Large Scale Railroad
Construction Progress 2013
Help Wanted
Work sessions are on Saturday mornings usually around
7:00am.
Come down and help build a railroad!
For more information, or to volunteer, contact Burt Wright (cell #)
444-0661
The Golden Spike Ceremony
was December 1st 2012
[Large Scale
Railroad info...]
Large Scale Railroad 2012 (July - Dec)
Large Scale Railroad 2012 (Jan-June)
Large Scale Railroad 2011
Planned for Saturday (May 18, 2013):
Summer is headed our way, so it's a good thing that the start time got moved up to 7:00 AM. This Saturday, we can continue to complete the rail crossing at the north end of the walk if we wish, although it isn't necessarily that important. The bigger task is going to be addressing a couple of "vertical curve" issues that need to be addressed on the layout. The continuous running of Raymond & Don's trains have helped us to identify these locations so we'll start to get the "LOWS" raised and the "HIGHS" lowered as needed. In addition, we will probably experiment with rail joiners at the curve near the caboose enclosure.
Last weekend was near perfect in many regards. Saturday's work session had awesome weather - warm with breezes. Work continued on extending the wood across the tracks at the front walk north of the main entrance to the Museum. While that was going on, Bob Rubino straightened out the support ties on the turnout near the west corner of the building in preparation of mounting the switch machine.
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The wood work went along quickly as most of the boards placed this day were not in need of any special cutting. We made relatively short work of the project and finished the work with a belt sanding and then application of the 1st coat of linseed oil. It really looks good and those who have worked on this should be proud. |
| As you can see by the pictures, we stopped short of crossing the 2nd track as Roger wasn't there to apply his skill set of "cut & fit". This weekend we can possibly get across the 2nd track (or not).
We needed to begin running trains and both Raymond and Don were on hand with their equipment ready to facilitate the process. |
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Things began slowly and we found that the slow speeds seem to aggravate the problematic locations where derailments were experienced. A fairly significant vertical curve issue with a moderate rail joint interference was quickly identified on the back curve near the caboose enclosure. Interestingly, as speed was increased, the derailment problem pretty much disappeared. Raymond described the condition as hitting the "sweet spot" of speed to allow trouble free operation. |
With successful operation "under the belt", it was decided that we could and should have a train out for the Open House on Sunday. Although we don't want to begin public operation at this point, we do want to get the public's reaction to the big trains. With expected attendance to be low due to Mother's Day, it was an ideal time to start demonstrating the possibilities. The picture above shows Don talking with one of the youngsters who came out for the Open House. No problems whatsoever were experienced during the event.
To our missing members who had to go back east for the summer, did you happen to see the news report on the "Ice Tsunami" in Minnesota? Hugh, what's with that? It's supposed to be spring! We miss you all you guys allot.
See you this Saturday @ 7:00 AM. Track work and train operation is on the agenda again.
Saturday (May 11, 2013):
Last week, we moved up the start time to 7:30 and this week, we're going to do it again. This Saturday, we'll meet at 7:00 AM as there is plenty of daylight at 7:00 AM and we can avoid some of the heat later in the morning. There is even a whisper of a chance that we could get some sprinkles, but I wouldn't hold your breath.
This Saturday, we'll continue our work on the wood decking rail crossing that was begun last week. While that is going on, I want to encourage either Raymond or Don to operate their equipment if possible as we continue to work on the track. If we can get reliable operation, we may even think about having an engine running during the Open House on Sunday. Switch machines also need to get mounted on three of the turnouts.
Last Saturday, work began on installing the wood across the tracks at the end of the brick walkway.
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With the rails curving through the area and the walkway made of straight boards wanting to be parallel with the bricks, the effort will need to proceed slowly to achieve "the look". A lot of hand cutting, template making, and trim-to-fit efforts will ultimately be rewarded with a great looking crossing. |
While the wood work was proceeding, the brick border was being placed by a new volunteer newcomer (Chris) who is the son of a new GPD Member (Harold
Swinscoe).
| Chris, who is a tile setter by trade, made short and skillful work of the 2nd border setting giving Glenn & Burt a break from the agony of getting more
"OJT" (on the job training). It went so fast, that we didn't get pictures of the process. Thank you to Chris for being willing to help us out with this project. Rumor has it that Chris has also offered to come back when we're ready to do the remaining brick work in the station platform area as well as the patio portions north of the track. |
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While the last bricks were getting set, we began backfilling the sides of the walkway eliminating the ditches.
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Bob invented new ways to empty wheelbarrows full of dirt (PS: without getting hurt). It's funny how Jesse is always there to get these little glitches documented.
After the border was laid, and the sides backfilled, grade sloped gently away with the area raked & smoothed, we set silica sand into the brick joints and washed down the surface.. |
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The whole process went well and the results are really great looking. With the Open House this Sunday, we're looking forward to comments from the visitors. |
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With some luck, we might even be able to get a train running for the Open House on Sunday - we'll just have to wait and see.
Looking forward to seeing you Saturday.
Saturday (May 4, 2013):
For you G-Gauge guys thinking toward the future of doing G-Gauge outside, this link to an
Ebay auction may be of interest.
This Saturday, the start time will move up to 7:30 AM. It's that time of year! It won't be long and we'll be starting even earlier. Two projects begun last Saturday will continue this Saturday with the brick border along the walkway at the front of the Museum hopefully getting completed and work will also continue on the board placements across the tracks. Track testing with trains and leveling efforts are also on the agenda.
Last Saturday, we began the installation of the brick border and the process went much slower than anticipated. The area preparation went well enough, but with very little brick laying history amongst the group, it was literally one brick at a time.
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Lesson #1: The mortar mixing was way ahead of the brick placement and the first lesson learned was that the mortar doesn't wait for the brick layers. |
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Lesson #2: Neatness does count as the mortar really stands out when spilled onto the brick surface. |
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Lesson #3: Acid wash does remove some of the mess, but it must be watered down because it can also start dissolving the brick! |
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It was decided a few month ago to not extend brick into the area between the RR tracks, but to use boards as was done prototypically in the old days. Redwood was selected for various reasons including cost & workability. Trying to obtain 1" thick redwood however, is not easy. A 4 x 4, 12' long was obtained and ripped into three 1" thick boards. They will be cut to length and used for the project which was laid out by Hugh & Roger. |
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Cutting & installation will begin next week as templates were made, supports were cut & installed and the area re-ballasted. Given the curved nature of the tracks at the crossing location, the installation is no where as easy as it may appear.
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Raymond McDaniel was nice enough to get out the ole Great Northern and begin the process of track testing so that evaluation of the system may continue. A lot more of this must occur before we begin the public exposure. |
Weather was great as usual, but it was with mixed emotions that one of our winter visitors (Hugh Madsen) will be returning to his home in Minnesota for the summer. Rumor has it that the snow shovel is awaiting his return home as the ground is still frozen. Hurry back Hugh and God speed.
Hope to see you Saturday.
PS: General Membership Meeting tomorrow night with Sub Sandwiches being served beginning at 5:30 and the meeting beginning at 7:00 PM. No open house this weekend.
PPS: Train Meet at the end of the month. We'll be moving tables on Friday morning, May 31st beginning at 8 AM. We should be done about 10 AM. Please put that date on your calendar.
Saturday (April 27, 2013):
This Saturday, we'll again meet to work on a couple of projects. The brick is set out front, but the borders need to be mortared in. This will be slow going and we won't need many people involved as it's one brick at a time for the most part. While that is going on, there is a considerable amount of track leveling and aligning that needs to be done in the back of the building where the passing siding and spur are located. The switch machines still need to be installed as well. We also want to begin running trains again to get the entire track work tested and settled in which will involve more leveling and straightening. There's a lot to do, so please join us.
| Last Saturday, the last of the straight track sections were assembled.
Shortly after, the template table was separated and loaded in Dale's truck for salvaging. That table was awful good to us and certainly served its' purpose, but it was time for it to be gone. The space in the work room will be very welcome by the OH G-Gauge group as they are beginning their construction of track sections. |
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While the track sections were being built, the brick crew headed to the front and began spreading sand into the curbed and previously prepared and compacted area.
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Spreading the sand and leveling it with a short screed board proved to be relatively easy, especially since the walk area is less than 5' wide. |
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| The bricks arrived on cue, just before we got the sand leveled. Thanks to Mark @ Rock Solid Materials for delivering the pallet of concrete pavers to the area immediately next to where we were laying them. The pallet of pavers weighs in at about 3,000 pounds which is more than Glenn's bobcat can move, so this was really helpful. |
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The sand leveled and wetted down a bit, the laying process began - somewhat tentatively at first as we weren't entirely sure of the process. We snapped a string right down the middle and following the alignment. It took about 30 minutes to set the brick and we were done. |
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| The walkway will get it's mortared in border this Saturday and will then be open for walking on. As we sell the engraved brick (light colored to contrast with the red pavers), they will be installed into a space created by removing one of the red pavers.
A fine sand will be used to fill the gaps which are created by small bumps protruding from the sides of the bricks. It's going to look great! |
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Hope to see you all this Saturday. Weather should be great.
Saturday (April 20, 2013):
Work will resume on the front side walk area with initial setting of pavers. With Glenn Ellis' help, we will be bringing in sand, so we'll be ready to begin the process of setting the brick. If you have never done this before, don't feel like the Lone Ranger - it will be a learning process for all of us.
| Last Saturday, with a large group of us missing due to various conflicts, work proceeded on construction of more straight track and from what was observed during Wednesday's BOD meeting, several sections were assembled & neatly stacked on the staging pile.
As usual, Jesse Miller was diligent taking pictures and documenting the progress, so below are some of his photos documenting the work that was performed. |
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Thanks to Mike Tuinstra and the OH G-Gauge group, the building got opened up early so everyone could get in without delay. Working in the same room, they too cranked out additional track sections.
Neat picture of Walt Disney on Lillibelle, his 7-1/2" gauge 4-4-0 American running around the Carolwood Pacific RR at his home. The steamer was a perfect miniature live steam model of the steamers that are still running around Disneyland in Anaheim. |
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| While work inside progressed, Jesse made modifications to the recently re-installed cross buck by moving the rear sign forward making it more readable from the side.
The Windmill has potentially seen it's last day of operation. The 50 mph winds were too much for it and centrifugal forces caused vanes to become undone and so it has been removed. I don't know what will become of the pieces or the structure - anyone have any ideas? |
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Saturday (April 13, 2013):
Although some members will be absent, the work session this Saturday is still scheduled to happen. Due to the kind offering of Mike Tuinstra to open the building in the absence of other key holders, the normal meeting time of 8:00 AM will be in effect. The work scheduled for the day will be construction of straight track sections. How many get built will be an exercise of when the ties run out. When they do, we will have to cut additional ties, probably using the brown treated lumber left in the 40' container as it will not be cost effective to take only a partial pallet of untreated ties up to Eloy for treatment.
Although it won't necessarily matter as the work will be done inside, the weather this Saturday should be another chamber of commerce day.
Last weekend, as usual the group split into a couple of groups doing separate projects. First effort concentrated around "replanting" the RR X'ing sign that was removed during previous brick excavation work. The first project was to figure out a good location. The area adjacent to the RR track crossing the sidewalk entrance to the Museum was selected.
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Then, Dale brought forth his water pic invention and the hole got dug to the appropriate depth. Of course, no project like this should be performed without proper supervision. |
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Luckily, we had qualified supervisors available which proved helpful.
| Rather than do a direct bury as was done with the original placement, the group dug the hole a little bigger than necessary and used concrete to set the sign. This will greatly increase it's stability and longevity.
The finished product really looks good and is a great improvement over the original placement. |
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While the sign placement was going on, another group began building another straight track section on the template table inside. It's been a while since we've done this, but the process came back to everyone pretty quickly. About an hour and the 1st piece was moved outside. Next weekend, another section or two can get built. |
Last, or first, the paint was touched up on the 20' container where the latching hardware was relocated during the previous work session restoring its' great looking appearance. In addition, the two sections of 10" drain pipe were relocated into the Caboose enclosure to remove the temptation for youngsters to do their log rolling exercises. All in all, it was another great day at the Train Museum.
Hope you guys have another great day this Saturday.
Saturday (April 6, 2013):
This Saturday at 8:00 AM, we'll meet at the Museum to continue with the task of getting track alignment and leveling completed. Unfortunately, the brick won't be arriving this week as hoped, but I'm told it will be here early next week. We can also mount the switch machines as the mounting brackets were completed by Raymond McDaniel.
Last Saturday was a busy day with multiple projects being worked on.
Some of the group took on the project to add a back panel for the wooden trackside enclosure. In order to match the weathered appearance of the front exposure, the back was pieced together using old wood donated from Steve Collins. It was a perfect match
and was perfect for this task.
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Working with a "Sow's Ear", Dave & Hugh created "Silk". The look achieved is exactly what we were hoping for. Another task well done. |
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Probably the biggest task of the day involved lowering the 20' container and replacing the blocks that were holding it up with more stable concrete piers. Picking up a 6,000 pound container (excluding contents) using a high lift jack wasn't terribly difficult.
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Dale brought his high lift jack which could lift either end of the container high enough to allow the work to be done. While Dale & Burt were busy raising and setting the container onto the new |
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| lower concrete piers, Glenn, David, and Bob were removing and relocating the door latching mechanism for clearance purposes to the approach track. |
One unplanned issue related to lowering the container is that the large HDPE drainage pipe sections would no longer fit below the container. Although they can be left outside exposed to the sun, they aren't exactly pretty and could be a hazard to any kids who might be walking around the backside of the container. We'll need to find a place for them (out of sight hopefully) until we've decided to get rid of them.
| While container work continued, Hugh, Dave, George, David, and Jesse took on the task of working on track leveling & alignment stabilization on the curve section to the west of the container. This work is critical to the reliability that we need to experience with the trackage as we begin to use the track. |
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Track leveling work is a somewhat tedious project, but is critical for our railroad and, as in previous efforts, the results were favorable. A little more leveling will complete the task on this section and hopefully reduce derailment occurrence. Track leveling needs to continue from this location north along the side of the building - especially the sidings which have never been leveled. |
As we begin edging closer to summer, some of our winter visitors will be heading back east. Dave's last work session until the fall was last Saturday and we'll miss him. Hurry back Dave.
It was another great day at the train museum. Hope to see all of you this Saturday @ 8:00 AM.
PS: Tomorrow night there is a General Membership Meeting.
Saturday (March 30, 2013):
This Saturday, beginning at 8:00 AM, we'll continue working on the track eliminating various imperfections as we discover them. Currently, we have some issues on the curve at the west corner of the property between the containers. While this is going on, we need to also reposition (lower) the 20' container and place it onto the concrete piers that were previously obtain for that purpose. This will make it more accessible for Big Joe plus eliminate the broken hollow CMU units currently being used. As part of that project, we also need to move the door linkage on the right hand door of the container to the center position so that it will not conflict with the approach track when we lower the container.
Last Saturday, work began on taking the noticeable hump out of the back straight where the curb crossing occurs behind the parking. The expansion gaps were opened up as it appears that the hump was born from expansion issues. Ballast was removed, the track lowered to where it was straight, and the section re-balanced and leveled.
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While the crew was slaving away with the track, Jesse was getting a birds eye view of how the work was progressing.
George got a great picture of Jesse taking a great picture of George.
Work progressed and we finally got the section of track corrected including some tie replacements while we were there. As we finished up, Jacob Payne arrived to take a look at the 20' container where the storage racks are to be installed. A plan was discussed and confirming measurements taken. Big Joe was scooted down to the container and the platform raised to verify vertical travel. It is moments like that which cause me to wish I hadn't got out of bed that morning. Big Joe wouldn't reach high enough to access the planned top level of storage within the container. There were two primary reasons for this - one is the conflict caused by installing the lights at the top of the vertical members of Big Joe. These prevented the platform from raising to its' full potential height. This was easily remedied (temporarily) by removing the lights, but then the real culprit was discovered. The rollers that were installed to prevent the excessive tilting of the platform prevent the platform from being raised much more than about 5 feet high before the rollers slide off the top of the verticals. This won't be easily remedied at all. The roller installation adequately solved the problem of the excessive tilting, but we're going to have to come up with another solution or give up on accessing the 3rd tier of the storage in the container with Big Joe.
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This picture shows the platform raised to it's absolute highest position with the rollers still in contact with the uprights. Although it doesn't appear too bad in this photo, the 20' container is somewhat higher than the 40' container shown in the picture. I addition, the maximum vertical won't get to the upper (3rd tier) shelf height planned in either container. "Close, but no cigar" as they say.
We, as a group, have taken on so many challenges on this project, I'm confident that we can overcome this, but it's a setback nonetheless. |
| The solution will probably involve a combination of several ideas including rack design changes, lower the container, re-engineering the platform guide of Big Joe in some fashion, possibly adding spacers between the forklift forks and the platform thus raising the platform slightly. There are probably other possibilities as well. All need to be discussed and a solution found. |
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Looking forward to seeing everyone this Saturday. Weather couldn't be better. Bricks are on the way, but aren't here yet.
Saturday (March 23, 2013):
This Saturday, we'll attempt to get back on track (literally) by meeting at 8:00 AM at the Museum. Weather should be downright awesome.
| There will be a lot of stories shared from the visit to the MLS Spring Meet as a bunch of our members ventured up to the meet as well as the swap meet next door and appeared to have enjoyed the experience. Here are some photos to make those not attending wish that they had.
Nope, that's not the interior of the cab of a real 4-6-6-4 steam locomotive, it's Bruno's Challenger in 1-1/2" scale, 7-1/2" gauge and you can own this behemoth for a mere $189,000.00.
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Check out this link:
discoverlivesteam.com/discoverforsale/forsale/1_todaro/index.htm
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Pretty near everyone who went were given rides on one train or another.
Here, Jeff is getting instructions from the owner of the locomotive that he's sitting behind and Jesse is putting his life in his hands riding with Jeff at the controls. If I overhead the instructions correctly, it was something on the order of take the 1st right and then stop at the Circle K and bring back a case of Miller
Lite. |
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It was a great day, not too hot - just right. We did a lot of train watching and saw some derailments up close - yeah, they have them up there too. We learned what MLS is doing with their track system using continuous steel welded rail on the outside of the curved track while keeping aluminum on the inside.
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Those are all GPD guys riding the train in the lower left photo above. We also got to get some dimensions from storage |
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| racks inside some of the containers which will become helpful soon. |
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You may remember our last work session that was 2-weeks ago (it seems like months ago). Below are photos taken during the work that was going on. The rains let up and we were able to pull the forms from the brick walkway border foundations and begin to backfill with base material. Burt pulled out the plate compactor, went and got some gas, fired it up & shazam ! ! ! Burt turned the reins over to Dale and the compaction went on without a hitch. The base material was dampened by the rain which was just the right amount of wetness and it compacted beautifully.
It's nice to see drainage systems working like they should. I'm told, by Bob, that the initials carved into our freshly poured concrete are actually the year 2013. If I didn't know better, I would think that just above this may be more initials "JM" - hmmmm
With a little time on our hands, some additional drainage work was massaged near the end of the 20' container.
Hope to see you all this Saturday at 8:00 AM
PS: for those insomniac's with capability to view U-Tube videos, this link will no disappoint you. The video is nearly an hour long, but well worth the time.
Union Pacific Historical Society - Steam Trains - Big Boys 1960
www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1txJ6u2b3c
Saturday (March 9, 2013):
This Saturday, weather permitting, we'll continue working at the front of the building on two related projects. The first will be to pull the 2 x 6 forms and stakes that were used for the concrete pour last weekend. We then need to import soil and base materials to bring the level inside the main walkway up to within an inch of the bottom of the brick. The base material will need to be leveled and compacted. This preparation will enable the concrete pavers to be "sand-set" once the pavers are delivered and sand is obtained. The 2nd project (concurrent) is to re-align the rail that was moved during the excavation and re-level the track in the ballast. If raining, all of this may need to be rescheduled. Keep your fingers crossed although I'm sure that receiving rain wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing. At worst, we can all go inside and pick out a substitute project or play with trains.
| A friend of mine recently made a trip to Prescott where he found an amazing railroad trestle just north of the city. I lived in Prescott for 5 years and I don't remember ever seeing this. This trestle, over 400' in length, is located about 1/2 mile east of the municipal golf course, about 1/2 mile north of highway 89A. If you can use Google Earth, type in Antelope Hills Golf Course in the search line. Then pan to the east about 1/2 mile east of the eastern most portion of the Golf Course. The bridge is located at the north end of the Peavine Trail which is under development. Apparently, the trestle is part of the old AT&SF ROW. Perhaps some of you history buffs may have more information about this spindly looking structure. My first take on this was that there is no way a train would cross over this thing, but apparently it was a real RR trestle and trains did pass over it. Below are a couple of pictures taken by him. Obviously, the railroad is no longer using this bridge.
Maybe even more amazing is the fact that it's still standing. It is built across Granite Creek. I'm not sure I'd walk across this thing! |
Last week, the group did the concrete pour into the forms that were placed the previous week. This involved having to mix 25, 80# bags of pre-mix concrete. The forms had been leveled & properly set to the correct elevation during the previous afternoon so all that remained was attaching a piece of bender board to the sides of the ties to prevent concrete migration into the track. We were about to start piecing 4' long pieces of rebar together when Jacob Payne arrived with a load of 20' long pieces of 1/2" rebar. Wow, did that speed things up. The morning did get of to a somewhat ominous beginning as Glenn Ellis, who had the 19 bags of concrete in the back of his truck, accidently locked himself out of the truck with the engine running at his house. Consequently, he was a little late in arriving as he had to wait for the locksmith guy to arrive and break into his truck. We had 6 bags of concrete in the Conex, so the group got started without the rest of the concrete getting to the Museum. At virtually the moment when we finished placing the first 6 bags, Glenn arrived with the other 19.
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Everyone found a job they were comfortable with and the work progressed smoothly.
There's something very satisfying about working with concrete. The pain |
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It was a beautiful day - not too cool, not too warm. No one got hurt, no concrete dumped on the ground, Jesse didn't turn into a concrete dust magnet. It was all good. |
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Finally, strong backs prevailed with the goal of getting the job completed and the area cleaned up before 10 AM when the Tour of the Garden began and visitors to the Museum began to arrive.
At 9:38, we called the project completed and set about the task of cleaning up.
While the finishing touches were being made,
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Jesse went about the task of removing some dead wood from one of the trees at the front of the Museum property. Burt's truck got loaded for a run to the dumpster and we were done. |
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Was that BOB scratched into the concrete finish? You just have to watch these guys all the time ! ! !
Hope to see you this Saturday, even if it's raining we'll have the Museum open.
Saturday (March 2, 2013):
This Saturday will become quite a challenge for our group as we must quickly mix & place concrete into the forms that were staked but not set to elevation during our work session last Saturday. This work will include placing rebar into the forms as well. The challenge presented isn't so much the mixing and placing of the concrete, but rather doing it quickly before large groups of public show up at the Museum at 10 AM for the beginning of the Rails in the Garden Tour that the Museum is participating in. To my knowledge, there are only 11 sites on the tour this year so it's likely that we could be visited by a significant number of people. With the weather report suggesting almost perfect conditions, we'll need to work fast.
Please be ready at 8 AM sharp to begin the work. For those who may be available to come to the Wednesday night work night, we could begin, or perhaps even complete the form leveling so that concrete placement could begin shortly after 8 AM meaning we could easily be done & cleaned up by the time the Garden Railway tour gets to the Museum.
Last Saturday, another great turnout with ideal weather conditions so a lot of work get completed. Raymond got the transfer table ready for "transferring" again and there are reported to be some anxious operators waiting in the wings.
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The front side of the museum got the footings dug and forms staked into place although they still need to get leveled with elevations set. This work is critical to get our brick donation sales ramped up. |
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| The digging still required a little bit of pick work as the
caliche' presented itself again near the surface. Many hands made this work more along relatively quick. |
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As work progressed outside, there was even some time to go inside and tweek the HO a little bit. |
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Glenn brought in a trailer hub and a piece of galvanized steel pipe that he found laying around in a friends yard. It was evaluated to see if it could be used for the pivot on the turntable. It was
definitely heavy duty enough, and probably could have been used to pivot a real turntable. We had previously received a small hub assembly from Wes Slagel but it was felt it might not be heavy duty enough. Something in-between would be perfect. Sounds like the story of goldilocks and the 3 bears. Word is that Glenn has obtained a perfect sized, 5 hole lug, trailer hub that should be "just right".
Burt showed the group the most recent donation that came in from an anonymous source although it did get delivered to the Museum in Jacob Paynes trailer. It was all the channel iron needed to fabricate the turntable including the bar stock to form the ring around the perimeter upon which the outer wheels will ride. Consequently, materials won't hold us up when we're ready to begin that construction project. In addition, we received angle iron that can be used to support the station platform currently being designed.
At the end of the work session, yellow caution tape was strung out to discourage the public from wandering into the excavation at the Open House the following day and we then retired to lunch. It was another great day at the Train Museum.
See you all this Saturday @ 8 AM sharp.
Saturday (February 23, 2013):
While I watched in awe and marveled at the snowfall this morning, I'm told that things will get back to relative normal this Saturday as we should be seeing mid 60's again on Saturday. We'll meet @ 8:00 AM as usual.
At the end of our work session, it will be important to make the front of the Museum safe for visitors by properly cordoning off the area being graded for the brick pathway as there is an Open House scheduled for Sunday. We we can finish the excavation work and perhaps even get the forming done in preparation for the concrete & rebar for the small foundations that will support the border bricks. We might even try taking out the kink that was
accidentally put into the track next to the excavation. We won't be able to prepare the foundations for the Station Platform columns as construction drawings for that project must be first prepared and then sent through the permitting process again with the COT. We have no idea what time element may be involved in that process but hopefully it can be quick do to the small nature of the project.
Last Saturday, Raymond completed work on plumbing the filter system for Big Joe. He also installed a small solar battery charger to keep the battery system charged.
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A small amount of hydraulic oil is all that is needed to get this project back up and running. While this work was going on, the crew began the grading for the new brick walkway out front. |
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What proved to be the toughest part of this effort was moving the concrete table & benches. The rest of the dig was accomplished using the bobcat and it's distinguished operator.
Only one hiccup which the track crew assured could be fixed with little more than a couple of whacks with a sledge hammer.
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We keep making progress with every session. Here's a contest for you - guess where the picture at the lower left was taken. For the answer, you'll need to show up Saturday @ 8 AM. |
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The fundraising committee which included several of the 7-1/2" gauge group, met at 11:00 AM in the meeting room. The purpose was to decide on the brick style and engraving method. Presented were clay and concrete bricks with sandblasted and laser engraving examples. Brick patterns were also discussed. Consensus was reached to use concrete bricks with sandblasted engraving. We are researching using Mark, the owner of the Rock Solid Materials next door to the Museum, as a source for our concrete bricks. We will also be exploring having him do the engraving. The photo above shows the brick style intended with some color options and also shows both sandblasted (left) and laser engraving (right). Basket weave vs. running bond brick patterns were also discussed. Basket weave (depiction provided from Jesse Miller below) would enable us to be able to offer a two-tier brick sale option with 4 x 8 or 8 x 8 sizes. Running bond would require 4" fill in pieces anywhere 8 x 8 bricks were used. .More information will be gathered soon so that forms will be able to be put together and we'll be able to obtain the materials and start installing bricks.
Hope to see everyone this Saturday.
Saturday (February 16, 2013):
Great weather is coming back and we should have a great chance of getting some work done this Saturday at 8:00 AM. We can begin prepping the area up front for the impending brick work as the BOD has approved funding to proceed with that project. This will include scraping enough dirt out of the walkway alignment to accommodate brick & sand depth plus digging shallow footings for the borders. This would enable us to be able to pour concrete the following Saturday into the border footings. I think we have all the pieces needed to complete the re-assembly of Big Joe, so that project should be able to get wrapped up. We also still need to mount 2 switch machines as well. If there is time, we may event get to run a locomotive and continue getting the track system straightened out.
We are also tentatively meeting as a fund raising group with Ivan English to finalize the brick selection. This meeting will be held in the meeting room at the Museum at about 11:00 AM.
Last week, with a great turnout, but shaky weather, we mainly prepared to receive and host the
Hudson Car Club at the Museum. Several of their group traveled from the Phoenix area and beyond to tour our Museum and hold their monthly meeting. While they were enjoying the trains, we were enjoying their cars.
Not many 36 Hudson pickups around and certainly not many in this kind of condition! The proud owner's father bought this pickup new at Rollings Motor Company, the Hudson Dealership, right here in Tucson at 412 to 420 North Sixth Ave (pictured from Sixth Ave.). The proud owner said that he learned how to drive in this truck and he has lovingly restored it to it's better than new condition. The building is still there as evidenced by the picture below.
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Amazing what you can find on the internet - below is a postcard from the dealership dated 1941 advertising a new Hudson Coupe for only $877. Apparently, the dealership changed it's name to Rollings Dawson Motor Co. in or around 1939. |
Here's another advertisement from Rollings Motor Company that was apparently in the Arizona Daily Star in 1932. Check out those prices! Check out the 4-digit phone number. |
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| The 1939 Coupe below, was in remarkable non-restored condition. |
The 56 Hudson below was updated with a late model power plant, but retained it's original beauty. |
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Below are the kind of Hudson's that I remember most. These cars get out on the freeway and are very happy keeping up with traffic - or even passing the traffic.
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Don VanManen, who is a member of that group, was the host for their visit. They had a potluck lunch at the Museum and spent a lot of time inside enjoying the layouts and displays plus some braved the cold outside and actually became the first non-museum member passengers on the 7-1/2" gauge RR. Don gave some of the group rides around the facility using his trusty reliable Fairmont replica as well as his small electric locomotive.
All in all, it was a great morning at the Train Museum and the food was the best part of it. This group really knows how to eat well. The baked turkey by Don was awesome - and every part of the meal was delicious. Where the heck did he learn to cook like that?
Hope to see everyone this Saturday at 8:00 AM.
PS: This Saturday, we will also discuss the possibility for us to attend the Maricopa Live Steamers Spring Meet. This annual meet is a 5-day event beginning on Wednesday, March 13th and lasting until Sunday, March 17th (flyer attached). There has been some stated interest to group car pool & go up to this event - probably on Saturday meaning that the work session would be cancelled or changed to another day. For information regarding the meet, the MLS website is
MaricopaLiveSteamers.com.
[PDF
flyer]
If we decide to go, those attending should register on-line. There is no cost to register for the event.
Concurrent to this event is the AMRS (Adobe Mountain Railroad Society) Swap Meet that only occurs on Saturday, the 16th beginning at 9:00 AM and ending at 2:00 PM (flyer attached). It is held immediately adjacent to the MLS site and is worth attending if you are there. This is why we are considering the Saturday trip as opposed to another day. There is a $5 cost to enter the swap meet.
AdobeMNTdesertRRpark.com
[PDF
flyer]
Saturday (February 9, 2013):
This Saturday could be a little problematic depending upon the weather. Rain is again predicted and we'll be lucky to see 50 degrees. The temperature isn't the major problem, but rain could be. We are still scheduling the work session though, as we are expecting the Hudson Car Club to arrive at the Museum about 11:00 AM for their potluck & tour. Don VanManen, who belongs to the Hudson Club, intends on having one of his engines and some cars at the facility to give some of his Car Club friends a ride on the 7-1/2" gauge RR. Thus, we will need to make an effort outside (weather permitting) to test the trackage and correct any notable imperfections. This will be the main focus for the work session.
We should also have the replacement in-line filter and flexible hose to make Big Joe "whole" again. So if it isn't raining, Raymond will be able to work his magic with the transfer table to get it operating again and hopefully a little more environmentally friendly.
At the BOD meeting last night, the budget proposals from all layout committees were approved. This included the acquisition of materials for construction of the brick pathway from the front of the Museum to the main line track as well as the extension to the East. It also includes acquisition of materials for construction of the station platform. Thus both of these projects have been immediately moved into a "high priority" classification.
The work session last Saturday was a busy one with several projects being performed concurrently. Jim DeGrood was kind enough to get initial survey work prepared for getting some horizontal control taken care of by locating the brick pathway, station platform column footings, and the turntable with stakes & spikes. Elevations were also shot giving us much needed grade information. This effort is extremely timely given the recent BOD action. We so much appreciate Jim's help.
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We welcomed David Inman back and he was a big help to Jim. David, a Civil Engineering major at the
UA, is currently studying surveying and helping Jim with this effort was probably mutually beneficial. |
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After some amount of deliberation, a decision was made to move the turntable center point approximately 2' closer toward the street to get the ring wall out of the drainage wall slope which will help in the forming & construction as no retaining structure will be necessary. While the survey work was going on, Don VaManen brought out his little gas speeder (Fairmont replica) and found some more rough spots in the track.
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The rough spots were marked and the track crew went to work with their remedies. The results of their efforts were favorable as several adjustments including some tie replacements were made and no more derailments occurred. |
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As always, we sure appreciate the photo documentation that is provided to us from Jesse Miller. It's hard to predict just how important the legacy will be that he and others have provided to us by capturing these moments with pictures.
Besides that, it's fun to reflect back. Here's a picture from 1 year ago taken behind the building. We were just starting to install the main line. Turnouts were under construction inside the back porch.
Hope to see you all this Saturday & also hope we don't get rained out.
Saturday (February 2, 2013):
This Saturday, the weather should be awesome - back to normal, maybe even a little warmer than normal. We will meet at 8:00 AM to begin layout of the turntable and the Station Platform. We need to get these locations tied down so that we can establish grades when Jim Degrood can join us. Hopefully, Jim will be able to attend Saturday, but if he can't, we still need to get things staked out. The track laid a couple of weeks ago needs to have the leveling completed. Switch machines need to be installed and track conditions all around the property need to be checked, hopefully by operating some of the equipment on the track.
Last week, with the Museum receiving a long overdue, welcome, & beautiful rain during the work session. We couldn't help but peek outside during the rain to see how well the drainage structures which we have built during the past two years are working.
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The following photo was taken shortly after the rains stopped and virtually no standing water anywhere. |
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Do you remember what the back of the building looked like before we started?
| The Group took advantage of being inside as a group & brainstormed the design of the turntable assembly.
Using photos taken from the MLS facility, we made some design decisions to facilitate construction. Many decisions about details were made and everyone seemed to enjoy the process. Burt will try to have revised construction details with dimensions available this Saturday at the work session. |
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Hope to see you all there.
PS: This Friday is the February General Membership Meeting. Dinner will be served starting at 5:30 for those interested, meeting to begin at 7:00 PM.
Saturday (January 26, 2013):
This Saturday, with weather predictions suggesting rain, that is very much needed in our community, the outdoor activities may be somewhat curtailed. We'll just have to wait and see how that plays out.
If the weather holds back, we may be able to run a train to test track conditions as well as turnout conditions. We also may be able to mount the missing switch machines if they are ready.
If raining, we will use the opportunity to brainstorm the construction of the turntable. Below are a few photos of the tried & proven arrangements used at the MLS track in north Phoenix.
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They have built this turn table twice and it's design is serving them well. The engines that access this turntable can weigh in excess of 2,000 pounds, well more than what our loads will impose.
Notice the |
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| apparent monolithic pour of concrete for the base & ring. The center is dirt although the center pivot is set into
concrete. |
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The locking mechanism is relatively simple and the transition from table to track is a separately fabricated steel piece for consistency & control as can be seen from
this picture. |
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It is unclear what the pivot assembly components are from the pictures above. However, from
this picture, it appears that the center pivot uses an automotive style of hub & spindle arrangement. |
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Although it is a little difficult to see in the two photos below, the pair of flat roller wheels on each end of the table ride center on what appears to be a piece of bar stock that appears to be imbedded into the concrete forming a "step" approximately 1/2" to 3/4" inches high in the concrete. The steel would perhaps prevent the concrete from spawling or breaking from the loading imposed when the turntable gets used.
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Another view of the same assembly from below. Notice all of the debris that collects on top of the concrete on each side of the bar stock. This will be problematic if the roller were to "bump" over small rock on the |
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| left (outside) of the roller but the problem is much
more forgiving on the right (inside) as the concrete surface is lower by approximately 1/2". |
It is clear from the photo above that the roller wheels ride centered on top of that steel bar stock which results in them overhanging the bar stock on the right (inside). There is a lot going on in the two photos above for which I don't have a clear understanding, thus the need for brainstorming.
Last Week, work mainly centered around completing the last siding on the rear of the building. The final track sections were installed, aligned, adjusted, ballasted, and leveled. Many hands made very short work of this effort.
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Portions of the previously fabricated track sections had to be re-gauged due to original construction techniques not maintaining required rail separation. |
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We want to welcome Fred Wilson back to the group after his summer exodus to the the Midwest. And we also want to welcome two new "walk on" members to the group (Roger Phillips from Casa Grande & Mike Hejny from Tucson) who have jumped in and are bringing fresh eyes and ideas plus strong backs to the construction process. Roger has a long history of involvement in 7-1/2" gauge railroading and is the proud owner of an engine with cars. We look forwarded to seeing him ride our rails in the near future. Welcome to both of you.
In addition, Chairlie Rigney continued to provide materials and labor to make the electrical connections inside the building that ultimately will bring power to the 20' container and the caboose in the future. Charlie's efforts, with Dale Cover's help, went on all day long finishing late in the afternoon. Thank you to both of you for that unexpected and greatly appreciated help.
Hope to see you all this Saturday, beginning at 8:00 AM.
PS: don't forget the scheduled open house at the Museum this Sunday beginning at 12:30 to 4:30. We can always use help interacting with the public who comes to the Museum.
| PPS: A recent visitor to the Museum (Alfonso Valenzuela) has a 7-1/2" gauge train that he wants to sell. He also has many other fascinating toy & train related rare items that he likes sharing including a Buddy L train that is in excellent condition. The 7-1/2" gauge train consists of an electric 0-6-0 steam locomotion, tender, and three cars (hopper, flat & caboose). This train appears to be hand built by a hobbyist many years ago. There is a significant amount of wood used in it's construction that may need repair and/or replacement to be operational, but a more |
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| careful evaluation would be needed to confirm this.
A picture is provided above. If you are interested in discussing this
with Mr. Valencia, he can be reached at 304-1367. Or you can contact
Burt Wright or Glenn Ellis for more information and/or photos. |
Saturday (January 19, 2013):
After a very successful train show last Friday & Saturday and an Open House on Sunday last weekend, the 7-1/2" gauge group will meet this Saturday @ 8:00 AM at the Museum to continue working on several projects.
Most notable will be the continued work on the back side of the building laying the 3rd track against the building. Once laid, we can place ballast and begin leveling the siding as well as the passing siding adjacent to it. The lever throw switch machines have been obtained and can also be mounted on those turnouts currently not equipped.
During the last work session, two Saturday's ago, a lot of work was being performed in several locations. The lions share of work was occurring on the back side of the building where a 2nd headwall was set around the north catch basin and base material was brought in and set level to finished grade.
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A section of track was then placed beginning at the existing turnout. |
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| While the track laying was going on, the 40' container was receiving some long overdue tool organizing effort by installing materials that enable the rakes, shovels, and other items to be hung up rather than laying in a pile next to the door. |
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Raymond & Hugh were busy mounting lights on Big Joe in preparation of evening running & operation. |
We received some wonderful pictures from George Knecht, a relatively new Museum member, taken during the Golden Spike Ceremony. A collage was put together and has been printed and will be framed & posted in the Museum commemorating this significant event.
Hope to see you all there on Saturday. The weather is predicted to be "Chamber of Commerce" Tucson rather than Minneapolis. 70 should work.
Saturday (January 5, 2013):
This Saturday @ 8:00 AM will be the 1st work session for the 7-1/2" gauge group in 2013. The fiscal cliff has come and gone (albeit temporarily). Now we can get down to the business of building a railroad again. We have another load (5 tons) of base material again to work with so we should be able to make the roadbed for the 3rd track flat and ready at the rear of the building for placement of the last siding. The work there needs to include building the head wall around the northern roof drain termination. In addition, we can continue making inspections and needed adjustments to the turnouts that we've installed.
Last Saturday, we had a great work session installing new conduits underground to the electrical panel locations. This involved another wonderful donation of equipment from Bingham Equipment Co. who graciously allowed Glenn Ellis to use a Trencher Attachment for his Bobcat.
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That made relatively short work for about 3/4's of the trenching that we needed to do. The other 1/4 was done by the old method using picks, bars and shovels.
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Bottom line is that the task was completed and nothing was damaged and no one was hurt.
Conduit was placed a minimum of 18" deep, photographed and the trench backfilled. I want to personally thank Charlie Rigney for taking the lead on the work occurring during this session to make sure everything was done correctly and everyone stayed busy. |
PS: Don't forget that this Friday (January 4th) will be the 1st General Membership Meeting of the year at the Museum. The meeting begins at 7:00 PM although dinner will begin being served ($5 donation) for those wanting to come early at 5:30. Rumor is that the dinner will be "The Super Chief" which is pulled Pork BBQ with corn and potato salad, veggie tray, cookies and iced tea. Guests are always invited to attend these monthly meetings.
PPS: Please put Friday/'Saturday, January 11th & 12th, on your calendar as this is the weekend for the January Train Meet. If you haven't got a table yet, there is still time. Contact Dave Hoverstock 909-0722 for table information. As usual, we need help with the moving of tables to the Expo Center which will begin at the Museum at 8:00 AM. In the past, we've been able to get the tables moved and set up at the Expo Center by 10 AM. Many hands make very short work of this process and saves the Museum a huge amount of money. Your help is very much appreciated.
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