THE SPECIAL GENERAL MEETING: was well attended and the vote was all in favour of The Club purchasing the land we presently Lease from Solid Energy. As a result of this vote, we have just received a $10 000.00 LOAN from Waikato District Council - Hillary Commission Sport & Recreation Fund. This goes a l-o-n-g way towards the purchase and the paperwork side is progressing. We have just had another change in the person we deal with at Solid Energy!! I have run out of fingers to count the number of people we have been dealing with.
Thanks to all who made the effort to attend the vital meeting - including a Member from England who made his schedule fit in with this Meeting! WELL DONE TONY.
OPEN DAYS: July and August open days have continued the run of extremely good days. We can only hope our fortune continues for another couple of months (years, decades) - but history shows that our passenger count generally falls as the finer and warmer weather arrives! Thank you to all who help on our operating days, we certainly need all hands. Some of our passengers are groups who come on open days rather than have a charter trip.:
CHARTER TRIPS: The Railway Enthusiasts Society visited us on 7 July and had a good time with us, (even if we had our usual fireworks when they visit). Perhaps it is one of them that light sneaky fires, as we don't normally have many fires at all. We have several more planned during September (TRIPS - NOT FIRES)! and another overseas one for October.
MEMBERS: Welcome aboard to all our new members - we hope your time with us will be happy, and that you will gain some benefit from helping on our railway. NOTE the forthcoming Training School and return the enclosed slip - this is in all our interest to have you attend. Yes, we have ANOTHER Colin to join the ranks! Makes it very easy to remember names.
Our sympathies are expressed to many of our members and their extended families at present. Mike Andrews and family for the sad loss of his father. (His Dad's long sickness is the reason we haven't seen Mike too often this year). To Marg, Trevor & Maxine Walker for the passing of Bert. Marg, as many of you know, was a staunch `shop-keeper' at the Club for many, many year.
To our road-vehicle drivers -Bruce, Sean and Carl for their near disastrous crashes. Bruce, while travelling the South Island. A woman liked the look of Sean going along Horitu and Carl, the size of truck didn't help! Hopefully, the dings have been sorted out satisfactorily.! Glad to see you all back safe and well.
Bob Mann - many of you will be aware by now that he suffered a heart attack about mid-July, spent some time in hospital, was out for a few days and then back into hospital for a further week or so - but is home again now (but when we call, he is never in!!) Bob, you will have to take it very V- E-R-Y easy for some months!! (We hear we can catch up with him at the RSA!)
FURTHER SPONSORSHIP: Once again, Genesis have considered our applications kindly. Our operating members will have overalls available for their use. Yes, you will be lined up for a photo shoot - so bring your comb (grease supplied anyway). These are to be signed for, and yes you have to keep them laundered and bring them each operating day. Further supplies for the real dirty work are being looked into. The next Newsletter will be actioned on the upgraded computer - YES, also from Genesis who, incidentally also sponsor the photocopying of OUR NEWSLETTERS. Thank you to your team Genesis - from our team at The Club!!
Stop press!! Trust Waikato have just advised us that they giving further support - this time for funding to progress with the electrical main supply into the new engineering workshop area. (Further to this later in Newsletter). SINCEREST thanks to all Sponsors who, behind the scenes, help keep this Club `ON TRACK'...........
MINES CAR: This project has slowed down again lately. Our PD crew haven't been back for a while, so there is no further progress with the side of the carriage. There is a new piece of the side plate cut and waiting to be fitted. Some of the PD girls recently puttied up all nail holes and put some of the `afghan tan' top coat on most new weatherboard.
The new brake pipe is fitted to the overhauled end of the car and an emergency brake is being fitted to that end of the car. It has never had one fitted.
STEAM LOCO: Our working steam loco have recently undergone their annual air brake leakage tests. A few alterations and repairs are being done on this system and the Peckett. Just as well most of this is being done when no one else is at The Junction as the area being work on is greasy, cramped and nothing wants to undo or can be got at without having to remove other pipework. As you imagine, the possums in the roof often have to cover their (little) ears! !!!!!
Heisler: Chris is presently working with me on exactly what boiler repairs are needed and the different methods of repairs. We are slowly getting this sorted out, then we can go to some boiler repair companies for further ideas (and the cost of repairs)!!! Once this is known, we need to find the MONEY - expected to be H--E--A--P--S****
CB: We are presently talking about other URGENT jobs on this loco to tidy up some of the sloppy areas in the drive or a few areas where the overhaul did not get finished. We will shortly be purchasing the boiler tubes - and other costing items.
FIREWOOD: We desperately need some more firewood cut up - as our open day and charter trip light-ups are eating into our supply FAST!! Any offers!! Our main source of future firewood at present is old sleepers being replaced. - a lot of them already at firewood length!
PINE TREES: This job went off extremely well - thanks to our members who were on hand to help and supervise Transpower's contractors. Some spent 3 or so days helping. Transpowers contractors climbed the trees to cut the tops out in case they fell wrongly and caught the 220 KV transmission lines. When this was finished, they felled the trees. This was when the exciting piece started ...now, we all know NOTHING goes according to plan!! Read on.. They came with a strong winch on a trailer which they placed on the railway line. After a couple of pulls, their NYLON rope broke.
PLAN B - get a wire rope from a line depot near Whangarei and put onto winch drum. Next week, try again. This time winch jumped all over the place when pulling the logs.
PLAN C - Anchor front of contractors 4-wheel-drive, to which winch trailer is attached, to diesel loc. (I know, you are already putting plan D into action). No more jumping of trailer and ute, BUT after several pulls - the ute's tow-bar was noticed to have a decided `HOOP' in it. Oooopps.
PLAN D - get ute out of way and anchor trailer directly to diesel loco. Even though the winch trailer tow-bar lifted into the air with the heavy pulling, this idea worked successfully and went on for 2 days.
At the end of this time - four days pulling the logs and two topping and cutting the trees, the contractors available time had run out, but the Club was left with a lot of logs over about 100 feet of the cutting sides - and more as close as possible.
The NEXT STAGE was to cut the logs to a reasonable length and load them onto our flat top wagons using our hand- crane. Andrew and Sean were the first to do this and found out that we do the job.
The PD crews have been on the job again and quickly got the idea of lifting and loading logs up to 8 or 9 metres long (much longer than the hand-crane can easily handle). So far, we have 2 loaded wagons with 55-60 logs on them. There are about 15 still to load when the logs are cut into more manageable lengths. Andrew and Sean have towed these long logs up the hill with TR 217 and there are still a couple to come up. When all useable logs are dragged up, cut to length and loaded onto our 3rd flat-top, we will get them sawn into sleepers and useable timber.
Thanks to all who have helped with this job - Colins Ewing and Jenner, Jan, Wingnut, Andrew, Sean and our PD crews. Many l-o--n-g days have been spent on this job so far.
This is The Bush Tramway Club at its BEST - LOGGING WORK!! Not quite BUSH logging, but photos show logging results. Well done all.
We have proved that with our limited gear, we can do the rest of the trees when the time comes to log them - and NO, TRANSPOWER contractors aren't interested in helping! There will be heaps of smaller pine pieces down the bank to be cut up for our locomotive - OFFERS PLEASE.
TRACKWORK: Our first planned work-day on the sandfill was rather a disappointment - member wise. Matthew turned up on the Saturday, but as there was no one else, helped Richard on another job.
Sunday - a very fine day, saw myself, Wingnut and Andrew get the gear ready and start on the job. Later Colin #1 turned up to help - YES, THAT'S IT. What happened to the rest of our keen members!!??? (The one's that keep asking, when will WE be up to Glen Afton!!)
After lunch, we had a Committee Meeting so Wingnut and Andrew battled on. The very sharp section of the curve was eased, a couple of low spots lifted and packed and a couple of wagons of ballast loaded, dumped and spread.
The bottom end of the area needs a bit more of a "tweak" into shape and more cant put onto the top-end of the curve as it straightens out.
Part of the unballasted track at the top-end of the sandfill has now been ballasted but still needs packing.
A very good day's work with perhaps another 2 days needed. We tried the Peckett across this area during the August Open day and it went around the curve very well ( NO, no public).
Once this area is sorted out, we can extend our passenger train run by 1/4km, so how about a few more hands when we ask for help?
A PD crew recently unloaded and stacked just over 100 square sleepers for the track to Glen Afton. A couple of PD crews have spent quite a few days giving the gorse and scrub along the track-sides in this area a bit of a fright. It's surprising how much more sun gets onto the track now!
And - NO - we haven't had any spare time to put in more sleepers on the line to Glen Afton for the last couple of months.
Trackside digger: we have recently had all the drains right to the end of our Leased area drained. This was too good an opportunity to miss, so carried the work on. This will progress the work immensely for the summer months. Drainage will now be as it should be.
GANTRY CRANE: Richard has been spending many days and a lot of energy on this. He decided to put it up on the back road near Trevor's driveway - not far above the Junction station - because rotten rock was very solid and gave good footings for his concrete piles. As a result of his own work - helped only briefly by Jan, Colin J and Matthew, the gantry is now in place awaiting a portable welder to weld the cross-beam solidly in place. It was tacked in place with Wingnut's single-phase welder. The block and tackle trolley was overhauled and is in place. (I see a flag flying from the cross beam) - a flag like this usually means a `roof shout' on a building (but I haven't seen a roof there yet)!
This gantry is easily accessible by rail, after the "stored items" are towed out of the way and by track.
This crane and its possible regular use rather than the siding just being a storage track, meant a harder look at the sleepers - or oopps - some were just indents in the ground. (More work)
When we first looked at the line in the mid-1970's, we were told that this line was owned and maintained by Pukemiro Collieries and was last resleepered about 1959 using 2nd-hand sleepers from the Auckland Tramway system.
Once again, our PD crews have spent 2 1/2 days replacing about 45 sleepers on this siding up to the gantry and they are certainly extra long sleepers. A lot of mud and clay washed onto this siding over the years was dumped well out of the way.
Once the gantry is completed and not tied to the guards van parked next to it, another length or 2 of the siding will get the re-sleeper treatment.
AUDITORS: We finally received Jonesy and Rodney's reports and got them (and our answers) off to Land Transport just before the deadline: LTSA have accepted the reports. A couple of amendments to our safety scheme are needed and will be done in due course.
PUKEMIRO PICKINGS: We recently purchased the trellis to go around the entrances to the toilets. Teresa has been seen painting it - any offer to erect it?? (This is some of the finishing work undertaken with the WEL ENERGY TRUST grant from last year.) we are also planning to organise a better public BBQ area - and Andrew and Richard have been seen ferreting around and tidying up the general area.. We are planning to build more tables with timber from our milling
WORKSHOP: A little bit more progress with this. One wet day a PD crew completed the mezzanine floor, erected about half the railings around this floor and put up the staircase obtained by Andrew some time ago. It needs a bit of an extension (at the bottom) and is presently bolted to the mezzanine floor at the top and sitting on blocks at the bottom. The steel for the extension is on the floor beside the staircase (-any offers to complete this-??) once the staircase sides are in place, we can get some angle iron, weld it to the sides for the steps, cut the steps and bolt them in place. We took the opportunity to haul a couple of shelf assemblies up the mezzanine floor and will shortly be putting some light items on these shelves. A WORD OF WARNING:- the stairs are safe to use, but there are NO LIGHTS in the area, and the roof is very low at the top of the stairs - BE WARNED!! WE can't do anything further about electrical supply until we have funds IN THE BANK!, so this will hold up our transfer. Colin Webber has been making and putting flashings in place to tidy up some areas. Making the whole place look quite presentable now. (Andrew and Teresa admit their carpentry skills leave a lot to be desired - but at least its weather proofed).
HAND-CRANE: After a lot of head scratching and welding AND machining - Mike has made the necessary, so that the counter-weight-box can be wound in or out. The weigh- box wheels need an overhaul so that they turn easy - rather than prefer to skid. This is another thing that the crane has never had in our time. Progress indeed!
TRAINING: COULD this relate to YOU!!! ???? Think on. We are always willing to train members to various positions on our railway - h-o-w-e-v-e-r SEVERAL THINGS NEED TO BE UNDERSTOOD. Some training is solely dependant on one of our certified members being spare and the equipment available to be used. If you start training, and YOUR NAME is on the roster as an extra ON AN OPEN OR CHARTER trip for that training, you cannot just vanish for a few hours or get on with another job and try and fit the training in as best you can! In other words, some commitment is required from you!! Until you are certified for that job, you cannot be used for that position WITHOUT A CERTIFIED MEMBER BEING PRESENT. For example = this often means 3 people in one of the steam loco cabs. SORRY, but that's the way our Safety Scheme requires it. Our Safety Scheme (-in the `Management Responsibilities Section-) sets out who is responsible for what. It STATES that I am responsible for ALL TRAINING ON OUR RAILWAY. If you want training or have any other thoughts / complaints - talk to me! Don't go complaining to other Club members so that I hear about it much later and with the story altered.
As always, any training is DEPENDENT ON ENOUGH CERTIFIED MEMBERS BEING AVAILABLE for open days or charters to allow a few to be spare. A couple of years ago, we had NO- ONE SPARE, so training was very difficult. We are hoping to train as many as practicable. Training sheets are issued for all training on our railway - again a requirement of our Safety Scheme. It is YOUR responsibility to keep these sheets and bring them with you for training. As you work through these training sheets with the person training you, there is a space for the trainee AND the trainer to sign. This MUST BE DONE as you work through the sheets. Its no good coming to me that you have been trained for a job and when I look, all sheets are not signed.
These training sheets form part of The Training Section of our Safety Scheme - and my training records are checked each year during The Audit.
REMEMBER - SAFETY IS OUR PRIORITY - and these Rules are the basis for which the Management Team have agreed to abide by to keep our Operating Licence legal.
A BIG thankyou to all the newer members who have shown interest in advancing with training!! Now where is my list!!! See you all at the forthcoming Training School morning.
WEBSITE: Colin (#3) - keeps an eye on info coming into this and passes it on. Some is quite useful and contains a few changes to the way we can overhaul things on our railway. Don't forget to check us out http://www.bushtramwayclub.com. Colin reported over 16000 hits to date!!! As he said, forget the steam action - lets have virtual computer trains!! ggggrrrrr.......
Could this apply to some of us non- computer types?
Some time ago, we had some dealings with a lady who was writing a history of The Pukemiro - Glen Afton area. Gywneth is now one of our members and I hear the book could be published towards the end of September. The costing around $50.00. We will purchase a copy for our library.
DIESEL LOCOMOTIVES: Colin #1 and Alan are working their way through the annual checks of these locomotives.
YELLOW DIGGER: Colin #1 and Wingnut recently spent a day pulling one of the back-feet rams apart to get at a hydraulic leak. As you can expect, it was right inside the casing and took a lot of getting to. Hydraulic oil is very expensive and we had been going through HEAPS.
WEATHER: July in the Waikato was the coldest for 20 - 30 years - (depending on who you talk to). The Junction was certainly no exception with heavy frosts every day for about 2 weeks and many more in 3's and 4's. Often the morning frost had not melted in the shade before it started to freeze late afternoon. Frosts mean no rain generally and our water storage fell to about half. One morning, we could not get water for the toilets or rec. room as the tap on the hydrant and all pipes were frozen. August brought more rain at the start, so our tanks were filled again. Luckily - the frosts were not heavy enough to break any pipes - but most ponga tree-ferns are badly burnt.
WORKING BEES: The next `organised' ones will be:
Sunday September 30th early
Sunday October 28th
PUBLICITY: We have recently been receiving excellent press. MANY, M-A-N-Y people have seen the Lotteries Commission promotions - so TV advertising does pay. VERY NEW MEMBERS: Excellent to see Daphne helping out (initiation period) and Harvey during the week VERY LATE NEWS ITEM: Please be aware that Gwyneth Jone's book is in LIMITED supply - some available at Club Oct. VISITOR: Our spies tell us that Harry Andrew paid a fleeting visit - maybe we should have given him an application form at the same time!! Hope we are of some help Harry.
Laser printer:
WEL ENERGY TRUST
ATTENTION: return to General Manager OR Post to BOX C10, GLEN AFTON; RD 1 HUNTLY TO ALL The Bush Tramway Club OPERATING MEMBERS/ OR THOSE INTERESTED IN HELPING
The committee has once again this year decided to express thanks to our many generous SPONSORS and intend to set aside an operating day on SUNDAY 23RD SEPTEMBER. The visitors will be invited to attend from 1.00 pm with a (SMALL) afternoon tea planned. These SPONSORS get more from talking WITH OUR MEMBERS - than all the paperwork and photos we report back with. So your attendance will enhance future applications.
Therefore, could you please identify how you may be able to help OR would you prefer to train?