Friends COS calendar

Friends Colorado Springs

A subset of the Friends of the Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, with the mission of preservation, restoration, and interpretation of CTSRR historic assets. The Springs group is primarily involved in restoration. See below for blog archive of older postings.

Wednesday, May 20, 2026

March-April 2026

 

Removal of old paint and cleanup of the framing were ongoing.  These are tedious jobs but necessary  and shared by all.

Some sanding, some scraping....

Some heat...

Some heat and scraping.

Craig made the two side sliding doors in his shop and these were fitted and hung during this time.  In this photo one of the rails is being put together for the door to slide on.

This is one of the castings with a wheel that holds the door and allows it to travel on the track.

One of the tracks being installed.

The door hanging crew.

Final fitting of the door was done at the time of hanging.  Allowances had to be made for floor height, etc.  Measure twice, cut once.

Trimming with the router.

The hardware was attached to the top of the doors.

Securely fastened with screws.

It is a solid core door.

They got it in place.

And it moves on the track.
There was a learning curve on the first door but the second went more quickly.

Looking good!

The putty covering the bender-ply on the roof overhangs was sanded smooth.

Looks good from here.

A view from above.

Work continued on trim.  It looks like Glenn has his hand on a piece that would fit above this door.

A trim piece on the roof end.

Curved trim pieces for the side of the overhang.

Interior trim at the base of the clerestory.

The west door frame was in need of repair.  A split in the frame on the south side has been glued and clamped.

Another view of the door frame.

A section of the east door frame needed replacing.



Thanks again to Don and Phil for help with photos.













 




















Sunday, May 3, 2026

February 2026

 

Scaffolding was installed at the ends of the car for access to the roof.

Rather uneven surface for the base but it is sturdy.

Now it is possible to work from above and below.

The scaffold provides excellent access.

Ron and crew have been moving right along on the copper flashing.

This is a closeup of one of the copper pieces showing the cuts and bends that were made.  (Click the image to enlarge.)

They are almost to the end on this side.

This side is installed and looking good.

Ron is soldering the joints between pieces of flashing.

At the second work session in February installation of the  bender-ply was begun.  Note also the trim on the side of the clerestory overhang.

Scaffolding has been placed at the east end of the car also and it is ready for the bender-ply.

Back to the west end, the plywood is being installed.

John will make it fit.

Then tack it down.

Paint removal continues.

Many thanks to Don, Glenn, and Phil for help with the photos.
































 

Tuesday, April 28, 2026

January 2026

The new year saw work continuing on the roof edges with installation of the nailers (trim pieces on the letter boards).  Also, copper flashing was fabricated and installed around the base of the clerestory.

The interior ceilings are finished.  We had visitors peering in the door of the baggage car while on tour with a Trolley Museum docent.

This photo shows how the lower roof edge was finished with the outside row of decking overlapping the nailer piece.

Fastening the nailer in place.

Then it was sanded.

A completed edge.

This is a detail of one of the roof corners showing the side trim pieces beveled and the end pieces not yet installed.

This  photo shows Ron at the brake bending the copper sheeting for the roof flashing.

Strips of copper flashing ready to be installed.

The copper is bent to conform to the wood.

Moving right along.

Interior paint removal continues.

We are close to starting to cover the roof on the overhangs.

This is a bundle of "bender ply" which is very flexible plywood, aka "wacky wood," which will be used to cover the curved roof of the overhangs.

This photo shows that it does indeed bend.

 











 












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