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 Brooklyn Rapid Transit 169. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Brooklyn Rapid Transit 169. Show all posts
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Monday, June 4, 2012
Rainy Day
The downside of this weekend was that it was a complete washout. The upside, a lot of work was accomplished in the shop.
First, Vacuum Impregnation. We knew it worked, but did not know how well it actually worked. We were splicing ends of wires on the Field Coils for the Boston Elevated 5645 and had to cut a sizable length of wire off. When we cut about 4 inches of wire, we noticed that the varnish had worked its way up the wire between each individual strand. Now we know why it took a half gallon of varnish for one set of Field Coils.
Second, Floor Replacement. Also in the Type 5, Scott has been hard at work replacing the floor in the car. One side is completely finished. The seats have been put back in place but not completely bolted down. He has begun to remove the seats from the other side of the car.
Third, Milling. While this was for the Fire Museum, it was still work that was accomplished this weekend. Pat McCann had a piece of metal stock in the lathe and was working on milling a new piece for one of the fire trucks. What the piece was, I am not sure. The only thing that I am certain of is that it was broken. It is amazing what we now have in the shop for abilities.
Fourth, Engine Repair. Now we have migrated over to the Bus Museum. One of the Buses had developed a leak which we thought was due to a blown head gasket. While John Gasper was tearing down the engine, he found out that the cause was only a missing bolt, which happened to be laying in the engine compartment waiting to be installed. Luckily he did not pull the heads yet and was able to replace the bolt, put the engine back together and get he bus running.
It was quite a busy day at the museum for the shop staff. In addition, many small things were accomplished. Two seats for New Orleans car 836 were repaired in the shop by John Pelletier. George Contrada assisted me in removing the rest of the metal straps from the side of Brooklyn Rapid Transit car 169. I was able to get a coat of primer on more wood for the Bangor & Aroostook Caboose. Xian Clere installed new seats in the rear of the newly acquired 1975 American-LaFrance from Ellington.
I wouldn't be telling the whole story if I did not talk about the work that occurred during the week as well. Work on the Dining Car...No, I cannot call it the dining car. I hate that term for it since it never was a dining car in service, even though everyone knows it as such. Work on New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad combine 2765 is progressing. The new sill has been installed on the east side of the car which will stop the rain from entering the car from under the windows. The car still needs to have the sill on the west side replaced and the roof repaired. At that point it should once again be watertight. Then, we will need to replace some of the siding on the car to make it look aesthetically pleasing.
I will close while telling you about something new. Starting this week, I plan to start hosting Thursday evening work sessions. The work session will begin around 5pm and we will work until we decide to call it quits. Quite a few railroad museums do this, because we cannot get enough done on the weekend. Our primary project will be working on the Bangor & Aroostook Caboose. However, if we get enough people, there is plenty else to work on. Any questions, or if you wish to help out, please let me know...tlesniak@ceraweb.org.
First, Vacuum Impregnation. We knew it worked, but did not know how well it actually worked. We were splicing ends of wires on the Field Coils for the Boston Elevated 5645 and had to cut a sizable length of wire off. When we cut about 4 inches of wire, we noticed that the varnish had worked its way up the wire between each individual strand. Now we know why it took a half gallon of varnish for one set of Field Coils.
Second, Floor Replacement. Also in the Type 5, Scott has been hard at work replacing the floor in the car. One side is completely finished. The seats have been put back in place but not completely bolted down. He has begun to remove the seats from the other side of the car.
Third, Milling. While this was for the Fire Museum, it was still work that was accomplished this weekend. Pat McCann had a piece of metal stock in the lathe and was working on milling a new piece for one of the fire trucks. What the piece was, I am not sure. The only thing that I am certain of is that it was broken. It is amazing what we now have in the shop for abilities.
Fourth, Engine Repair. Now we have migrated over to the Bus Museum. One of the Buses had developed a leak which we thought was due to a blown head gasket. While John Gasper was tearing down the engine, he found out that the cause was only a missing bolt, which happened to be laying in the engine compartment waiting to be installed. Luckily he did not pull the heads yet and was able to replace the bolt, put the engine back together and get he bus running.
It was quite a busy day at the museum for the shop staff. In addition, many small things were accomplished. Two seats for New Orleans car 836 were repaired in the shop by John Pelletier. George Contrada assisted me in removing the rest of the metal straps from the side of Brooklyn Rapid Transit car 169. I was able to get a coat of primer on more wood for the Bangor & Aroostook Caboose. Xian Clere installed new seats in the rear of the newly acquired 1975 American-LaFrance from Ellington.
I wouldn't be telling the whole story if I did not talk about the work that occurred during the week as well. Work on the Dining Car...No, I cannot call it the dining car. I hate that term for it since it never was a dining car in service, even though everyone knows it as such. Work on New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad combine 2765 is progressing. The new sill has been installed on the east side of the car which will stop the rain from entering the car from under the windows. The car still needs to have the sill on the west side replaced and the roof repaired. At that point it should once again be watertight. Then, we will need to replace some of the siding on the car to make it look aesthetically pleasing.
I will close while telling you about something new. Starting this week, I plan to start hosting Thursday evening work sessions. The work session will begin around 5pm and we will work until we decide to call it quits. Quite a few railroad museums do this, because we cannot get enough done on the weekend. Our primary project will be working on the Bangor & Aroostook Caboose. However, if we get enough people, there is plenty else to work on. Any questions, or if you wish to help out, please let me know...tlesniak@ceraweb.org.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Parts!
Saturday, the parts that we had received as part of the Trolleyville sale finally arrived. The truck pulled into the museum at around 8pm. Luckily, the Fire Museum was able to provide lights to allow us to see what we were doing during the unloading process. Galen Semprebon, George Contrada, Marilyn Rodriguez, Xian Clere, Aaron Mangan, John Pelletier, and I stuck around the museum until after 11pm in order to get the trailer unloaded. This was a sigh of relief because we have been waiting nearly two years for this trailer and were getting ready to travel to Cleveland to pick the parts up.
The rest of the day was quite eventful as well. Marilyn and I were able to shuffle some cars around in front of the shop. Boston Elevated PCC 3100 is now back on the Northern Barn Lead and the Centerville Albia & Southern Box Motor 101 is now in front of Lusa Shop track 2 allowing Fair Haven & Westville car 355 out of the shop. A few members of operations helped out as well, happy to see 355 able to come out of the shop again.
Pat McCann was once again turning down the wheels for New Orleans car 836. He is nearly complete with that task. John was further back in the shop continuing to work on Brooklyn Rapid Transit car 169.
On the front side of the property, Galen was busy doing more Rails to the Darkside setup. We were able to take care of some housekeeping things around the Snack Bar building and Dining Car. Since the Snack Bar is closed, the sign has been taken down. The broken railings and such on the staircase to the dining car have been removed as well.
The rest of the day was quite eventful as well. Marilyn and I were able to shuffle some cars around in front of the shop. Boston Elevated PCC 3100 is now back on the Northern Barn Lead and the Centerville Albia & Southern Box Motor 101 is now in front of Lusa Shop track 2 allowing Fair Haven & Westville car 355 out of the shop. A few members of operations helped out as well, happy to see 355 able to come out of the shop again.
Pat McCann was once again turning down the wheels for New Orleans car 836. He is nearly complete with that task. John was further back in the shop continuing to work on Brooklyn Rapid Transit car 169.
On the front side of the property, Galen was busy doing more Rails to the Darkside setup. We were able to take care of some housekeeping things around the Snack Bar building and Dining Car. Since the Snack Bar is closed, the sign has been taken down. The broken railings and such on the staircase to the dining car have been removed as well.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Hurricane
With Hurricane Irene slamming Connecticut today, the museum has been closed. Yesterday we took the time to tie down anything that may fly away. The biggest concern is trees that may fall down on buildings or equipment.
Chris Chestnut spent the day turning the wheels on the lathe for New Orleans car 836. They are coming along quite well and we hope to have the car returned to service by the end of September.
In the back of the shop, I began my day pulling the floor up in Brooklyn Rapid Transit car 169. The floor was in such poor shape, most of it pulled up with just my hands. Under one of the seats, I found an interesting switch. It turned out it was actually the heater switch as it said "Consolidated Car Heating Company" on the side of it. Phil Godeck was working on the outside of the car removing paint.
John Pelletier was able to get the air compressor running in Fair Haven & Westville car 355 and the car should be back in service over the next couple of weeks.
During the heavy rain, Galen & Brian Semprebon spent time in the library organizing magazines and removing duplicates. Peg Hoffman now has over 500 books cataloged. The library is coming together.
Later in the day, I got to work some more on the Bangor & Aroostook Caboose. I have just about finished stripping the tar-paper off of the roof. George Contrada is working on getting the wood for the side and roof of the caboose.
Chris Chestnut spent the day turning the wheels on the lathe for New Orleans car 836. They are coming along quite well and we hope to have the car returned to service by the end of September.
In the back of the shop, I began my day pulling the floor up in Brooklyn Rapid Transit car 169. The floor was in such poor shape, most of it pulled up with just my hands. Under one of the seats, I found an interesting switch. It turned out it was actually the heater switch as it said "Consolidated Car Heating Company" on the side of it. Phil Godeck was working on the outside of the car removing paint.
John Pelletier was able to get the air compressor running in Fair Haven & Westville car 355 and the car should be back in service over the next couple of weeks.
During the heavy rain, Galen & Brian Semprebon spent time in the library organizing magazines and removing duplicates. Peg Hoffman now has over 500 books cataloged. The library is coming together.
Later in the day, I got to work some more on the Bangor & Aroostook Caboose. I have just about finished stripping the tar-paper off of the roof. George Contrada is working on getting the wood for the side and roof of the caboose.
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.
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