January 2016

We had four work sessions in January even though the one on the weekend after New Year's was cancelled.  We are working the Thursdays before the regularly scheduled Saturdays for a few months to get caught up from weather cancellations, etc.

The platform tie rods are mostly in place but all are not yet drilled through the platform end sills.  There are six rods in each platform with three on each side.  On the right side of the picture shown one can see a rod along the inner aspect of the outer sill, and two next to the inner sill.

The rods had to be bent some to be threaded through the sills of the car.  Some were bent by hand, but we borrowed a hydraulic bender seen here.  There is a jack below pushing up on the rod between the black guides to force a bend.  A little bit of Bob's arm can be seen in the lower left of the photo as he pumps.  John is guiding the rod into the grooves.

One of the rods next to the inner sill is hooked on to the bolster as shown here.

The other rod near the inner sill is hooked on to the end sill of the car as shown here.  It is fixed in place with a lag bolt.  The rod attached to the bolster is seen just above the hook in the upper left corner of the photo.

The third rod which is along side the outer platform sill is threaded on both ends.  This photo shows the rod passing through the end sill of the car and a washer and nut will be used to secure this end of the rod.

More drilling was needed under the car in the pivot plate.  John and Tom are positioning the magnetic drill to do the job.

This photo shows the drill in place attached to the steel plate by the magnetic base which is activated electrically.

This photo shows the window hardware for the lower level windows.  The larger piece on the left is a latch that attaches to the side of the frame and holds the window open or closed.  The smaller one on the right is a handle that goes on the bottom of the frame and is used to raise the window.  These are original pieces from the car, but some are missing.  They are still available from the original company but the current latches have two screw holes in the top instead of one.

In order to accommodate two screws on the side frame the strips holding the windows in place were removed and cut narrower to expose more of the frame.  Here one of the strips is being replaced after being downsized.

Craig brought a mockup of a clerestory window that he built for display.  In this photo the window is open about halfway (toward us) being hinged at the bottom.  The mechanism on the right holds it in position.  There is a pull in the middle that has a hole in it for a hook on a pole to position the window as needed.

Here is a closer look at the retaining latch for the window.  There is a spring loaded plunger that rides on the notched bar to hold the window closed or open various amounts.

Work on the roof decking and trim is winding up.  Craig is preparing to install one of the last pieces of trim on the curved end of the clerestory.

And on it goes.  It will be smooth as well.

This is a photo of the end of the car before dismantling showing a cabinet over the door.  There were two of these, one at each end.  One of the doors was off in the cabinet at the other end of the car but the hardware was present.

Craig made new doors for the cabinets and Don cleaned up the frames and mounted the hardware as shown here.

In this photo Debbie is oiling the back side of the cabinet with linseed oil.  The front facing into the car will be finished like the rest of the interior.

The exposed framing of the car is being oiled as well, both old and new.  Here Bill is working on the sills from underneath.








Thanks again to Tom for some of the photos.

December 2015

December saw work continuing on the end platform tie rods as well as installing trim on the roof.

There are several tie rods in each platform, and in this photo Bob and Bill L. are reviewing a photo of the configuration taken prior to dismantling of the platform.

This photo taken in January 2011 shows two rods next to the (near) inner sill and one along the inside of the (far) outer sill.  It is apparent that the rods were bent and did not extend straight through.

Bill and John are pulling a rod through holes that have been drilled in the wood and steel.  Note the steel on the end sill of the car not present previously.

Bob was in the pit under the car pushing, twisting, and pounding the rod through.  Some bending was needed to get through the holes as mentioned in the previous post.

Meanwhile Craig was fitting trim pieces on the roof.  A little chisel work was needed to make it right.

And on it goes.

Don and Debbie were working on the upper sashes of the windows putting pegs in the frames.

Finally Santa stopped by for a visit and Debbie welcomed him to our project.  Hopefully she got to give him her Christmas list.

Goodbye, Santa.  Have a good trip!











Thanks to Tom for some of these photos.

November 2015

In November we continued working on the roof, underside, and platform tie rods.

Don and Jim are installing the finishing pieces on the soffit.  Access was an issue but working from the inside of the car seemed easiest.

Not a lot of room to maneuver through the windows but it worked.

Looks good, guys.

Tie rods extend  from the underside of the car out through the platform framing and are threaded at the end of the platform to hold the framing in place.  Here Bill K. is drilling for one of the rods.  Another hole can be seen at the right edge of the photo.

In this photo Bill K. has gone below to push and pound the rod through while Bill L. and John help direct the end.

A little bending was necessary to make it through all the holes in the wood and steel.  The hook on the end to the left in the photo hooks on to the bolster.

The rod is in place but needs to be cut where John is pointing and then threaded.  A hole will be drilled in the end sill that Bill's left hand is resting on and the rod will be passed through that hole and a nut and washer installed.

Finally, two photos showing the bolster and needle beams bolted in place.  Here the top and bottom plates of the bolster are shown with an oak wedge between them at the end for rigidity.

This photo shows one of the two needle beams bolted in place.  More bolts will be added at the ends.

October 2015

This work session took place on October 31st and the weather was still mild.  Work continued on the bolster bottom plates, window trim, and the roof.

Craig has been installing the window sills as shown here.  They are notched and fitted around the posts which are located between the pairs of seats that will be facing each other.  The window frames are in place as well.

Between the seat backs (which face in opposite directions) there is a wider separation as shown here for some added privacy(?) between berths.

Plastic sheeting was placed over the window sills to keep the wood clean before sealing.  Here Debbie is cutting a sheet to fit.

The other bottom plate, I believe at the east end, was installed.  The platform sills had to be notched for it to fit, and Bob is doing this with the reciprocating saw (defying gravity again).  The sill close to the viewer has already been cut.

Now the plate can be lifted into place,  It was placed on blocks and rocked up alternately on one side and then the other.  Blocks were placed under it as each end was elevated.

Finally one end is in place and Tom is placing a nut on the bolt to secure it.

Work continued on the roof. After installing the bendy plywood and applying filler, the roof was sanded.  Good reach there, Craig.  A dusty job, however.

It is looking good - smooooth!

Tom and John are inspecting the roof (I guess).

Finally, coffee break.

September 2015

September saw progress in several areas, the roof, vertical tie rods on the ends of the car, needle beams and bolsters, and window frames.

The tie rods had to be cut and threaded in order to install as space is limited above and below the car.  This photo shows a coupler joining the pieces together after installation.

In this photo a nut is being placed on the upper end of a rod which is passing through the horizontal beam above the door.

Here Ron is placing a nut and washer on the lower end of a rod.  (I wasn't kidding about the limited space.)

The bottom plates for the bolsters were installed.  This photo shows the plate resting on blocks below the bolster which is at the top of the photo.  It will bolt to the end of the bolster and provide support to the sides of the car.  The pin for the trucks goes through the center of this plate, so it essentially supports half the weight of the car.

This photo shows the bottom plate against the (somewhat rusty) bolster with bolts in place but not yet secured.  The end of the bottom plate is against the truss rod bracket.

Meanwhile Jim and Craig  continued to work on the roof.  The curves on the ends of the car are complex and required considerable fitting.  Here they are installing a piece of "bendy" plywood.

To refresh our memories, here is a drawing of the support mechanism under the car.  The bolsters are near the ends of the car, and the needle beams are on either side of the center running across the width of the car and seen on end in the drawing.  The queen posts abut the needle beams and act as spacers between the tie rods and needle beams.  This provides support to the center of the car.  (Click on image to enlarge.)

Here Ron and Bill are preparing to raise the needle beam into position using an ingenious and one-of-a-kind mechanism to accomplish this.  The beam is surprisingly heavy, not your average 4x4.

Success!  Now to bolt it into place.

These are the bolt holes for the needle beam on one side of the car.  They look innocent enough, but much of the framing had to be removed from the side of the car to expose them.

Like so.

Work continued on the interior of the car as well.  Here Tom is working on the clerestory frames, pulling old nails, I believe.

Craig continues with the trim here on the end of the car as well as inside along the bottom of the windows.  (See previous post.)