6029 is owned by the Australian Railway Historical Society, ACT Division and the restoration is proudly supported by their tourist operations and by the generous donations of members and public supporters.
The society operates rail tours out of Canberra with our heritage fleet of steam and diesel locomotives and rolling stock every few weeks.
To travel in style on any of our tours, or to learn more about our collection and operations, go to Canberrarailwaymuseum.org

Jun 25, 2014

MKR and Master Chef vs. 6029 Cooking Master classes and other stuff!

The cold has hit Canberra; snow has reached the mountains and frosts the windscreens of the cars. Of course not all is lost – the shortest day passed last weekend and so have a few key milestones on the path to our first inspection.

The wiring for the electrics has really been underway for some time but the last week has seen some accelerated progress. As mentioned by Alan we are rapidly approaching testing days and certification so, everything needs to be ready. This has provided incentive to the electrical fitter, aka Andy to deliver some critical steps in the wiring harness fit out. The critical lengths of wire running from the generator to the main bus have now been fitted. Previous wiring to head and tail lights already completed. The bus must carry all power to charge batteries, run lights and fittings and also the critical ICE radio. Clearly, most of this gear was never even dreamed of when 6029 was in the foundry being cast and beaten into shape. As a consequence there are many electrical engineers and experienced people engaged to advise of their needs for the specialty equipment and what power and voltage they need. So Andy is running lots of thick cable down conduit that is narrow and restricted – lubricant has been required.

The radio aerials and connecting wiring has been installed on the coal bunker and the metal sides and ends for the radio and battery box delivered.

Passing on from the electrical components we moved to the steam side of things. The air compressor some may remember at Easter showed a lot of leaks around the glands and the lubricator (for those with a good eye and memory) seemed to stick at the 90 degree position in its rotation. So the compressor was tested and pushed and shoved and finally it revealed its problems and spoke by belching steam from a gasket. The low pressure cylinder was only generating about 15 psi rather than 70 psi. This was causing the lubricator to fail – simply not enough pressure! Secondly why was the pressure so low? The gasket had blown and allowed steam and water to never fully move to the next stage of the pump and the exhaust. This finally came to a head when the pump just stopped and sent steam and water out through the gasket. A minor setback, but better to happen now than later when we are out on the road. A new gasket will be laser cut from the original drawings and all will be replaced.



Some heavy work has been conducted in the smoke box over the last week or so. Ben has been aligning, replacing and repairing the mounts and screens for the smoke box. To do this, alas, we had to take the chimney and blast pipes out so combined with the compressor on a pallet we do not really look like an engine any more. But only temporarily! There are many pieces to fabricate in the smoke box and having no pattern, Ben has had to make the components based on cardboard templates. The boiler if you remember is an authentic 60 class boiler but it had been converted for use in a saw mill so many unnecessary fittings had been blue tipped and spanned away. This has meant some extra holes and cutting and use of the English language in ways some thought very creative.

But the fun work just does not stop coming! And not to be out done by some  TV shows the 6029 Cooking Classes commenced last week with the recipe known but the scope and extent of the effort not fully realized. Chef Shaun took to the challenge so well that he offered a master class last weekend on how to make fire arch bricks. So in front of a number of keen house bound chefs watching on from bar stool and to the dulcet tones of 4403 shunting back and forth, Shaun showed his skill in mixing the required batch of mortar garnished with stainless steel sprinkle to add that strength factor. What a mix it was! A heavy duty mix master finished the mix and with a deft hand Chef Shaun demonstrated why he is a class leader in this art by plopping the mix into 4 molds cunningly prepared earlier. There are 6 to 7 rows of bricks spanning the fire box plus a cast in place in the base row. Shaun and Ben have and will be busy! Those chefs still able to stand after this demonstration will no doubt remember this master session for many months to come when they see the coal spraying in and reaching to the back of the brick arch that Shaun built!

So some truly good progress has been achieved over the last few weeks, with lots of fabrication, lagging and painting being performed. The driver’s side needs paintings so hands on deck for sanding and preparation work.

Steady and deliberate steps are happening even between official work days and this is keeping the whole project on track – great work from every one.