RN 108 - Weekly Steam shed Activities & Report - 28th October

THE BARCLAY: Valve setting was done on the Barclay this week. We steamed her and tested her on the Railway line to Grootdraai. This gave us the opportunity to test the new non-return valves that were fitted to her as well. She really is a very gentle locomotive and performed beautifully.
NGG16 No. 153 This NGG 16 no.153 was shunted over the put. Brake blocks were renewed and brakes were adjusted. She was inspected underneath before she was steamed on Thursday. THE NG 15 No. 17 Des is busy with the making of new cylinder front cover lagging plates and will finish them in next week.
THE DOUGLAS COLLIERY LOCOMOTIVE: Henry fitted the one side tank back onto this locomotive and re-constructed the cab that was taken apart to straighten the side plates. The cab will be fitted back onto the Douglas locomotive in next week where after the locomotive will be sandblasted completely. The locomotive will then be spray painted and will complete the picture.

Our 12 ton Cole’s crane is used to lift the heavy cab and side tanks onto the Douglas locomotive. This locomotive will make part of our display locomotives that will be parked at specific areas outside the shed. Below is a photo taken from the rear side of the Douglas locomotive :


WAGON RESTORATION THE BRITANNIA B WAGON: Derrick is almost finished with the wooden floor for the Britannia B wagon. The planks will be secured with angle iron. Once he is finished with the floor, he shall start with the finishing touches to the steel work on this wagon and will spray it with spray filler and spray paint it thereafter. B WAGON No 1699 This B wagon was cut to a flat wagon. Derrick cut the sides down and the sides will be removed in next week. This wagon will have a steel floor and will be used for the more rough and heavy items that are to be loaded onto it. New bearings were fitted and the vacuum cylinder was overhauled. The boxes were packed with new wool and the braking gears will be stripped of in next week. After the braking gears are de-scaled, it will be painted and fitted back.


WAGON MAINTENANCE: All the passenger coaches and Guards vans that will be used on the Cherry Festival trains came in to the shed for brake adjustments this week. Some brake blocks had to be replaced and all these coaches were vacuum brake tested.


THE VAILIMA GRASS TRAIN

We steamed NGG 16 N0. 153 early on Thursday morning. While she was raising steam, the Hunslet shunted empty B wagons to Grootdraai to be loaded with kukuyu grass.

A total of 12 wagons were loaded with at least 15 tons of kukuyu grass into one B wagon giving a total of 180 tons of kukuyu grass .As soon as 153 was ready, we departed to Grootdraai to collect the loaded B wagons. The load was split into two parts of 6 wagons. We shunted 6 empty B wagons in place and took the other 6 B wagons that were already loaded to Hoekfontein Station.

While we were busy with the shunting and loading of grass, Mr Mole cut up the branches of the trees that were damaged in a severe wind storm the previous week.


These branches were loaded into a separate B wagon and the B wagon was shunted down to the shed. The branches will now be cut into small loggers to fit the fireboxes of the little locomotives.

By 14H00 we were finished with the loading of the grass and the branches and we were ready to depart to Vailima where the wagons were stored for the night. The load were really heavy and NGG16 N0. 153 struggled up the Vailima embankment with seven fully loaded wagons on the first trip to Vailima. With a wide open regulator at a 55% cut of, she roared up to Pandora Junction. This was the best part of the day, to hear 153 thundering up the bank. The wagons were shunted into the siding at Vailima and we returned light locomotive back to Hoekfontein.

FRIDAY MORNING We had NG16 no 153 in steam and ready to depart at 06H30 with the second load of 6 B wagons to Vailima. These 6 wagons really were heavier than the previous 7 wagons. When we departed at Hoekfontein, I could feel the load and noticed that 153 struggled to get the train moving out of Hoekfontein. For a moment I thought that there is no way we are going to get this heavy train up the Pandora bank. We first stop to clean the crossing at Pandora Pond, and then sit back to give her a good thrash to enable the train to get over the 1/22 gradient situated just before the Pandora house. Again 153 roars up the bank, the speed slowed down to almost walking pace near the house at Pandora. She again managed to gain up speed and as soon as possible the reverser was adjusted to a 55 % cut of with a full open regulator. Again she thunders her way over to Pandora Junction. What a feeling! The train was awaited with a crowd of casual helpers to assist with the planting of the grass.Mr Mole jumped onto the locomotive and the casuals jumped onto the B wagons. We departed again from Vailima and stopped at several places where grass planting was needed.


Enough is enough, these people are too slow and Mr. Mole showed them exactly how to do it and also showed them the pace that is expected from them. I must admit that Mr. Mole will work 95% of the new generation youth into the ground.

At some places it was needed to offset the ground to ease up the grass planting. Mr. Mole jumped onto a tractor and offset the ground. The grass planting day was blessed by rain later the afternoon and it is just what we needed to for fill the day’s activities. Uncle Wilfred, it was great having you around here on the farm.
OTHER RESTORATIONS

BAGGAGE TROLLEYS Jacob finished the restoration of the third baggage trolley this week, and started with the restoration of the next one.

Petrus started with the restoration of an old gas bottle trolley that they used on the South African Railways. He will finish it early in next week and will start with the restoration of an exquisite old wooden baggage trolley.


THE WORKSHOP
Herewith an update on the signs and boards inside the workshop.






WASTE DISPOSAL
All the water that is used with wash out of locomotives, as well as from the wash bay in front of the shed is being captured in one drain that is coupled to a pipe feeding into a big disposal water tank down at the Wagon Shed. With this not one drop of contaminated water is being wasted into the ground. This makes part of the Sandstone Steam Railway Environmental protection plan. Below are some photos of how it works:


FROM THE PAST

This photo was taken in 1965 on Perdeberg Station. The man in the photo is my late Grandfather who manned this Station for years. It is interesting to note a 19D or is it a 24 class working goods trains on the Kimberley to Bloemfontein line.

PLANNING FOR NEXT WEEK

1.) To do all repair work on 153 for Cherry Festival trains 2.) To clean all coaches to be used on the Cherry Festival trains 3.) To finish cylinder cover plates for Kalahari 4.) To strip B wagon 1699 braking gears, de-scale and paint them. 5.) To finish the Flat wagon 6.) To restore trolleys 7.) To fit cab to Douglas locomotive 8.) To go on with BSA railcar 9.) To go on with Britannia B wagon 10.) To start with the modifications to B wagons for FZ wagons 11.) To go on with Water tank from the Eastern Cape 12.) To clean and pack the Chemical store 13.) To sandblast 19D cab and to spray-paint it 14.) To sandblast Douglas locomotive and to spray paint her. 15.) To re-rail two B wagons to be restored.
GREETINGS, GERT