ROTOWARO STATION: The amount of work done on this continues to impress our visitors and, at times, ourselves.
Wingnut continues to battle with the windows and is well on the way to completing them. We are revising our security arrangements for the kitchen area where our 'goodies' will eventually be stored between open days. One of our visiting security 'experts' has recommended that we fit grills over the windows and counter area.
We have at times had up to 10 members working on the station at once and a regular 2-weekly visit from the PD Gang. A tremendous amount of scrapping down of old paint has been done and a wide variety of colours revealed. The interior colour scheme adopted is basically light yellow walls up to a beading, then white above this and the ceilings.
A special meeting was held after the June open day to decide on the colour scheme and various other things that need doing around the station. It is not our intention to change the outcome of this meeting.
Our plumber has put up the downpipe from the front section of the roof and into the water tank, so we now collect all water off the roof. We also don't have to watch that we don't stop with carriage steps or a loco-cab beside the spouting dropper. He has also installed a pressure water-pump, done the plumbing into the kitchen and connected the outlet of the pump into the water line to our tanks on the hill. This now means we can pump water from the station tank into the concrete or fibreglass tanks on the hill.
The electrical wiring to the pump still needs doing. We have also installed a new hot water 'zip' in the kitchen. As the WestpacTrust's advert says - "Its all coming together nicely"!!!!
STOP PRESS: W E L ENERGY TRUST have just granted us $2000.00 towards the purchase and installation of our water heating and pumping system. Sincere thanks to be conveyed to them regarding this generous funding - also noted is the generous discount from Jelaca Plumbing on the essential equipment installed. Committee gratitude on both counts!
RUTH MANN: It is will much regret that I have to advise members that Ruth passed away on 8/6/98 after an illness of approximately six months. She was an extremely tolerant lady and was never heard to complain. She had to be pretty tolerant as all club meetings in the very early days were held at Bob & Ruth's home in Epsom. These meetings could be quite long and noisy as the amount of brown refreshments increased! She was always behind Club activities which meant Bob was able to make the visits to various sawmills when we were acquiring our locus and the history of Ellis & Bernand from their closed or closing offices. These visits meant that she had to look after the children often for a week or more. In those days a lot of our equipment was stored at MOTAT but a lot of smaller items accumulated at Owens Road - first under the house and then beside the house - and still the collection continued.
She was a frequent visitor to the Junction a few years ago - probably to keep an eye on us! In the last few years, although she did not visit so often, Bob was still able to continue work at the Junction - often amounting to two weeks a month.
To Bob, David, Carol Chris and families - our deepest sympathy. The club was well represented at Her funeral.
TREASURER: The club still urgently needs a Treasurer. This is a very important position in the club and needs someone who is able to spend a regular amount of time on our finances rather than leave it and try to do it all at once.
Don't be shy putting your - or anyone else's - name forward.
Our accounts are done on our computer so some computer skills would be handy.
LUNCHES ON OPEN DAYS: The club provides lunches for those members who help on open days. This lunch is usually of couple of Paula's sausages and bread and cups of tea or coffee. We have recently started having a few pies for sale - $1.50 each to members as well.
The Club is NOT providing non-members that turn up on open days with free feeds. We cannot buy new sleepers etc. if our income is going out on freebies to non-members.
It is surprising what some non-member visitors expect!! Please don't embarrass our working members by 'assuming' food/drinks will be provided.
CHARTER TRIPS: These have been very slow to date, but we have two booked which will have been run before you receive this newsletter. If you know of any club, social group, kindy or school that could be interested - contact us. The revenue is really needed.
SPARK ARRESTORS: The one on the Peckett has really impressed all who have fired or driven the loco. We can now make steam on the 1-50 grade with two carriages. Progress on the one for the "F" seems to have stopped - this is the most urgent job on our loco at present.
OPEN DAYS: May Open Day was another very hot and fine day. Our patronage suffered. The day was pretty slow passenger wise.
Queen's Birthday Sunday:- this was a very good day and all members ere flat out -especially the 'ladies' (who had to drag in the services of our on-site St John officer to make cups-of-teas, etc.). We had to use two carriages during the middle of the day.
June Open Day:- this was a pretty slow day. The only thing fast this day was the rain! It started, stopped, started again and then just forgot to stop for Monday as well.
To all members who help on these open days, many thanks! Without you, we cannot run our trains or sell our 'goodies'.
R E S TRIP: This was to have taken place on 23/5 but they cancelled it because of a lack of passengers. A pity really, as the loco to haul their train was 'J 1234' on lease from Steam Inc. of Wellington. The train was scheduled to come as far as the new screens at Rotowaro and would have been the first time a J had been on the branch ever!
We decided to turn the day into an extra working-bee so our members got stuck into the station and a host of other small jobs.
Afterwards, the ladies prepared a lovely roast dinner for all, followed by desert. This dinner was well received - and eaten - by those present.
The evening was concluded with some videos of the early days of the club and one taken by Sid on the shifting of the Rotowaro Station.
As may be expected, the video hook-up to the TV took a lot of sorting out until Mike pulled the 'right wires'.
An excellent day's work followed by an enjoyable evening.
Jan has these club videos for loan if you want to see them.
WORKSHOP: Work has started on this again. Richard has been putting a concrete drain between the workshop and the loco shed. The boxing work takes longer than mixing and pouring the concrete. We have also purchased enough builders mix to make the rest of the concrete floor.
WORKING BEES: The amount of work to do never seems to decrease and as many hands as available are needed. The next ones are:
25 - 26 July
22 - 23 August
26 - 27 September
CARRIAGES: We are required to have a minimum of air leaks in the brake systems of our working carriages. One of the problem areas has been the valves at the end of each carriage and the smaller valve underneath that you can shut off the air supply to a particular carriage. Despite much lapping of the old tapered valves, some continue to leak. After much head scratching and some enquiries, we are replacing these old leaking valves with a commercial valve of ball-type construction. No 3 car has been fitted with an inch-valve and 1/2" valve as a trial - so far they seem to be good.
CAR VAN: Some work has been done on this. Bruce has put some battens in the platform roof at each end so that he can put plywood up in place of the rotten tongue and groove timber. Brian has spent some time on the interior woodwork.
Sid has made up and fitted a new section of the air brake pipework including fitting a new ball valve. Next step is to check the pipework for further leaks.
STOP PRESS: Sid and myself have fitted new valves on the car van, hopefully Sid will be pleased not to have to revisit this maintenance in a hurry.
P D GANG: We have been getting visits from these gangs a lot lately - apart from the gang every two weeks to work on the station, we often get another gang on a Wednesday and often on a Saturday.
The main job of this second gang is replacing sleepers, cleaning drains and other odd jobs that crop up.
This gang has put in about 60 sleepers in or near 'coal cutting'. There are about 15 more to do and this area should be good for a few years.
Part of the reason for these extra visits is that we now have a home-grown supervisor and this really makes things easier. Congratulations Colin on this position.
SHANTY CATS: If you haven't seen her or her kitten lately, they are both growing and getting tamer. We could still do with more cat food from our visiting members. Jan goes down - usually twice a day - to feed these two. The mice population has declined somewhat. Looks like they take something to bed in case they get hungry - as Jan has found three dead mice in their bed recently!
ODD JOBS: Recently Mike and Andrew have put the last of the side-rods on the yellow Ds we got from Coalcorp. They are now putting the axle box oil-boxes on.
DIGGER: Alan - assisted at times by Colin - has nearly completed the site of our shop. This will be on the other side of the toilet block to the station: Levels were taken so that the ground can be got reasonably flat.
Alan has also cleaned out a big drain along one side of our bottom terminus.
Further progress on these jobs or other earthwork's has been put on hold by the wet weather.
June has proved to be an extremely wet month so far - perhaps its trying to make up for the dry summer. All our water tanks seem to be permanently full. Our drains seem to be coping pretty well.
PHOTO COMPETITION: So far we have received only a few entries - although several members have spent days taking photos. Please send your photograph entries as soon as possible.
OPEN DAYS: The next ones are:
July 5th
August 2nd
September 6th (Father's Day)
We need you to come and help earn the money to keep the club buoyant: many projects are on 'hold' until the ready IS READY!- PLEASE SEND BACK THE ATTACHED WORK NOTICE!!!
NATIONAL FEDERATION CONFERENCE: This was held in Christchurch over Queen's Birthday Weekend, in conjunction with a conference of NZ & Australian Tramway Museums. This was attended by myself and Jan on behalf of the club. Two presentations were of particular interest:-
One was by the new Manager of Land Transport Rail Safety section. A lot of his talk went over old ground but he made it plain that he expected rail safety to be a 'continually shifting goalpost!' In other words, just when you think you're on top of it all, something will change! He was asked about feedback as a result of accidents or incidents reported, so that other clubs could perhaps learn by others misfortunes. A newsletter type publication was promised. Also promised was the long promised guideline to working under the auditor regime. This was promised sometime after the conference last year. Perhaps this year's promises will come true!!
The other presentation was by Paul Mahoney on the way to apply for grants. He gave a 7-point plan to follow and it would seem that we are very much on-track with the way we go about most of our grant applications. The better thought out and presented your application - the better your chances - particularly if you have kept who you applying for the grant from informed of progress with previous grants.
The conference was held right in the centre of Christchurch and as the hotels were close by - most transport to and from the conference to the hotels was by the restored trams running around central Christchurch.
AUDITORS: Jonesy and Rodney visited us during our May open day for their annual inspection of our operating paperwork and any site inspections they requested. They seemed reasonably happy with their visit.
Rodney has sent in his civil report but we still have to receive Jonesy's one.
SAFETY SCHEME: The changes required by our special audit in January are largely complete. When they are all approved, a complete re-write of the operating section will be issued to all holders. Later it is proposed to hold a day when these changes will be explained to all. Some of the changes have already been implemented and the amendments given to those affected.
One of the recommendations and something long-talked about by us as desirable, was to measure the length of our railway and mark it out at regular intervals. Andrew, Colin and Wingnut did most of this a few weeks ago and Andrew has completed it since. The line will be marked off in 1/4 kms with a post at each to be a marker. This will make inspections and the recording of audits or repairs easier to identify.
We still have to put in and mark the permanent posts before the spray paint wears off.
Andrew's four-wheel-motor-bike and trip-meter was used for this job.
OTHER THINGS OF INTEREST:
After discussion with the 'real girls' in the Club, many have indicated an interest in doing training towards their Club examinations - therefore, dates that will be suitable to all could be the problem! How about Saturday August 1st? - and can Eric help us out here with Shunting skills etc. etc?
FROM THE COMMITTEE MEETING 28/6/98:
Private gear stored at Club premises - A general discussion further relating to this from Annual General Meetings have progressed to a stage that the Committee wishes to make up guidelines for redundant private equipment not used by the Club. Before any recommendations or Motions are passed to bring forward to the next AGM, the Committee would like direction from all members this may relate too. We would also like some indication from these members as to their long-term proposals or disposal of relics. Obviously, any rolling stock MUST COMPLY WITH OUR SAFETY SCHEME - and under NO CONDITIONS will exceptions be made - BE WARNED.
We wish to restore the bulk of our passenger-carrying vehicles sooner (rather than the standard 'later'), and therefore improve our public image-rather than just storing JUNK!
NEED TO KNOW DEPARTMENT: Could you please let Colin know if you have a first-aid certificate. Handy for our first-aid box general information - also gives us a better idea of current members certifications.
WELCOME ABOARD: Recently, members of the Public have shown an interest on joining up - and just recently we have four new members. (And they are all proving to be VERY GOOD WORKERS to boot!)