THE TWO FOOTERS             

“Convention Time”

The celebrated Cargill Salt Works locomotive number 1 is back on the iron and ready to be put into service on our 2-foot operation in Texas.

After attending the Grand Scales Convention last year in California Terry Raines contacted me with a whole list of salvaged 2-foot equipment for sale from Harmer Steel. We inspected their offerings via the internet and telephone and entered into negotiations for various items. During the winter I ordered one of the locomotives, and Terry and I divided up the cost of 3 bottom dump cars, and the better part of 2 dozen, half-joint, 20-pound track panels on steel ties. All that was loaded on a semi and hauled to Terry’s personal share of Texas, known affectionately as Tick Acres, where our 2-foot operation is taking shape–or was. There has been a hiatus of several years in which only a few joints and switches get screwed down on rare occasions due to my leaving town, no motive power, and no shortage of competing projects. The motive power problem has been solved.  

The locomotive is the former Cargill Number 1.  Built in the early ‘90s in their own shops,
the fleet of Diesel-hydraulic pulling units numbered 13 or so and were used to haul auto-dump cars around their salt pans south of San Francisco.

Our best estimate is that these engines weigh about 11,000 pounds on the drivers. Overall width is right at 4'-6", and the length about 11'. The prime mover is a fuel injected (is there any other kind) straight-6 Cummins industrial Diesel not too very different from the one in your basic Dodge pickup of the ‘90s era or a large Case backhoe. At its rear is a substantial pump feeding, upon command, the hydrostatic drive motor located under the foot-plate of the operators cab. Well, it’s sort of a cab–a bit open-air to take advantage of the cool San Francisco Bay weather. Now that it’s in Texas I think an inclosure to provide some shade may be in it’s future. A single, simple toggle provides forward and reverse movement of the motor shaft and, through the number 160 chain drive, subsequent turning of the axles and drive wheels. The locomotive has a horn (sort of wimpy though it may be, loud but not very railroady) three lights just like the big boys (a head light and two ditch lights), and a red flasher that strobes annoyingly right in the face of the engineer. Best we dispense with that ASAP.

 Your March/April copy of The TWO FOOTERS has several photos of Terry’s novel method of unloading semis before the completion of a proper loading chute. Harmer had been instructed to load the loco directly onto a track panel on the rear of the semi-trailer. When it arrived Terry already had his equipment trailer cribbed up to loading dock height and a panel from a previous purchase ready to bolt onto the one upon which the engine was sitting. Once the panels were bolted together it was simply a matter of running the No 1 from the truck to the trailer on nearly level track.                                                                                                                                                    

The frame and running gear of an auto-dump car without its hopper.

The 3 stainless steel dump/hoppers are also pictured in that issue as they arrived from California, as are some good representatives of the 15-foot long track panels that were constantly being shuffled around Cargill’s harvesting pans. A joint of 20-pound rail weighs 200 pounds, so 2 half-joints will weigh the same, of course, and each of the 6 ties probably weighs about 6 or 8, so the whole panel weighs in at around 250 easily man-handleable pounds. Two aging men can pick up a panel like a stretcher and carry it to wherever it’s desired with no exertion worth bragging about. We bought them mostly for exactly the purpose they have always been used–temporary track. At last count we had 32 of them giving us almost 500 feet for work track, storage, shoo-flys, sidings, loading (or unloading) ramps, or whatever. Our regular track uses 25-pound rail, but both the 20- and 25-pound rail use identical joint-bars and bolts, so we have no duplication of inventory on that account. The difference in head height between the 2 is a mere 1/16th inch, so compromise joint bars can be dispensed with as well, in lieu of a minor clickity-clack.

The refurbished wheel set sits primed and ready for installation. Careful measurements were taken so copies could be made for future locomotives.

Loco No 1 blocked up on the equipment trailer with one refurbished wheel set already in place but not yet secured. The brown engine is due to the color it was originally painted rather that rust from the salty environment in which it operated. All-in-all, there was very little rust on any of the steel parts.

Once the locomotive was unloaded from the semi and Terry’s equipment trailer returned to ground level using a matched set of railroad jacks purchased over the years on eBay he hauled it to his machine shop area and stabilized everything with 4-by cribbing which will become cross-ties in another incarnation. The next order of business was to pull the master links from the drive chains and unbolt the journal retainers so the wheel sets would fall free as Old No 1 was jacked up and cribbed upon the trailer. Having the right tools sure makes the job go right. The wheel sets were in pretty good shape despite a dozen years of running on rusty rail in the alien environment of steel-gobbling halide. Nevertheless, there was a groove of 3/8ths inch or so worn into the tread of all the drivers. Terry’s 7-inch lathe was not up to the task of refacing these 22-inch monsters so the work of turning down the 1800-pound wheel sets was entrusted to a friend with a larger machine. Final diameter of the tread at the flange radius was–let me check my notes–ugh–here it is--19.371 inches, more or less, and about 19 at the inside radius. So, it lost an inch over the years to friction and corrosion and, finally, cutting tools. The newly turned wheel sets were sand-blasted and painted and the rather substantial journal bearings were checked and repacked and put in good order. Springs were refurbished and new and heftier retainer plates were machined as the originals had become distorted, having been obviously under-designed. Seldom do we err on the side of wimpiness at Tick Acres.

Terry installs the 75-pound bearing journal before the wheel set was raised into its slot.

In October I took a few weeks off from my regular job running CSX locomotives (usually followed by a hundred or so freight cars) up and down the several lines out of Baltimore and made my way to Tick Acres to help install the renewed running gear in Old No 1. A few of the photos show the progress thereof. The procedure was to get under–or into the bowels of–the locomotive which is about 4 feet wide and, again using a railroad jack, raise one of the nearly one ton wheel sets, with journals attached, one click at a time, cribbing as we did so, of course, in case of system failure and to preclude any broken legs, at least, until the male parts slide comfortably into the female parts, the springs compressed, so we could install the retainers. All new fasteners were used and torqued to specifications of our own choosing. We’ve long clung to the theory that if somebody else can figure it out, so can we.

The drive chains had been replaced by Harmer before they shipped the machine so all we had to do was clean them in Diesel fuel and reinstall and adjust their tension–or lack of it. With that done and a couple of new fuel filters we were ready to put her back on the rails. The trailer was cleaned and the track panel, which had been removed to provide a flat work space on the trailer floor, was put back in place and the engine lowered, one 2x4 at a time, first one end and then the other, until she stood on her own drivers.

With the track panel in place on the trailer and the weight back on the drivers the loco was secured with chains and the haul begun. The destination was just this side of the trees beyond the tractor.

The trailer was blocked and Ediger bolted track panels together to create a ramp. A main track will pass just this side of the trailer, handy to the Diesel fuel tank beyond.

Finally back on her home rails, a track panel she’d squealed over a thousand times before but then a thousand miles away or more, she squatted down like an old hen on the nest and took the weight off her retainers. Using the bucket of Terry’s John Deere front loader equipped with a pintle hitch we lifted first one end and then the other and soon unburdened the cribbing so the trailer could be pulled a hundred feet or so, then backed off in the general direction and area of a future main line track, still stubbed out 200 or so feet away. A positive angle of attack was set and two track panels attached and blocked to form a ramp from the trailer to the ground–let’s call it the Earth. I’ve been on the ground before and didn’t really want to go all the way there again.

When the time was deemed correct I climbed into the cab and fired her up. Anxious photographers stood curiously by–ready to capture any success or failure. The forward tie-down chains were loosed and I backed up a jerking inch or two–the damned throttle’s pretty touchy; mighty sensitive it is. The rearward chains were then unloosed and we made our first experiment.

Terry and Daniel have just completed their inspection of the ramp before unloading begins. Note details of the track panels.

This motor was not equipped with brakes! We’d wondered if the hydrostatic drive would hold it in position on a grade–or would it not. We’d set up a grade from off the trailer of what?  3 or 4 or 5 percent, I don’t know–it was substantial. I let go the throttle so to center it–it did. The engine started rolling forward–and with a will–and moved a foot or two. I honked the throttle back into reverse. The wheels spun and slipped and squealed but finally grabbed and we started back up the slope–a half-a-foot or so. That settled that. A chock was thenceforth held at the ready.

On the dead flat salt pans of San Francisco Bay you can just park any piece of rolling stock or power anywhere and it’s not gonna roll away in anybody’s lifetime–save a stout breeze gives it a push. None of their stock  had brakes because there didn’t any of them need brakes. But in the limestone hills of Central Texas there are declivities–and proclivities, as well. The brake situation will need some further study. But for the time being we could rely on chains and chocks.

Everyone returned to first position and I shoved the throttle slightly forward–that’s backwards from a GE or EMD, you know, you pull them back to go ahead and shove them forward to apply dynamic brake. Not to worry, we are adaptable. Slowly I let her down onto the third and final panel. We blocked and chocked and shut her down.

Engineer Ediger takes charge of the throttle and watches the ground to monitor movement.

End of track at the time of unloading. Trees have been cut back and track ballasted.

Everything had been set up so that the middle panel would be sitting on level ground when we were finally done. The trailer panel was unbolted and the (former) middle panel reblocked to make it do what we’d intended it to do. The motor was moved back onto it and made stationary until the main track could be made to reach it, sometime in the not too distant future–one would hope. The picture at the left shows the end-of-track in October 2004, near a short bridge of last year’s doing. Grading has since been completed and is ready for track.

When time allows and an engine house constructed, the unit will be sandblasted and repainted. Right now it’s under wraps from winter rains.

Meanwhile, the basing and grading of that final few feet is underway and rail should be laid on it in a short while. Finally having power on the iron should be some impetus to get the first half-mile loop completed of our as yet un-named 2-foot gauge railroad. My initial calculations show the ruling grade at 2½ percent. I think it’ll do just fine.

One of my initial concerns and dislikes about the Cargill engine is that it has only 2 center-mounted axles. Operating on flat track it is probably quite workable and should pull a good load–probably a whole lot more than we’ll ever demand of it at Tick Acres. But how will it handle a load up a 2½% grade? Will it tend to oscillate–forward and backwards? Will the leading axle come off the rail in a heavy pull? In reality I think that 130 feet to the mile is still a pretty flat track when it comes to creating a fulcrum on the 2-axled machine, but we’ll have to wait and see. Terry plans to have one short section that will require a 4% grade, but that may be way into the future.

Aside from our immediate need for a pulling unit, my main impetus for acquiring the Cargill engine was to copy the drive system into a 4-axle road-switcher I’ve been lusting to build. Having a ready list of the necessary components would certainly make that job easier. The 2 obvious advantages of the two-truck machine would be the added adhesion provided by 4 drivers and the better handling qualities of the end-mounted trucks–the center of gravity moves to the inside on curves, and the teeter-totter effect (and all the problems related to that) caused by the center-mounted axles is eliminated. 

I can be reached at <gille@att.net> or 410-303-1177 

The railroad crew got the word in late October that they would be constructing a quarter mile of track from the current branch line, to the Boy’s Tee Pee Town camping area.  In the past, the boys would have to exit the train at Girl’s Tee Pee Town and walk up the hill to their camp.  This was not the most pleasant experience given the fact that the boys had to carry their luggage up the hill with them and most kids bring so much luggage you would think they were staying the whole summer.

 There was a short section of right of way already in existence from an expansion proposal about 10 years ago which involved 30” gage and many other ambitious projects planned under a different camp administration.  This right of way is not being used because there would be several sharp curves required and it is also less direct than the current right of way.  The current right of way was cleared during the fall of 2004 and there are still several trees that will be taken out in order to make the route as straight as possible. 

 Currently, approximately 130ft of track is in place from the existing line to Girl’s Tee Pee Town to just beyond the first grade crossing.  A frog and guard rail were installed on the new line to facilitate the eventual wye that is to be constructed at the junction of the old and new branch lines.  Right of way has been cleared, but no more track will be laid at the junction until we finish the line up the hill.

 When completed in its entirety, the new branch line will have four switches (three will be at the wye), four grade crossings, and one loop track.  The Boy’s Tee Pee Town station will be located on the loop at the top of the hill.  We still need to figure out how we will operate the train up the hill when the rails are wet.  The grade is very steep, we are not sure of the percent but it is probably about 2% for the whole ¼ mile.  All attempts are being made to keep the track straight so trains can build up speed to make the top of the hill without stalling. 

 If anyone has or knows of 12-16 pound rail for sale or trade please contact:

A great picture of Richard Craig’s engine house

This photo shows one of our 60-ton Garratts with train in the mountains.  Our line is now 12 miles long.  We have 13 more miles to reconstruct before linking with the Ffestiniog Railway to create a continuous 39-mile 2-foot gauge line.

St. Marys (1993) … Maine (1995) … Michigan (1997) … New Jersey (1999) … Virginia (2003) … and for 2005 … OHIO!   The convention will occur July 28 thru July 31.

We are tentatively planning visits to the following railroad attractions:  (Note: Modifications to this list may occur due to scheduling conflicts.)

• Terry Putt

• Shawn Watson

• Tom Diehl

• Richard Craig

• John Anderson

• Ohio Central Railroad

• Buckeye Central Scenic Railroad

• Hocking Valley Scenic Railway

• Plymouth Museum

• Northwest Ohio Railroad Preservaton – 15" Steam Engine

 Based on previous conventions, we estimate the cost to be around $300 per person (which includes lodging, bus, …).  To permit the convention committee to make proper accommodations, we require that commitments be made by April 1.  Please send a response to:

Tom Bauer (tpbauer@alltel.net)
534 Armory Road
St. Marys, PA  15857

For the 2005 Convention to be a success, we need participation from its members.  If we do not receive an adequate response, the 2005 Convention may be cancelled.

 The convention is an excellent time for the membership to gather to share ideas and visit other Two Foot Railroads… and even the standard gauge ones.  The previous conventions have provided wonderful memories and 2005 should as well.

(January 15, 2005 – B&W Railroad)

The Two Footers
534 Armory Road
St. Marys, PA  15857

tpbauer@alltel.net
or
tom@thetwofooters.com

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