27-2021 16:28
Happy New Year to all the Departments at the Illinois railway Museum! Thanks for all the good work you do in railroad preservation. Ted Miles, [...]
Wed, 10-13-2021 13:33
Was the CB&Q 1309 every transported to IRM?I’ve been reading old issues of Rail&Wire and the car was mentioned several times.
Mon, 06-07-2021 22:40
I was wondering if in the model layout display what scale would you guys be using and would you be displaying model train history as well? Just [...]
Wed, 06-02-2021 17:27
Nice to see 428's cab back on. Looking forward to when it is operable!
Tue, 06-01-2021 16:47
I hope the work will continue on the UP #428. Now that they are the museum's connection to the national railroad network; she would be very [...]
Sat, 04-17-2021 23:07
What is the status of 126, the Milwaukee Buffet car that is in S. Dakota? Any guess on when or if it will get to IRM?
Wed, 04-14-2021 21:09
Perhaps it is time to scrap the remains of the c, B & Q 7128 to make room for the Villa Real. Ted miles, IRM member
Wed, 04-14-2021 15:26
Hi IRM my name is Jason and I was wonder If you guys would be willing to save a CN Dash8-40cm they are currently being retired by CN and being [...]
Fri, 04-09-2021 19:56
Bear in mind that the Nebraska Zephyr is an articulated train set, so cars cannot be inserted at will. Although cars and/or a second engine could be [...]
Wed, 03-31-2021 11:37
I believe Silver Pony is currently on the back burner, and has been put into storage in one of the barns. The car needs a lot of work done to it's [...]