Archive for the ‘Driving wheels’ Category
Scenes around the shop last week.
Posted in Driving wheels, Restoration, Rods and rod brass, Sierra No. 3, Staff on February 9, 2010 |
Homecoming
Posted in Boiler, Driving wheels, Equipment, Frame, Restoration, Sierra No. 3, Staff, Tender, Volunteers on October 30, 2009 |
In The News
Posted in Boiler, Driving wheels, Frame, Restoration, Sacramento Shops, Shop Tours, Sierra No. 3, Staff, Volunteers on October 30, 2009 |
KCRA 3 in Sacramento aired a story about the Sierra #3 on Wednesday evening. You can see it for yourself (note: Reporter Walt Gray refers to being able to see it at Jamestown next month. Shop tours resume on the 11th of November, but we don’t expect to be operational until April!) http://www.kcra.com/video/21469294/index.html Also, an article in [...]
Oversized Load
Posted in Boiler, Driving wheels, Frame, Restoration, Sacramento Shops, Sierra No. 3, Staff, Volunteers on October 29, 2009 |
Oversized loads require a special transportation permit, issued by The California Department of Transportation (CalTrans). Our load is over the height limit. A permit had been obtained for a 14’6″ load (at the top of the steam dome). Our final measurement (including rail, angle of the trailer, etc), measured 15′ 3″. This required a new [...]
Zero Days ’til Ship
Posted in Boiler, Driving wheels, Frame, Restoration, Sacramento Shops, Sierra No. 3, Staff, Volunteers on October 28, 2009 |
Crunch Time-Today in the Shop
Posted in Boiler, Driving wheels, Frame, Restoration, Sacramento Shops, Sierra No. 3, Staff, Volunteers on October 25, 2009 |
On Thursday, October 29th, the #3 will be shipped back to Railtown. Consisting of the new boiler, the chassis and the driving wheels, it doesn’t quite look like a locomotive. . . yet. To ensure the ship date is met, it’s all hands on deck, and a long week ahead. Here’s a look at what [...]
Back at the Jamestown Shops
Posted in Driving wheels, Frame, Sacramento Shops, Sierra No. 3, Staff, Tender on October 4, 2009 |
Most of the workforce is now at the Sacramento Shops, where work on the Sierra #3 boiler is now occurring 7 days a week until the target return date of October 29th. In the meantime, activity continues at Railtown’s Jamestown shop, just at a quieter pace. Previously repaired rod brass, frames George Sapp and Erik Young [...]
Brass for the Rods
Posted in Driving wheels, Restoration, Sierra No. 3, Staff on October 4, 2009 |
The brasses provide the bearing surface for the rods where they fit to the crankpins. As with the driving boxes, they provide a sacrificial material which bears the stress of the force on the driving wheels. Each rod bearing is comprised of two halves which are fitted over the crank pin. Diagram of a “modern” rod bearing. As [...]
On the Road Again
Posted in Driving wheels, Restoration, Sierra No. 3, Staff on September 24, 2009 |
Sporting a fresh coat of black paint, the three sets of driving wheels left Railtown this morning, enroute to Sacramento one last time. Along with the driving boxes, they’ll be installed on the chassis for the return trip, tentatively scheduled for October 29th.
Refurbishing the Driving Boxes- Part II
Posted in Driving wheels, Restoration, Sierra No. 3, Staff on September 24, 2009 |
The next step in refurbishing the driving boxes includes building up the surface of the hub face with babbitt, and machining it, as well as the crown brass. Babbitt (named after the inventor) is an alloy used as a sacraficial bearing metal. The structure is made of small, hard crystals dispersed in a matrix of [...]
