April 2019 Work Reports

[Steve Smith]

Bill, about the bowl-shaped objects apparently coupled back-to-back to make the flanged wheels: I'm not familiar with them. Are they manufactured for that specific purpose? I'm guessing they were not designed for that but you saw their potential.

While on, gotta mention a trick our Mac just tried to pull on me: Lousy typist that I am, I mistyped "familiar," and that @#$%^&* infuriating correction "feature" in our Mac decided that I had meant "foamier" and plugged that into the sentence. Aaaargh how I hate that thing!! Tim Cook, quit torturing me!!! Yeah, yeah, I know. I should have taken that touch typing class back in high school.

[John McNamara]

I am pleased (?) to report that typographical errors long predate computers. At one job, I was producing a report on centralized dictation systems. When it came back for my review, it contained the following, "At Mass General, they have 18-minute rapes." It should have been tapes. At another job, a signal lead on a schematic was labeled "Branch Teat." It should have been "Branch Test." This was hand lettered, so no computer was involved, just a wandering mind. At Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), a secretary came by weekly to deliver copies of the "DEC Engineering Newsletter" to our cubicles. Minute by minute, laughter emitted from another cubicle as another engineer read of the latest effort at company standards for storage media, "DEC STD 054 The DEC Floppy Dick Standard." We concluded that the company's standardization efforts had gone much too far.
-John M

[Bill Baskerville]

Bill, about the bowl-shaped objects apparently coupled back-to-back to make the flanged wheels: I'm not familiar with them. Are they manufactured for that specific purpose? I'm guessing they were not designed for that but you saw their potential. ...

...Yeah, yeah, I know. I should have taken that touch typing class back in high school...

Steve, What I did was to buy six tubed wheel barrow wheels at the local tractor supply company, I took four of them apart and discarded the new tubes and tires.  I added two washers on each bolt between the two wheel hub halves to give the proper flange spacing for 60 pound rail.  The other two are the barrow wheels in the center of the two chutes.  I am bringing the discarded tubes and wheels with me in case my idea doesn't work.  That way someone can remove the wheels and washers and remount the tires and tubes.  They are similar to what is under the four wheel green cart that is used around the shop. 

Last summer one of the green cart wheels was flat and one can only buy the whole wheel.  Now we have four spares.

In the event my idea fails, perhaps ROWMOW manufacturing can use the wheels to make a heavy duty shop cart.  You know, duelies on the back like the Yeti.

On the typing issue, I have no excuse, I did take touch typing in high school.  All it did was allow me to make more mistakes per minute than I could before.  It did nothing for my inability to spell.

B²

[Vincent "Lightning" LeRow]

All it did was allow me to make more mistakes per minute than I could before.

 

[Fred Morse]

Dwight and I split quite a lot of wood today, hope we can get it stacked tomorrow on the firewood pallets. It has to be moved before we can split much more. Someday when were not cutting any more trees on our property we'll probably be buying wood, but that will be a while.

[Bill Baskerville]

...Someday when were not cutting any more trees on our property we'll probably be buying wood, but that will be a while.

Fred, As long as you are around, I don't think any of us can imagine a time when you can't find a tree somewhere on the property that needs to be cut.

[Steve Smith]

Thanks for the explanation re the wheels, Bill, and for the laugh at the end! 

[John Kokas]

Not worried about not having trees to cut Fred,  I think we just need to look "south" a wee bit and there are plenty to take care of.   

[James Patten]

Work done on Saturday April 13.

All work was done at Sheepscot, let's see if I can get it all!
* Flatcar 34: The second truck was rolled under and lots of work done to hook up the brakes and get cutting levers built.  The flatcar was manually rolled out into the sun and back.
* Car shop: Jay was busy putting vapor barrier up on the east wall.
* Loco wood: Dwight ran the splitter all day up NW of the parking lot, and Fred ferried the split wood over to the wood shed/platform.  Many many loads, but there's still some wood left to be cut up then split.
* Parking area clean up: Mike was moving things around with the forklift but was getting mired down in the mud, which got worse and deeper as the day went on.
* Switching: Jason wanted some cars switched around, which Ed and I took care of.  Linda worked to clean Coach 3 and 11.  At the end one train consist was arranged for next week's Easter trains.
* Board meeting.

[Bill Reidy]

* Flatcar 34: The second truck was rolled under and lots of work done to hook up the brakes and get cutting levers built.  The flatcar was manually rolled out into the sun and back.

Photos of flat car #34's roll out yesterday can be found in the B&SR #34 flat car - Official Work Thread.

[Dwight Winkley]

Al also helped with the wood splinting. Plus other members I could not see helped to unload and stack the wood behind the shop.

[Steve Smith]

Bill Baskerville, thanks for the explanation of those flanged wheels. Cool!

[Fred Morse]

Today, the rest of the split wood was move to the pallets and a few of the logs were cut to length. Plan on cutting more logs tomorrow. Looks like rain Sat. Hope not!!

[Paul Uhland]

Any more insulation/sheathing progress?
Looks close to being finished.

[Mike Fox]

The report we got Saturday night was they were finished for now. They had run out of wall insulation, and did not want to use the ceiling/roof insulation for the wall. The current plan is to finish it in the fall. Subject to change of course.