My apologies to my readers, as I have not posted in quite some time. Unfortunately, work has taken a considerable amount of my free time and posting here was lost in the shuffle. There has been a considerable amount of work accomplished in my absence.
Boston Elevated Railway Type-5 5645 - Galen Semprebon, along with Scott Kritzky and John Pelletier have been working tirelessly on the car in order to get it ready for Rails to the Darkside. The motors are back in its trucks and they have been tested and all appear to be working correctly. Once the motors were tested, the trucks were pushed back under the car and wired up. Inside the car, Kelly has been working on pieces for the heating loop system. We were able to find the proper door motor seals and John has been able to repair the door motors.
Brooklyn Rapid Transit car 169 - Scott Kritzky has taken on the project of the cosmetic restoration of car 169. In the past week, he has made some great headway removing the paint from the exterior clerestory of the car. When the car has been completed, we will be able to move the car out of the shop and put it on display in the Visitor Center.
Boston Elevated Railway PCC 3100 - Chris Perry has been working on car 3100 just outside the shop. Over the years, many of the window posts have deteriorated around the bases. One by one, he has been removing the old window posts and welding in newly fabricated ones. A new front step well has been fabricated as well, but has yet to be installed. In the rear of the car, a new left rear fender support has been fabricated and welded in place as the original support was in pieces. Although Chris only is able to work on the car one week a year, each year he makes considerable progress on the car. In a few years, we should have a display-worthy car.
Illinois Terminal PCC 451 - Kevin Mitchell and the Boy Scouts have just about completed the repainting of car 451. There is some minor detail work to finish but overall the car looks much better than it did when the project commenced.
Visitor Center Train Shed - Thanks to Louis, the walkway along the edge of the building in the Train Shed area is progressing nicely. The framing has been installed and the walkway planks are being cut to fit. This will be an excellent alternative display area for the 2013 season.
Showing posts with label Boston Elevated 3100. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Boston Elevated 3100. Show all posts
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Monday, December 26, 2011
A Year in Review
This year has been quite a busy year with many accomplishments, least important for this blog is my own accomplishments in my personal life. Those are what have been keeping me from having time to post on here. As a new year approaches, I plan to be posting much more often and will try to post at minimum once a week. If I am not posting that often, feel free to let me know; remind me to post.
January: Work began on Springfield Street Railway car 575 (Montreal Tramways car 2056). Paint was scraped from the sides of the car in hopes to repaint it in Springfield, MA colors. Work was also accomplished on Connecticut Company car 65.
February: The northeast was hammered with snow which really slowed down work at the museum. It was difficult to even access the property.
March: The Main Hall was set up for opening day. The fourth motor was repaired and reinstalled in Montreal Tramways car 2600.
April: The front lawn was cleaned up of miscellaneous materials. Track 1 under the Visitor Center Train Shed was built and ties were replaced in Kelly Yard.
May: The museum received approximately 700 relay ties to be used in the Train Shed and on the main line. Work began on the floor and roof of the Bangor & Aroostook Caboose.
June: Work progressed on the Bangor & Aroostook Caboose. Work also began on the interior of the Reading Caboose. Work began on New Orleans car 836 to turn down the wheel set with a thin flange.
July: Work continued on the Reading Caboose and car 836. In addition, Illinois Terminal car 451 had work continued on it as an Eagle Scout Project.
August: Work on many projects slowed due to planning our special events - Rails to the Darkside, Pumpkin Patch, and Winterfest. New Orleans car 836 still had members working on the wheel sets. At the end of the month, Hurricane Irene hit the museum resulting in the museum being closed for a week.
September: The finishing touches were in the process of being completed on car 836. Repairs were made to the infrastructure after Hurricane Irene. Work was accomplished on the cosmetic restoration of Boston Elevated car 3100. Cars were tarped to protect them from the elements.
October: New Orleans car 836 was returned to service, however, Connecticut Company car 1326 was removed from service due to motor issues. Winter Storm Alfred hit the museum at the end of the month resulting in the museum being closed for its typically two best days of Pumpkin Patch and Rails to the Darkside.
November: Repairs were made to the infrastructure once again. The museum was set up for Winterfest.
December: Work was progressing on the Boston Elevated Railway car 5645 with interior woodwork and motor work. Tarps are going on the Dining Car to protect it from the winter snow. Next year, money will be spent to repair the car.
January: Work began on Springfield Street Railway car 575 (Montreal Tramways car 2056). Paint was scraped from the sides of the car in hopes to repaint it in Springfield, MA colors. Work was also accomplished on Connecticut Company car 65.
February: The northeast was hammered with snow which really slowed down work at the museum. It was difficult to even access the property.
March: The Main Hall was set up for opening day. The fourth motor was repaired and reinstalled in Montreal Tramways car 2600.
April: The front lawn was cleaned up of miscellaneous materials. Track 1 under the Visitor Center Train Shed was built and ties were replaced in Kelly Yard.
May: The museum received approximately 700 relay ties to be used in the Train Shed and on the main line. Work began on the floor and roof of the Bangor & Aroostook Caboose.
June: Work progressed on the Bangor & Aroostook Caboose. Work also began on the interior of the Reading Caboose. Work began on New Orleans car 836 to turn down the wheel set with a thin flange.
July: Work continued on the Reading Caboose and car 836. In addition, Illinois Terminal car 451 had work continued on it as an Eagle Scout Project.
August: Work on many projects slowed due to planning our special events - Rails to the Darkside, Pumpkin Patch, and Winterfest. New Orleans car 836 still had members working on the wheel sets. At the end of the month, Hurricane Irene hit the museum resulting in the museum being closed for a week.
September: The finishing touches were in the process of being completed on car 836. Repairs were made to the infrastructure after Hurricane Irene. Work was accomplished on the cosmetic restoration of Boston Elevated car 3100. Cars were tarped to protect them from the elements.
October: New Orleans car 836 was returned to service, however, Connecticut Company car 1326 was removed from service due to motor issues. Winter Storm Alfred hit the museum at the end of the month resulting in the museum being closed for its typically two best days of Pumpkin Patch and Rails to the Darkside.
November: Repairs were made to the infrastructure once again. The museum was set up for Winterfest.
December: Work was progressing on the Boston Elevated Railway car 5645 with interior woodwork and motor work. Tarps are going on the Dining Car to protect it from the winter snow. Next year, money will be spent to repair the car.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Tarping Cars
Over the weekend, Marilyn Rodriguez helped me tarp some of our fleet that sits outside. Normally it is like pulling teeth to get help doing such a mundane task. However, Saturday afternoon, we were able to get tarps over Connecticut Company express motor 2023, Chicago Elevated Railway car 4284, and the end of the Bangor & Aroostook Caboose. The previous weekend, I was able to tarp Chicago North Shore & Milwaukee car 162, and Chris Perry tarped Boston Elevated Railway car 3100.
Speaking of car 3100, Chris Perry has made quite a bit of progress on the car. Most of the car is sitting in a coat of bright orange paint, its original color. This is just a base coat to get some paint on the car to slow down the rusting and by no means the final coat. Nonetheless, the car is progressing along.
And, the caboose is progressing as well. George Contrada took the final measurements and is ordering the wood for the roof and the sides of the car. We were able to find the right style and width wood at just over a dollar a linear foot.
Galen Semprebon has been leading the setup for Rails to the Darkside. The cars within the Visitor Center have been moved into place and decorating has begun. We have also come up with a new layout for Winterfest. I will keep that under wraps so you will have to come to that event in December to find out.
The shop is still busy as ever with John Pelletier working on both New Orleans Public Service car 836 repairing the seats and doing general maintenance on the car and working on cleaning up and putting final touches on Fair Haven & Westville car 355. Pat McCann continues to turn the wheels for car 836.
Speaking of car 3100, Chris Perry has made quite a bit of progress on the car. Most of the car is sitting in a coat of bright orange paint, its original color. This is just a base coat to get some paint on the car to slow down the rusting and by no means the final coat. Nonetheless, the car is progressing along.
And, the caboose is progressing as well. George Contrada took the final measurements and is ordering the wood for the roof and the sides of the car. We were able to find the right style and width wood at just over a dollar a linear foot.
Galen Semprebon has been leading the setup for Rails to the Darkside. The cars within the Visitor Center have been moved into place and decorating has begun. We have also come up with a new layout for Winterfest. I will keep that under wraps so you will have to come to that event in December to find out.
The shop is still busy as ever with John Pelletier working on both New Orleans Public Service car 836 repairing the seats and doing general maintenance on the car and working on cleaning up and putting final touches on Fair Haven & Westville car 355. Pat McCann continues to turn the wheels for car 836.
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Signal Problems Repaired
This morning, Xian Clere, Brian Semprebon, and I replaced the insulated joint across from the section house. This insulated joint has been causing some troublesome ghost signals for some time. Now that this insulated joint has been replaced, operations should be happy.
Behind the Visitor Center, a volunteer has been working on building a wall for Rails to the Darkside. The wall is of very simple construction, using shelving units to hold the wall up. Once it is constructed, maybe we can get someone to give it a coat of paint? Any volunteers?
Using our 1890's McCabe lathe powered by a traction motor with a modern tracing attachment and a template, Chris Chestnut and Pat McCann have been able to turn the wheels for New Orleans Car 836 to eliminate the thin flanges. It is a very interesting process. We have completed the first wheel and are now working on the second. A video of the process can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUdsbSysBVo. I do suggest that you turn your speakers down before watching, as the lathe does make a rather ear piercing noise.
Also in the shop, John Pelletier has been working on remounting the air compressor for Fair Haven and Westville Open Car 355. Now, we just need to re-plumb it and the car will be ready to go back into service.
In the back corner of the shop, Brooklyn Rapid Transit Car 169 has been quietly stored. Nothing has been done to the car, so tools, parts, and other things have been stored inside and up against the car. One of our newer shop volunteers, Phil Godeck has started work on the car. He has documented all of the lettering found on the car, and has removed the paint from one side of the car. The siding on the car is cracked and separating in many places so we will need to fix that, then we can begin to paint the car. Once the exterior is done, the interior will be repaired: floor replaced, seats reinstalled; and hopefully the car will be moved down to the Visitor Center. 5 Mile Beach Electric Railway (Wildwood, NJ) Open Car 36 will then most likely be moved up to the shop.
Centerville Albia & Southern Box Motor 101 is now sitting outside the shop. Chris Chestnut is planning to go through that car and get it completely serviced at the end of this year to be ready for next year. And finally, I have received word from Chris Perry; he will be coming down during the week of Labor Day to work on Boston Elevated Railway PCC Car 3100.
Behind the Visitor Center, a volunteer has been working on building a wall for Rails to the Darkside. The wall is of very simple construction, using shelving units to hold the wall up. Once it is constructed, maybe we can get someone to give it a coat of paint? Any volunteers?
Using our 1890's McCabe lathe powered by a traction motor with a modern tracing attachment and a template, Chris Chestnut and Pat McCann have been able to turn the wheels for New Orleans Car 836 to eliminate the thin flanges. It is a very interesting process. We have completed the first wheel and are now working on the second. A video of the process can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUdsbSysBVo. I do suggest that you turn your speakers down before watching, as the lathe does make a rather ear piercing noise.
Also in the shop, John Pelletier has been working on remounting the air compressor for Fair Haven and Westville Open Car 355. Now, we just need to re-plumb it and the car will be ready to go back into service.
In the back corner of the shop, Brooklyn Rapid Transit Car 169 has been quietly stored. Nothing has been done to the car, so tools, parts, and other things have been stored inside and up against the car. One of our newer shop volunteers, Phil Godeck has started work on the car. He has documented all of the lettering found on the car, and has removed the paint from one side of the car. The siding on the car is cracked and separating in many places so we will need to fix that, then we can begin to paint the car. Once the exterior is done, the interior will be repaired: floor replaced, seats reinstalled; and hopefully the car will be moved down to the Visitor Center. 5 Mile Beach Electric Railway (Wildwood, NJ) Open Car 36 will then most likely be moved up to the shop.
Centerville Albia & Southern Box Motor 101 is now sitting outside the shop. Chris Chestnut is planning to go through that car and get it completely serviced at the end of this year to be ready for next year. And finally, I have received word from Chris Perry; he will be coming down during the week of Labor Day to work on Boston Elevated Railway PCC Car 3100.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Labor Day
For Chris Perry, Labor Day meant a lot of work. Throughout the Labor Day Weekend, Chris was hard at work on the Boston Elevated 3100. The entire upper half of the body has been patched up. The entire body has been sanded down. The roof is now painted silver, and the area above the windows has been painted cream. Some of the body is painted as well. Now that the summer is over, Chris will not be able to come around as much, so work will take a hiatus until next summer.When completed, the car will be cosmetically restored to the orange and cream paint scheme of the Boston Elevated. Once that is completed, the car will be in condition to be displayed and hopefully put in the main hall of the Visitor Center to complete the exhibit of the History and Evolution of the Electric Trolley and its Impact on Society. The exhibit currently discusses the PCC Car, but there is no example of it in the hall.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Insulated Joints
One of the big problems with insulated joints is, eventually they wear out. When the do so, it can create all sorts of problems with the signal system. This occurred on the west approach to Borrup Road, which was causing a problem with the crossing circuit. However, we could not just replace the insulation, because the ties underneath the joint were junk. So, Wednesday night we had a track party (one of the largest we have had in a while), and replaced the ties under the joint and replaced the insulation on the joint. Replacing the insulation on the joint took the longest. 
Because it was hot, there was not much room between the two rails, so we had to get the rail stretcher out and push the two rails apart. Once that was done, we were able to slide the insulation between the rails and put the joint bars (once again, with new insulation) back on the track. It was a learning experience, because most of us have never replaced an insulated joint. We started around 5pm after most of us worked our normal jobs and got finished around 9pm.Meanwhile, up in the shop, Chris Perry was hard at work on Boston Elevated PCC 3100. He has the whole car sanded down and was able to prime and paint the roof. The idea is to get a coat of paint over the car so that it is less prone to rusting. Then, replace the panels on the car that are missing or bad and repaint the car with the proper paint and color.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Busy Saturday
There was a lot of work accomplished today at the museum. When I arrived at the museum after I got out of work at 1, Galen Semprebon and John Pelletier were busy working on 1850. Last week, 1850, the Rio de Janeiro breezer, was removed from service when a clanking noise was heard in the number 1 axle. This was being caused by a bent brake beam which resulted in the brakes applying differently on the left and right wheels. The morning was spent straightening the brake beam. I got to work replacing the trolley rope on the number 1 end. The rope that was on the car was frayed in a couple of places and it needed replacing. While looking at the rope on the number 2 end, it was noticed that the trolley catcher was not retrieving properly. This is usually the result of a broken spring inside the catcher. Because we cannot immediately fix the problem, we borrowed a catcher of the same type from one of the Chicago Elevated cars. One thing that must be remembered is that the trolley catchers on car 1850 are not original to the car. When it operated in Rio, bows were used to collect power for operating the car, not trolley poles.
Just outside the shop, Chris Perry was hard at work scraping and sanding the roof of Boston Elevated PCC 3100. The afternoon was plagued with intermittent rain, which we despiritely need. Chris would alternate between working on the roof when it was sunny to working on smaller parts of the car in the shop when it was raining. From talking to him, he hopes to paint the roof on Monday or Tuesday.
Ted Coppola, Matty Doane, and Pat McCann were busy with the backhoe and front end loader cleaning up around the shop again. They were able to clear a whole spot in front of the shop to place the shop storage pod. The storage pod will be used to store oil and other lubricants that should not be stored in the shop. Also, things that are not used often like jacks will be stored in the pod.
Pat then came in with the bulldozer to grade the area so the pod would sit level. Next weekend, we should be able to move the pod itself. At that point we will be able to begin moving stuff into it, which will give more room around the cars to work.
The motor was pulled out of Speeder 65594 by George Contrada and David Coppola. The motor will need a complete rebuild.
Finally, at the end of the day, Connecticut car 1326 was moved up to the shop to get some woodwork done on it. Because 1326 is used as the Birthday Car, it is hard to get the car up to the shop for any length of time to do work on it. John removed an upper window frame from the car which was rotten and plans to rebuild it at home this week. Next weekend, the two cracked windows in the car will be replaced as well.
Just outside the shop, Chris Perry was hard at work scraping and sanding the roof of Boston Elevated PCC 3100. The afternoon was plagued with intermittent rain, which we despiritely need. Chris would alternate between working on the roof when it was sunny to working on smaller parts of the car in the shop when it was raining. From talking to him, he hopes to paint the roof on Monday or Tuesday.
Ted Coppola, Matty Doane, and Pat McCann were busy with the backhoe and front end loader cleaning up around the shop again. They were able to clear a whole spot in front of the shop to place the shop storage pod. The storage pod will be used to store oil and other lubricants that should not be stored in the shop. Also, things that are not used often like jacks will be stored in the pod.
Pat then came in with the bulldozer to grade the area so the pod would sit level. Next weekend, we should be able to move the pod itself. At that point we will be able to begin moving stuff into it, which will give more room around the cars to work.
The motor was pulled out of Speeder 65594 by George Contrada and David Coppola. The motor will need a complete rebuild.
Finally, at the end of the day, Connecticut car 1326 was moved up to the shop to get some woodwork done on it. Because 1326 is used as the Birthday Car, it is hard to get the car up to the shop for any length of time to do work on it. John removed an upper window frame from the car which was rotten and plans to rebuild it at home this week. Next weekend, the two cracked windows in the car will be replaced as well.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Boston Wartime PCC
I have just received word that Chris Perry will be coming down this weekend to resume work on Boston Elevated Railway car 3100. The car has been moved down into Lusa Car Yard so that the tools in the Lusa Car Shop are easily accessible.
Car 3100 is a President's Conference Committee (PCC) car. It was known as one of the Wartime PCCs as it was built in 1944. Due to the war shortages, the wartime cars were equipped with all steel roofs, non-stainless steel fittings, and air-electric controls. These cars were NOT equipped with roof fans. By 1986, the Wartime fleet was replaced by the LRV and 3100 came to the Connecticut Trolley Museum.
Car 3100 is a President's Conference Committee (PCC) car. It was known as one of the Wartime PCCs as it was built in 1944. Due to the war shortages, the wartime cars were equipped with all steel roofs, non-stainless steel fittings, and air-electric controls. These cars were NOT equipped with roof fans. By 1986, the Wartime fleet was replaced by the LRV and 3100 came to the Connecticut Trolley Museum.
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