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Volunteer
Railroaders:
David H
Ellie H
James H
Andrew
Angela
Carson
Clint
Chris
Glen
Everett
Gavin
Joe Sr.
Joe Jr.
Karlie
Logan H
We went into this weekend with 3 or 4 larger tasks to do, and many
smaller tasks planned. At the end of the weekend, we had completed
virtually all of the major tasks that we planned to do and a couple more
that had not been planned.
Accomplishments
1. Changed the fluids in the M-22 and lubed the locomotive
2. Moved the beams from inside the car knocker shed as they were pulling
down
the side of the shed. (which caused the problems years ago as well)
3. Picked up the blocking from the switchback track and stored in the
Engine House for re-use.
4. Installed the hold down strips to hold down the floor of the
inspection pit
5. Cleaned out the drain for the inspection pit.
6. Continued work on the vertical boring mill in the Machine Shop
We added three tasks, which were: running an air line to the small steam
engine in the shop, some branch clearing along the loop and to level the
track by the commissary where we load passengers. We were planning to do
these on Sunday when we finished up the other chores, while another crew
led by Chris and Carson cleaned out the drains.
Saturday
Saturday cranked up early. Carson, Wimbley and Gavin along with the
younger volunteers moved the M-2 out of the way so that they could take
the M-8 and trailer down on the switchback to move the blocks back into
the Engine House.
The M-22 was fired up and moved on to the pit, where David H, Joe and
Gavin attended to changing the oil, cleaning the oil and fuel filters,
and installing the new batteries. The shop vac was brought up and Allie
cleaned the inside of the cab as best as possible. The broken window and
window strip was removed from the back windows and by noon
that job was done.
Meanwhile to crew stacked and re-stacked all of the blocking in the
Engine House ready for re-use in the next track project.
Carson, Wimbley, Clint and Gavin then installed the hold down strips to
keep the bottom of the pit in place.
While all of this was going on Everett and Andrew worked on tightening
up some loose rail joints and installing chains on all of the switch
locks.
Angela handled the many tourists that showed up on Saturday as the
museum was short handed with only Doug and Robin and Mike. We had a
record day for both attendance and $$$ so her help was most welcome. She
discovered the big golf cart, and we may now have to find a way to pry
her out of it on Saturdays!
After lunch everyone turned to the extremely heavy timbers (which had
been used to build the log cars, and stored on the porch of the car
knockers shed were taken down and temporarily stored until the few
remaining good ones can be put under cover). The timbers each weighed
more than 800 pounds so it was a major job.
At the same time, Everett made a survey of the joint bar problem on the
hill coming up from the commissary. We need to find enough angle joint
bars to replace the 90# joint bars on the hill, and re-drill the rail
accordingly, so we needed to survey our requirements for that project.
Glen started work on the forge blower removing the old bearing sleeves
and cleaning them only to realize much more work would be needed as they
were in very worn condition. Mike Miller and Glen are working on this
presently to find a solution.
Work on the 42" vertical mill progressed with the hold down clamps
finally loosened and removed for inspection and cleaning, more oiling
and a test or two. The left head was finally freed up enough to move 3
inches horizontally with the assistance of a 10 foot cheater bar on the
wrench!! More work is needed on this.
Sunday
Sunday was to be the day that we cleaned out the drain to the inspection
pit, hooked up the little steam engine in the shop and leveled the
tracks by the commissary. Mother nature though decided not to cooperate.
It rained during the night and off and on all during the day until
mid-afternoon. Thus, working on the tracks was not really an option,
although we did do a survey of the work required by the Commissary, and
decided that is was pretty much an all day project considering the
number of ties to be replaced and the leveling involved.
As Chris, Carson, Joe and Wimbley started in the the drains, Andrew,
Gavin and Everett along with Karlie, went down behind the Planer Mill
and cleared the overhanging tree limbs that had been banging into the
M-4 on its runs, reducing the excitement for both the operating crew and
the passengers who risked getting smacked by the branches if they sat
too close to the windows on the fireman’s side of the car.
So, cleaning the drain became a major focus of the day. Chris hooked up
his drain snake and went to work on the large drain that runs under the
railroad tracks, as we believed it to be the drain for the inspection
pit. First, he and the crew attacked it from inside the inspection pit,
and made little or no progress, but did wash a lot of mud back into the
pit, but made no real headway. So, outside they went, dodging the rain.
Still no progress. It was then decided to use a 20’ piece of 1.5” pipe
with the drain snake run inside as a drill, and we began to make
headway. However, every time we pulled out the snake it seemed that the
pipe filled right back up again. It was not until we had spent almost 3
hours that we found out the answer. The pipe that we had been cleaning
was a culvert under the railroad, and ended just outside the Engine
House as we found out when the snake came to the surface!
With that discovery, the crew went back, determined where the drain
probably exited the Engine House, and after a bit of digging, located
the drain, covered up with about 6 inches of dirt and cinders, ending
about 4 feet outside the Engine House. Nothing was going to drain out of
that drain without a great deal of cleaning, but trying to clean a drain
that ends in a hole below ground is not necessarily going to go well.
So, while Chris and his crew worked the drain snake and the pipe,
working toward the pit from outside the Engine House, Gavin grabbed a
pick and shovel, and dug a 30 foot long ditch from the end of the pipe,
across the road, and under two tracks and then connected it to the
drainage from the previous pipe. The snake crew actually broke through
before Gavin finished the ditch, but as soon as he finished, the pit
began to drain.
More work and cleanup is necessary for the next session, but now the pit
will actually drain for the first time in more than 60 years.
Glen, with the assistance of Angela and Everett’s cutoff wheel, cut into
the shop's old airline to install a TEE which turned out to be quite a
chore. A new section of line was run to the recently relocated steam
engine in the Machine Shop and tested. Glen adds that no materials
needed to be procured as we used existing stock on hand. The steam
engine chugged away for the first time in a quite a while as the
recently restored whistle signaled its return to glory!
A few tweaks are in order and will be addressed during the next session!
Finally, during the rain breaks, Everett, Carson and Wimbley sorted
joint bars so that for the first time we have a sort of idea of the
numbers and types of bars salvaged from all over the site for many years
and we have a plan going forward to attack the hill joint project.
All hands went home dirty, tired and happy from both days of work. We
especially enjoyed having a lot of younger people there and when Noah
can join us, we will have quite a crew or pre-teen aged helpers!
-Everett Lueck
RR&G General Manager
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