FRTM S314 UPDATE

Loco 5 is coupled to CTA S-314 on Track 3 North and a brake test is being performed by Jeff Bennett and Mike Gilles.

The train is ready to depart for its first assignment, in decades, at the Fox River Trolley Museum.  Much work has proceeded this move as the Perkins diesel engine that powers the crane had to be rebuilt and the brake system on the car serviced and tested.

Here the hydraulic diesel-powered crane is rotating out to rail stored along the right-of-way near Timepoint 53.

Mike goes in to set the rail dog onto the center point of the first rail to be picked up while Art Lemke stands ready with the control line as Roadmaster Chis Nelson watches.  It became obvious that rail has to be picked up at the balance point so it can be safely controlled by the guide line.

The second rail picked is being set down on the deck.  Jeff is at the controls of the crane.

 A third shorter length of rail is being moved to the deck with Art steadying its swing with the guide line.  A fourth rail was also loaded from this location.

The crew is now going for a fifth and last rail at one of the rail piles in Coleman Yard for the trip back to Castlemuir.

The last rail loaded is the first to be unloaded at Track 0 at Castlemuir.  The Perkins diesel engine does have a red metal shroud but it was deemed a good idea not to apply it on this first shake down run just in case adjustments were needed.  Fortunately, everything went well.

The first rail is down on the ties.  The sub station was turned off so that the overhead would not be alive.  Jeff was always very careful and never got close to the wire during the whole process but safety first!

All five pieces of rail are now down on the ties and Chris will have start bolting them up and spiking them down.  In this construction process the ends of the rail will have to be cut to size and new holes drilled for the joint bars.  The museum’s rail saw and rail drill have both been serviced and are ready to go.

Jeff and Mike cover the diesel engine with plastic pending installation of its shroud.  It was a successful first outing of CTA S-314 as the day’s goal was accomplished safely.  Like all museum rolling stock it will need some tweaks but we now have some experience with the unit and we are confident that it will be a very useful tool in the future.

FRTM 4288 UPDATE

CTA 4288 has been moved into the barn on Track 4 ahead of 4451 and is undergoing evaluation and exploration necessary to bring it to operating condition.

In this report we will concentrate on efforts on the #1 end which is facing south.  In this photo the class light boxes have been removed.

Based on the experience with 4451 it was decided to replace all the end wall panels below the windows rather that to try to patch the original skin on the car.  The original pieces are used as patterns so all attachments end up in the correct location.

Here you can see one panel sitting in place before being fitted.

Temporary bracing is tac welded in place to keep the train door frames squarely in place while the rusted-out bottoms are replaced as in the near frame.  Fortunately, 4288’s car body is in better overall shape but there still are challenges.

All the motorman’s cab appliances are still in place with the outer skin off.

While in somewhat better condition than 4451, now is the time to replace all the air pipes and conduit that pass through the floor of 4288.  If they don’t leak now it will only be time before they do.  This is a common malady that all traction operators had to deal with.

The ceiling panels have been striped and all the new woodwork from the window sills up has been installed.

Here you can look through the empty roof vent openings and see some more detail of interior restoration.  The interior and exterior vents and regulators are on hand for when the time comes to install them.

The south end cab equipment has all been installed with new air pipes and the complete rewiring of the controller down to the junction box under the car.

The hand brake which has been fully rehabilitated is now in place and only needs the wooden flooring installed over the metal sub floor to be operational.

A week later Jeff Bennett was able to lay down a couple of coats of epoxy primer from the ceiling to the window sills.

Before the primer went on every surface has to be cleaned with solvent and the metal ceiling etched.  This gives one some understanding of how extensive the scope of the work being done is to produce a car that will be attractive and serviceable for the museum in years to come.

Maintenance and restoration is still ongoing at the museum. Here are some updates for you!! Thank you Joesph Hazinski for the photos and information.

The wood roof on 4451 has been completed with both end bonnets and all has been covered with water and ice shield.  One the weather improves and restrictions are lifted it will be time to put the canvas on the roof. (no photo)

The north end of 4451 in January before heavy restoration work started on this end.

In March Jeff shimmed up the north train door so that the bottom of the rusted out door posts could be replaced by the metal workers.

A week later if you look closely you can see the new metal welded in to complete the bottom of the door post.  Also notice the junction box hanging in air for the wiring for the classification lights which will be reinstalled on the new metal end wall.

The totally rebuilt north train door in place before the cast threshold was attached to the car which is why there appears to be a gap at the bottom.

The north end in early March with the new metal skin installed.  The class light boxes, windows and window guards need to be installed.

The north motorman’s side door in place.  All four of the side doors have undergone heavy rebuilding and now manually move in and out of their respective pockets.  Now the door engines need to be repaired, installed, tested and control circuits rewired along with replacement of all the sensitive door edges.

The south end of the car with new metal end sheets installed.  Some of us recall when sheet aluminum and Bondo made up the bottom of the ends of the car to cover the rust out.  With all the rebuilding the end and train door frame is as solid as new.

Here the south cab has been re-piped for the brake system and installation of the controller, laying on the floor here, has been completed.  All new modern wire has been installed from the controller terminals to the junction box under the car and where needed, new conduit and hardware was used.  As of the writing the north cab is now also almost complete.

The lapped and rebuilt air brake valves and laser cut rubber gaskets for 304 in the box from Pittsburgh Air Brake.

304’s air gauges, rebuilt and calibrated by Gauge It awaiting installation.

One of the “safety car” foot valves for 304 back from Pittsburgh Air Brake.  All these valves and gauges along with the rebuilt door controls valves have been re-installed and are found to be operating correctly.  There still are few system leaks that need to be tracked down but static operation is much better than before.  North end truck inspection and lubrication is still on tap.

Another improvement done earlier this year has been the installation of a new shop air compressor courtesy of Jeff Bennett which included hard wiring it into the AC electrical service.  Not only has the air been piped up to the rafters but he has installed retractable hose reels hanging from the trusses.  Work is almost complete on repairing the southwest step linkage on 304 so that the steps will stay up in order to clear the air compressor once the car returns to its normal berthing location in the barn as it will be a tight fit.

While the museum was buzzing with Christmas events, the car barn has been packed with people working on 4451. November, December, and January have all proven very productive. The complete south end of the car has been stripped of paint and rotted metal. New metal has been installed, fitted, and finished in many areas. The sliding doors have been completely restored, as well as the end train door. Basically inside and out, the south end will be ready for primer by the end of the day!

On Sunday January 12th after CA&E 458 was moved outside and 304 moved to Track where Jeff Bennett and Mike Gilles jacked up the south truck of 304 for inspection and servicing. 

It was confirmed that the cracks in the concrete floor in the smoking compartment are due to rust heave on top of the bolster and not the failure of the bolster or frame.  This is good news as there is no structural compromise in this critical area of the car so it is safe to operate.  Some bearing lubrication was done along with inspection of the underside components.

     Next both motorman's M-28 brake valves were removed for professional lapping and servicing.  Both door control valves and the two floor pilot valves were also removed with all six units being sent to Pittsburg Air Brake in an effort to reduce air leakage which has plagued 304 since we obtained it.  Both air gauges were also removed for refurbishment and calibration (each one displayed a different pressure) by Gage It Inc.  The cost of this work is reasonable and turnaround time is more than sufficient.

     While there is no picture, Fred Lonnes continued to work on the heat control system of 458 after obtaining replacement coils for some critical relays.  Basically the heat works but its control system needs fine tuning.  All the seats are out of the car so interior work can continue and once Spring weather returns the canvasing and restoration of the roof can start over the ice and water shield which now covers the all new wooden roof (there is a tarp over the roof while it is outside). 

      As all this activity was going on two contractors were expertly cutting out rusted areas, welding in new metal and then grinding the patches smooth to restore the south end of 4451, building upon all the underlying structural work Fred Biederman has done over the last season. 

      With all this work finished Fred, Mike and Jeff dragged out the yellow Line Department extension ladder and replaced one burned out car barn light bulb and then installed a new type of LED fixture in place of another burned out fixture.  The barn is getting brighter and with less power use.  It was a good Sunday with progress made on a number of fronts!

Needle scaling..... OMG Needle scaling !!!!

The entire car is / has been needle scaled to remove the many coats of old paint.

New side panels are installed on one side.

Since this picture, the panels have been fully welded and riveted.

Fred B. got caught by the camera, so he was happy to show all the structural work he has completed below.

As 715 is the museum's work horse, it was decided to do some much needed body work. The entire car needed a paint job. Also three of the four end panels were severely rotted away from the anti-climbers. (bumpers). 

Above you can see Dave, working on removal of the red along the top. He had spent the day working down the side of the car, just on the red.

Below, a full view of one side primed with epoxy primer. In the middle where the herald (logo) goes, there was old body filler that we initially decided to not completely remove. Well the epoxy did not take well to that area. So we sanded down all the way to find out just what the heck was so deep. It turned out there were about seven bullet dents under all that body filler. Most likely from long before we got the car. 

Below, all rotted areas were ground out, and first prepared with a rust encapsulating epoxy. This will stop any future rust. Then the top coat of light body filler to make a nice smooth finished product. 

All the above illustrate the various stages of grinding, sanding, body repairing, paint prepping, and finally epoxy applied. 

Above, the retrievers had about a dozen coats of paint that had to be removed. So deep in spots, that the raised lettering could not be read. 

Below, the various stages it took to remove the old body filler and rot, then rivet in repair panels, and finally prime and seam seal them.

Big shout out to Buzz and Richard at IRM (Illinois Railway Museum) for helping with electronic files of the numerals and the heralds. Thanks, and watch for the decals to be installed soon.

Below, Kathleen wondering if everyone left her....lol

Joe and Mike worked quite hard to repair the south train door. It had fallen apart at the bottom from rot. They removed it, repaired, and epoxy filled the areas needed. 

The project got a little bit bigger than, just a paint job, but with doing these repairs correctly, 715 will serve us well and with a great new shine for years and years to come.

Thanks to so many people involved with this. There are over a dozen active folks helping to see this through, and we are very thankful to have them!

Thanks to everyone who stopped-by our tent at South Elgin’s National Night Out celebration on Tuesday, August 6. Special thanks to Jeff, Joe, Jill, Kathleen, Barb, Damin, Doug, Mike, Sandy, Bernie, Rylee, Abi, Justin, and Community Relations Manager Lorrie Nevens for their efforts representing the museum.

Welcome our newest volunteer Kathleen. What a great addition to our Car Department crew. She is working on removing rust from the frame work around one of the operators windows of the car. She has been working during the week on our CTA Crane car, S314. With today's rain, we were luck enough to have her help inside.

Not quite as glamorous of a shot, you can see Andy fitting new metal into place below.

Never a job that Mike has any problems with! Here you can see the main frame rail of the car has been exposed. Mike first de-scaled all the loose rust with needle scaler. Then Jeff and Mike together systematically torched the rivets from behind and drove them out with an air hammer. In the picture Mike is now applying a rust encapsulating paint (POR-15) to all surfaces for the frame. This will prevent any future rusting. The next step is to fit the new body panels on the car, mark them for drilling, and install them. The first three panels actually got installed today!

Look at these beautiful new window sills ! Custom made and carefully installed.

Here is a good shot of to compare the old rotted out sills to the new custom fit ones.

Here Ryan is using the Plasma Torch to custom cut one of the body panels

While Andy and Jeff install the panel that Ryan just cut, Ryan gets back to the rivet removal on the other side. 

Now all the rivets are finally removed, Mike and Jeff work on installing the new body panels, while Ryan and Andy are making and drilling the next panels to be installed

This is interesting. The car was originally made with pained on imitation wood. The picture of this hinge removed, is a metal panel, not wood. Removing one of the hinges that has never been removed, shows the original paint work. From my understanding, this faux wood painted on design did not last long, before the interiors were painted over. 

It was a great weekend, and many thanks to everyone that brought it together! Great to have you back this year Andy, and Kathleen you rock! Ryan hope to see more of you, as you are a great pair of hands. Jeff and Mike will be chugging away as usual.