April 2010 Work Planning

[James Patten]

Anticipated work for weekend of April 3rd, 2010.

This Saturday is the Easter Express.  We'll be running passenger trains from around 12 to around 4 (I forget the exact hours) and I believe I understood that there'll be some morning trains for photogs.  Loco 10 will do the honors.  Therefore I'd expect that most efforts will be around preparing for that.

We need train crews as well as ambassadors to the crowds.

[James Patten]

Work done on weekend of April 3rd.

Saturday was the Easter Express, with a photo freight/mixed in the morning.  #10 was fired up early on and seemed to perform very well.  Easter Express trains were all full or close to full.  Much of the afternoon was spent showing people around.  We may get some extra volunteers and members from it (hopefully).

[James Patten]

Anticipated work April 10:

* At 9 AM the first of at least two rules reviews will begin.

* Once the rules review ends (hopefully won't take more than a couple of hours), there should be a large number of people to tackle a number of projects: Loco 9, track work, cleanup, etc.

That evening at 5, the Alna VFD will be putting on a Ham and Bean supper.

[James Patten]

Work on weekend of April 10:

On Friday, Jonathan finished putting the Brookville back together and now it runs.

On Saturday:
* We had our first rules review session, with about a dozen or so exactly 16 people there.  Because of the crowd I had it in the car shop extension - but it was pretty cold.  My brother-in-law told me that it actually snowed for a moment on Saturday morning.  After the rules review it was time for lunch.

* Zack lead a group burning up the last remaining tree trash pile.

* Jason headed a group working on calibrating the large New Haven lathe.

* Dana, Joe and I worked on replacing ties on Davis Grade.  We took the pumpcar out, rigged up a way to haul a small 4-wheel flat, and pumped our way out.  The only problem was the small flat tended to lift up the end of the car it was on, which was the power axle.  So some strokes ended up spinning wheels with no work done.  We replaced about a half dozen ties in 2.5 hours.

* Dana continued leading a group spiking down the track on the 3-way stub switch.  Much of the track when the stub was put in was only partially spiked.  Now its all spiked.

[Dave Buczkowski]

James;
   There were over 20 in the rules review session or were you only counting the awake ones . Oh, and one that got detention.
Dave

[James Patten]

Guess I wasn't very awake myself. 

[Mike Fox]

Dave, I guess we will find out May 27th who he didn't count, when they take your keys away. .

[Dwight Winkley]

Monday April 12th. The ROW north of Route 218 was cleared of brush, beyond the Headtide Church.
This completes the 2009 Brush Cutting.

[Dave Buczkowski]

Dwight,
Then it must be time to start the 2010 cutting
Dave

[Dwight Winkley]

July 19, 2010     I can't make it that day. Will be there the 29th.

[James Patten]

Anticipated work for weekend of April 17

With the cast-of-thousands spring work weekend the following weekend, I'm expecting a light volunteer turnout.

* Weather permitting, I'd like to do some jacking and tamping on the mainline just north of the platform.  I doubt the weather will permit it.

* I know Jason will not be around this weekend, so any #9 work is on your own.

* We'll probably be doing what prep work we can for the work weekend.

[James Patten]

Work for weekend of April 17.

Crazy weather day.  Rain, snow, then sunshine right now.  As I suspected, not many people came to volunteer.

In the morning we put the running boards on #51, then late in the morning we ran a train up to AC - picking up changed out ties, dumping ties at the tie dump, dropping off the culvert at AC, then on the way back dropping off some rails at the Davis railpile.

In the afternoon Steve Z, John R, and a guest of JB went over to Westport Island to pick up a donated 85-cfm air compressor.  I was hoping it would be something we could use on Big Joe but I suspect not.

While Steve and John were gone, JB, Ken, and I went upstairs in the car shop to help with wiring.  I hadn't realized it but Ken's been working up there for a whlie running armored cable and conduit to set up lights and outlets.  We finished running wires on the west wall then worked on the east wall.  JB's guest (both work on sailing ships) and JB "walked the planks" to the light bulb shelf to run more armored cable.

[James Patten]

Anticipated work for weekend of April 24.

This is, as probably everyone knows, the Spring Work Weekend.  So work officially starts Friday and ends Sunday, and probably unofficially has already started.

Scheduled projects are:
 * Dana is in charge of replacing the culvert at Alna Center on Friday, and jacking/lining/tamping elsewhere on the mainline on Saturday/Sunday
 * Zack is in charge of putting in insulation and interior walls in Alna Center station
 * Steve Z is in charge of putting in ceiling boarding in the freight shed
 * Stewart is in charge of painting the car shop
 * Sue L is in charge of food for the troops

Additionally,
 * it appears that there will be a special board meeting on Friday morning
 * on Saturday afternoon from 3 - 5 there will be an extra rules review session.

There will probably a number of other little projects floating around: electrical, prepping Big Joe, machine work, and so on.

Looking forward to seeing everyone this weekend.

[James Patten]

Day 0: Thursday
* Stewart was painting the south wall of the shop extension while the sun was still out
* Josh was in working on electrical
* Zack had us bring up a flatcar and load it with stone.

Day 1: Friday
* The culvert replacement was successful. 
* At Alna Center, the insulation and boarding of the walls had been completed, and work had started on the ceiling.
* In the Freight Shed, the boarding of the ceiling was nearly done.
* Many coal bricks were made up, and are drying in the car shop
* Josh was working on more electrical
* Some machine work was going on.

Friday was cloudy, cold, and windy.

[James Patten]

Day 2: Saturday
* Starting about 90 feet north of the Alna Center north switch, Dana headed a crew jacking and tamping northwards.  After the tamper made its passes, the track was lined then reballasted.  The plan when I left the crew early afternoon was to get to the bottom of the grade with the tamper.
* Zack and Dave C were busy in AC station completing the boarding of the interior, then spent time painting.
* Steve Z put in a new culvert between the future storage switch location and Jayne's Way crossing all by himself.
* The crew in the freight shed finished up the ceiling boarding and put in as much quarter round as we could buy (which wasn't much).  Additionally someone was doing work on the interior window frames.
* Josh continued with electrical work
* I had a rules review.
* Sue supervised turning out a great lunch and dinner.
* In the evening the Roberts performed, an Irish musical group.  Good music in the car shop extension.

I don't know many were around but there were cars everywhere.