Work Session

January 21, 2023

To join the fun, contact the railroad at: Work-Session @ RedRiverAndGulf.net (no spaces)

Volunteer Railroaders
1. Mike M.
2. Everett L.
3. Jason R.
4. Joseph S.
5. Gavin R.
6. Andrew A.
7. Angela A.
8. Kevin P.
9. Dwayne S.
10. Dylan S.
11. Clint L. Jr
12. David H. Sr.
13. Wimbley V.
14. Daniel L.
15. Adrian L.
16. Ben S.
17. Nick P.
18. Ken H.
19. Ayden S.
20. Kira S.
21. Tucker B.


Accomplishments
1. Large timber inventory (Friday)
2. M4 airline upgraded and horn electrical line repaired
3. Ties installed for third engine house track switch
4. Leaves and pine straw cleared from motorcar shed area and site documentation completed
5. Heisler wheels and frame needle scaled
6. WWII room exhibits organization underway
7. Moved drafting table from lodge kitchen to Archives Room
8. Relocated furniture at lodge for room partition work upcoming
9. Lodge cleaned, slow drain repaired, and bathrooms restocked
10. M-22 exterior and grab iron sanded, scaled, and painted
11. Handcar sanded and painted
12. Flatcar trailer rebuild partially completed
13. New volunteer orientation and tours
14. Measured coupler height and review plans for M-22 coupler raising
15. Areas needing controlled burns flagged and surveyed

Thank you to all of our volunteers that kicked off 2023 in a great way! The recap of volunteer efforts follows, but first, we have a mystery and a solution to share with everyone.


 

The Mystery and “Who Done It”
At the December volunteer session, crews worked on clearing brush and trees behind the engine house and McGiffert #1230. Between McGiffert 1230 and the car knocker shed, behind the machine shop, was even denser and thicker brush. We didn’t get to it in December.

So when we arrived for this session in January, we found the area between the McGiffert and the car knocker shed completely cleared and cut. All the brush was neatly stacked on the backside of the track down the embankment. A night and day difference and a phenomenal job!

Doug solved what was a “mystery” to us. A Youth Conservation Corps team with the Forest Service came very briefly and donated their time cutting this brush. A job well done! We’ll be spraying the cutover area with herbicide at our next session to further these efforts.

 

Friday

With the executive committee meeting in the afternoon, Friday morning found several volunteer efforts ongoing. Mike M. was working with the museum staff getting the Terrell World War II Room in the Commissary back together. Mike led the effort during the museum's winter closure to get a ceiling installed in the room for better climate control and to reduce utility bills. With the ceiling installed, the exhibits were going back up.

After updating volunteer logs and other paperwork at the museum office, Tucker set out to complete a large timber inventory. Measuring timbers on the sawmill pad and checking their condition for possible use as drainage crossing timbers on the railroad was the goal.

In the afternoon, Mike, Everett, Jim, Buck, and Derwood met with Executive Director Doug for the January executive committee meeting.
 

Saturday
With a large group of 21 volunteers on Saturday, not even the rain could slow down the great work ongoing this weekend.

One crew of Mike and the staff continued the work at the World War II room. The second crew of David and Adrian upgraded the air line on the M4 to a stronger line, and repaired the horn electrical line. The horn line would sometimes go off when the electrical line was moved, giving quite a surprise to the M4 operator.

A third crew of Joe, Jason, Wimbley, Daniel, Nick, and Clint headed down to what had been the motorcar shed area on the line going to Sandersville. Joe brought a large backpack leaf blower, and with rakes and shovels, cleared the area of leaves and pine straw. The goal was to document the present state of the area. Everett had earlier in the month put together a history of the various motorcars and inspection cars based on photos in the museum’s collection, accounts from other volunteers, and from historical sources. This is all background research and documentation for a proposal to retrieve the remaining Model T inspection car for a rebuild into an exhibit or an operating car.

A fourth crew of Everett, Dylan, Tucker, Ben, Gavin, Dwayne, and Andrew started work installing a new switch for a third track in the engine house. This was digging spaces for ties to be inserted into the track in a “cross-hatch” manner. The road crossing timbers, many of which had broken down and left bolts sticking up, were removed to make way for the switch. With a large crew, later joined by the team after they were done at the motorcar sheds area, the ties were inserted and partially leveled. The next step will be installing the switch hardware.

With many new volunteers on hand, Angela led several guided tours throughout the day and Everett provided much background knowledge for a new volunteer orientation.

In the morning, Kevin needle scaled the Heisler wheels and frame. This is a time-consuming part and not very glamorous, but Kevin did a fine job on this!

Right about lunchtime, the rain picked up good and heavy. The volunteers headed up for lunch as the rain came down.

After lunch, the crews moved some furniture from part of the kitchen at the lodge. The drafting table was moved over to the Archives with Joe pulling a small trailer to move it. Jason and Joe then finagled the two-piece table into the building. The furniture move is to prepare for a partition installation to add another room at the lodge. Mike and the staff are planning on this work for February.

The rain continued, but the volunteers were quite busy up at the engine house and machine shop all afternoon. Kevin and Dwayne continued the needle scaling on the Heisler. David and Adrian poured a new battery terminal for one of the M-22 batteries. The remainder of the crew, led by Everett, began sanding and scaling the exterior of M-22 to get ready to paint it. With little wind and no dust blowing, it was a good opportunity to paint on the locomotive. With the sanding done, the painting commenced starting with the top of the cab and working down to the hood. We went through all the paint we had on hand, necessitating a supply run that evening. Joe also gave a good lesson for some volunteers on how to apply paint properly. (It turns out Tucker is better at track work and engineering than painting).

Jason and Joe, later joined by Adrian and David, started the re-assembly of the flatcar. Mike and Mike had repaired the axles and the bearings so the assembly was the next step. The parts were reviewed so we could all remember (“jog our memory”) how the car was put together. The pin holder (a large eye bolt), which was located on the underframe, was relocated higher up for easier access. A piece of angle iron was cut, and using the rotary drill press in the machine shop, holes cut for bolts and the pin holder. New bolts were needed for the bearing houses and the frame, so Jason made a run to the hardware store that afternoon.

With the painting and flatcar rebuild at a pause in the evening, David, Adrian, Everett, and Tucker took measurements on coupler height on the M-22, the tender of locomotive 400, and the tender from Meridian locomotive 204. The next goal on the M-22 is to raise the couplers to standard height.

With the work done for the day, the volunteers cleaned up the engine house and called it a day.


Sunday
It was a beautiful day on Sunday morning with the clouds gone and the sun shining. Armed with more paint, Everett led Kira, Ayden, Dwayne, Andrew, Kevin, Dylan, Kevin, Wimbley, and Jason to finish the painting of locomotive M-22. From the handrails to the wheels, to the sides, and the top of the cab, the crew really did a fine number here! Armed with black and yellow paint, sanders, and scalers, the crew then gave the handcar a thorough paint job. Both the M-22 and the handcar are looking great in 2023.

David led a team that continued the reassembly of the flatcar. Later joined by Andrew, Wimbley, and Tucker, the crew put the big components of the car back together. Then came the scavenger hunt to find bolts, nuts, and washers for the wheels to secure back to the hubs. We came up short, but David will bring more bolts and nuts to finish the job at the next session. The bearings were greased up after David made sure each bearing had a grease fitting. With the car assembled, the chain hoist on the a-frame was used to flip the car over and the first roll of the car was done on the engine house floor. The crew gathered for a picture on the occasion. The next steps are to install the remaining bolts on the frame and the wheels, gauge the wheels to the right distance apart, and to replace the decking. After some more lubrication, the car will be ready to return to service.

Tucker went out with forester flagging to mark potential areas for controlled burns around the museum. Some areas of the museum are forested and controlled burns are part of active forest management. He also took time to survey the various drainages that the track crosses over. Going through the woods, he also located another pair of switch points beyond the car knocked shed lead track north of the camping area. With the areas surveyed and flagged, Tucker joined in to help with the flatcar team.

Everett and many of the new volunteers took a tour around down the track toward Sandersville. It was a fine day to be at Longleaf!

To wrap up, Kira cleaned the lodge and mopped the bathroom floors. She, Jason, and Everett restocked the bathrooms. Everett repaired the slow drain in the upstairs bathtub also. The lodge looks better than it has in a while!

Thank you to all our volunteers that kicked off 2023 in a great way!

 

-Tucker "Who Dat" Baker
  RR&G Road Master

Strong, hot coffee for a wet and cold winter morning.

All we needed was a little coal smoke to complete the trifecta.

Saturday morning safety brief

Reviewing the details of The Plan

Joe blows debris off of Ford Model T Inspection Car M33

Our objective is a full operational restoration!

Joe & Glen have their work cut out for 'em.

The guys clear off the old fuel storage tanks

There ain't much left.

M33 in front of the RR&G Engine House

Here's what's left of the Upper MOP switch

Moving ties into position for the new switch

Gavin, Dwayne, Tucker and Andrew

Andrew & Tucker

Removing the old Engine House crossing that will no longer be needed

Dylan removes nails

Daniel & Gavin

This was a lot of hard, dirty work.

While the MOW crew was out working, David & Adrian replaced the hose for M4's air horn.

The old hose only allowed 30 PSI. We can now run 150!

Kevin needle-scales the wheels on the Heisler

DONE!!!... for the day.

That's a motley lookin' crew of hard-workin' fellas

Joe finishes up the air hose replacement project

Railroad Support Crew

They're also the Zombie/Monster Quick Response Team when the need arises.

Noah shows off a homemade candle holder that may be a century old.

It is constructed from 2 saw files and likely built at Long Leaf.

Introducing Lennon, the Commissary cat.

Lennon walked up recently and made herself at home. She accompanies the SFHM staff as they work on projects.

Noah & Lennon bond

Lunch break at The Lodge

Hard to see here, but it was pouring. Fortunately, most of the outside work was completed.

After lunch, while it rained, we retreated to the Engine House and gave M22 a much-needed coat of paint.

Everett gives instructions.

Nick, Ayden, and Kira

Adrian, Angela, and Dylan

Wimbley and Ben sand the roof

David lights the cutting torch

Dwayne takes a turn needle-scaling the Heisler

Kevin continues the dirty, noisy, and necessary work.

Dylan and Joe work on the flatcar with the bent axle.

The axle was previously repaired and the car just needed to be reassembled.

Joe cuts some angle-iron to use for new bolsters.

Tucker & Ayden paint M22's cab

Joe uses the belt-driven drill press to make holes in the new bolsters.

You have to wonder what the guys that used these machines a century ago would think if they could see us using them today.

Jason installed the new bolsters and moved the link-and-pin "coupler" to them.

Tucker takes a turn painting #22

Dinner at Logan's in Alexandria

Good food and great company!

Sunday morning safety brief

David assembles the first axel for the flatcar

More painting on M22

Ayden is our newest volunteer and (like Everett and Jason) he's from the Houston area.

That's a LONG drive.

A MYSTERY!

The Car Shop track between the McGiffert and #106 has been cleared.

Neither the RR&G staff, the SFHM staff, nor the Board of Directors knew who did this or when.

But, after some investigation and a posting non facebook, it was discovered that the Youth Conservation Corps,

along with the Forest Service, did the work. Thank you! It looks fantastic!

Someone put in a LOT of effort clearing this track and it looks great.

RR&G #106

Angela continues painting #22

Kevin lends a hand

Dylan

Noah

She's starting to look pretty good.

Ayden

We had plenty of left over yellow paint, so we added a couple of coats to H1

Jason, Kevin, Dylan, and Ayden

M22 is lookin' sharp!

The interior of the cab is next on our project list

Everett & Dylan finish up H1

Dylan paints the wheels on #22

Angela gets the other side

The Axles are back on the flatcar

Time to mount the wheels

Just about done

Grigby's Gulch Bridge was damaged in a recent flood. It's time for a full rebuild.

Jason adds some finishing touches to H1

DONE!

Andrew & David use the A-frame and pulley to flip the flatcar back over

David & Wimbley

DONE!

Dwayne, Wimbley, Andrew, Ayden, Kevin, David, Angela, and Tucker

DONE!

Before heading home, a few of the volunteers checked on the Caboose frames near Sandersville

Won't be long before they're lifted out and relocated to the Engine House

Log Car frame

Noah takes a final look around