The Wednesday Crew of the New Hope Valley Railway
Products and services members provide:
QuarterSawnOak.com Scott Smith 919 291-0095
Big Jerry's Fencing Jerry Davis 919 267-9243
Old Stage Road Nursery 7181 Old Stage Rd. North Angier NC
919-631 –5729
2024 Operating Schedule & Ridership
2023 Operating Schedule & Ridership
2022 Operating Schedule & Ridership
2021 Operating Schedule & Ridership
2020 Schedule and Ridership->-.pdf
New Hope Valley Railway Website
Parking Lot address 3900 Bonsal Rd, New Hill NC 27562
Yard office address 5121 Daisey St.
Yard office telephone number is 919 362-5416
Wi-Fi in Yard Office and Ticket Office steamloco
Computer Login in yard office: mustang
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Completed re installing the electrical wiring to the unloading platforms.
The charging outlet for the engine is NOT installed.
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New Hill Yard in 1983
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December 16, 2013
Congratulations and thanks are in order to our members who participated in the four days of our Santa trains. They were long days with some bad weather conditions.
Everyone contributed to the success of the last two weekends. Not in any particular order: Parking lot crew, train operating crews, yard crew, car hosts, ticket office, gift shop, decorating crew etc. We could not have done it without your participation.
Special thanks to:
- Chris Tilly and Jim Meade, our Santa and Elf dynamic duo, who performed on all 24 runs.
- Roger Koss for his quick analysis and repair of Engine 399.
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Riders (for 6 trains each day):
Saturday, Dec 7th: 1,305
Sunday, Dec 8th: 925 (rain and very cold)
Saturday, Dec 14th: 1288 (heavy rain)
Sunday, Dec 15th: 1649 (delays refunds given)
Total: 5,167
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From the News and Observer, Monday 12/16/2013
Click HERE to play the video clip
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FYI
Jack Johnson asked to have the Morse Code receiver activated. I came up with this system. At this time, the Morse code message is recorded on an audio CD. I have ordered an MP-3 player to replace the CD player. (The only CD player that I have is a combo VHS/DVD player.)
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Wednesday, September 11th 2013
Work has started on #110, cutting the grass to the new saw mill and restroom, crew clearing the saw mill site.
It was only 90 today..!!
Great Costume for our Halloween Rides
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Click on the masthead for the full issue.
It's been 25 years and we are still waiting!
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Our own Dr. Bob Majors is Tar Heel of the week.
I bet he could not have done it without the help of the Pantone family!
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Board and Membership Ballot for the
July 20th Membership Meeting at 3:00 PM
Bios of the proposed new members.
Sunday, June 2, 2013 The debut of the Cliffside #110
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Membership Meeting Saturday,
April 20th 3:00 PM
Click here for a Membership Ballot
Who are the new members on the April 2013 ballot?
Tom Bauman lives in Apex and is retired
Member of Rochester Chapter NRHS and Genesee Valley Railroad Museum
Experience working as a depot attendant and Docent
Richard Gray lives in Cary
Works as a computer programmer
Joined on the Saturday when #110 was being displayed for the first time
Felix Markham lives in Durham
Retired Architect, Member of Durham Historical Preservation Society
Retired Project Manager from facility design office at Duke Medical Center
Skills – Woodworking and Carpentry
Glen McNitt lives in Cary
Retired Electrical Engineer
TCA Member
Mark Pullen lives in Pittsboro (Fearrington)
Retired Teacher
Very interested in Railroad history
Bob Youngblood lives in Trinity, NC
Senior Field Engineer
Member ACL/SAL Historical Society
Interested in Motor Cars (Speeders)
Repairs small engines
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The News and Observer has more photos of our opening day on their website.
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Caboose 335
The first picture was taken when we were getting caboose 335 ready to move.
It was park next to a Day Care Center in Nelson, NC located near I-40 and S. Miami Blvd.
The second picture was taken on February 6, 2013 when the Color Graphic crew was finishing up the lettering.
Many NCRM members did a very nice job of restoring this caboose.
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Wednesday, February, 27, 2013 Revised
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Historical pictures
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Pictures of the Cliffside #110 being transported to Bonsal
Local newspaper feature articles on the 110:
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The Santa Trains 2012
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Proposal by Dave Chasco:
Bay Window Caboose Rebuild
A. Background
The plan presented in this document is to refurbish the NW Bay window caboose into a themed luxury railcar for customer rental (revenue generation) with a construction period of a minimum of one year or to be stretched over time based upon funding available.
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Picture Gallery (38) for the Cliffside #110
http://remembercliffside.com/galleries/railroad/engines108_110/070_JPG.html
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stone_Mountain_Scenic_Railroad
#110, The Yonah II - a former McRae Lumber & Manufacturing 2-6-2 steam locomotive built by the Vulcan Iron Works in 1927. The engine later went to the Beechwood Band Mill in Cordele, Georgia, before being sold in 1933 to the Cliffside Railroad. The Cliffside retired the engine when the road dieselized in 1962, and sold it the following year to the Swamp Rabbit Railroad in Cleveland, South Carolina, who later sold the engine to Stone Mountain. First steam locomotive to be withdrawn from active service, having encountered running gear issues in 1982. Placed on display at the Memorial Depot in 1984, where it currently remains.
The Stone Mountain Memorial Association has recently donated the 110 to the New Hope Valley Railway in Bonsal, North Carolina , the engine is planned to be moved in early 2013.
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Planetarium for your computer!
Here is the link to download this free program: http://www.stellarium.org/
Stellarium is a free open source planetarium for your computer. It shows a realistic sky in 3D, just like what you see with the naked eye, binoculars or a telescope. It is being used in planetarium projectors. Just set your coordinates and go.
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The Bergmueller enigma.
Robert Bergmueller has a metal bar with a square cross section of 5/8” and a length of 7”. He needs to use his blacksmithing skills to make a linear taper of this rod from 5/8” to 3/8” of an inch.
How long will the 7” square rod be after Robert pounds it into the tapered rod?.
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You could receive money from a class action settlement.
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8/12/12 Youtube videos of legacy trains from Robert Middour
Here is a link to some very old railroad movies.
Here's another good one from the 1940s N&W:
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Here's an article that should be in the next Telegrapher:
Amtrak Losing Millions Each Year on Food Sales
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Tarheel Telegrapher August 2012
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From the NY Times Published: July 26, 2010
Genetic Data and Fossil Evidence Tell Differing Tales of Human Origins
By NICHOLAS WADE
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Mars Mini-Cooper scheduled to land on Monday.
From the NY Times 8/1/12
A Drop-In Looking for Signs of Company
We could use one of these at Bonsal.
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Wednesday, July 25, 2012
From Bob majors....Yes, while you were sipping peach margaritas on the beach, a few of us worked to keep up the place.
Linnaeus Pantone is very upset that the new caboose is blocking sunlight from the breeding pool of the Bonsal Vomiting Toad, Megalogaster Redux, a rare and endangered species.
I put a sunlamp on the pool while I was working today, and hope that this will save the species.
They consummate only in direct sunlight, as you well know.-----
From the NY Times 7/24/12
Mystery Tug on Spacecraft Is Einstein’s ‘I Told You So’
By DENNIS OVERBYE
It’s been a bad year to bet against Albert Einstein.
You may dream of freaky new physics, but sometimes freaky old physics is all you need.
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The semaphore was found in one of our boxcars and was restored by Jack Johnson.
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From Robert Bergmuller:
An old prospector shuffled into the town of El Indio, Texas leading a tired old mule.
The old man headed straight for the only saloon in town, to clear his parched throat.
He walked up to the saloon and tied his old mule to the hitch rail.
As he stood there, brushing some of the dust from his face and clothes, a young gunslinger stepped out of the saloon with a gun in one hand and a bottle of whiskey in the other.
The young gunslinger looked at the old man and laughed, saying, "Hey old man, can you dance?"
The old man looked up at the gunslinger and said, "No son, I don't dance... never really wanted to."
A crowd had gathered as the gunslinger grinned and said, "Well, you old fool, you're gonna dance now!" and started shooting at the old man's feet.
The old prospector, not wanting to get a toe blown off, started hopping around like a flea on a hot skillet.
Everybody standing around was laughing.
When his last bullet had been fired, the young gunslinger, still laughing, holstered his gun and turned around to go back into the saloon.
The old man turned to his pack mule, pulled out a double-barreled 12 gauge shotgun and cocked both hammers.
The loud clicks carried clearly through the desert air.
The crowd stopped laughing immediately.
The young gunslinger heard the sounds too, and he turned around very slowly.
The silence was deafening.
The crowd watched as the young gunman stared at the old timer and the large gaping holes of those twin 12gauge barrels.
The barrels of the shotgun never wavered in the old man's hands, as he quietly said;
"Son, have you ever kissed a mule's butt?"
The gunslinger swallowed hard and said, "No sir... but...but I've always wanted to."There are a few lessons for all of us here:
*Don't be arrogant.
*Don't waste ammunition.
*Whiskey makes you think you're smarter than you are.
*Always make sure you know who is in control.
*And finally, don't screw around with old folks; they didn't
get old by being stupid.
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From the NYTimes 7/10/12
A Blip That Speaks of Our Place in the Universe
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Remember to send in your ballot in for the new members.
Better yet bring it with you to our membership meeting on July 21st.
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It is hard to believe that our railroad looked like this and we still hauled passengers on car 100 with metal seats!
With a lot of hard work from all our volunteers through the years we have come a long way in 24 years.
Aren't we lucky that we now 4 nice looking passenger cars with roofs.
When I came to the railroad in 1986, I rode on car 100 when it didn't even have the metal seats. We just rode on the wooden deck.
Thank you for giving of your time and talents to make this the best railroad/museum in the area.
Members in picture - Dr. Jim Wright with orange safety hat, his son John Wright and David Campbell.
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From the NY Times June 22, 2012
Night Diving in Search of an Erie Glow
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From the NY Times: Published: June 14, 2012
With Science, New Portrait of the Cave Artist
By JOHN NOBLE WILFORD
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From the NYTimes:
Ex-Spy Telescope May Get New Identity as a Space Investigator
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In memoriam:
Our neighbor's friendly dog, Roxy.
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If you would like a copy Bob Hartig's Rumrunning: Freeport's Dark Secrets, send an e-mail to me (tdunn599@yahoo.com) and I will send you a copy of it. The file is too big to post on this website.
Message from Jack Hinkel's daughter:
Hi everyone!
Well, Jack ended up spending quite a bit
longer in the hospital than we thought he would, due to some swelling and
redness that they wanted to keep an eye on, but he's doing just fine and all
settled in at Rex Rehab. I'm not sure how long he'll be there, but I thought
I'd pass along the phone number and room number:
Rex Rehab of Apex
911 Hughes St
Room 302 A
(919) 363-6071
I'm going back over this afternoon to
drop off his cell phone, so that number should work again after we get the
phone charged.
(919) 961-5457
Thanks!
Jackie
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Friday, group ride at 10am. Try to arrive by 9am to help setup the area and ready the train. We need you to stay afterwards to show
the group our museum exhibits. Track inspection is at 8am if you would like to join Chris for a Hi-rail ride on our railroad.
Saturday - 10am Training for ALL crew members -> in Scotts' shop.
Saturday - 1pm Membership meeting. This is a VERY important meeting and if you care about the future of your railroad and museum, then you should plan to attend.
Sunday - 8am to help with the setup for today's activities. The science activities starts at 10am. Plan to stay afterward the 4pm train arrives back to help clean up
The continuing saga of the Pantones by Dr. Bob:
After the Wed. Crew was gone, I had a chance meeting with Mr. Pantone. He wanted to thank everyone for the palletization, which has improved the airflow under his home tremendously. He mentioned that his son, Umler Pantone was to visit soon. He is a rock musician, and his band is called Umler and the Codes. I'm sure you remember their platinum hit, " Multicolored Stripes", which came from their psychedelic LSD period when much was blue and red. There may be a visit soon, stay tuned!-----
Tarheel Telegrapher Jan- Feb 1990
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From the NY Times:
The Mighty Mathematician You've Never Heard Of
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As is usual, there
were events on the Wednesday site that went unreported.
First of all, the Pantones came over. They have named their newest addition, a girl, Osage Orange in honor of Dave Chasco, one of the site favorites. They are still upset at having their lawn littered with obscure metallic objects. They have also been concerned that, having paid Leon an astronomical sum for his heroic turfgrass efforts, the the area is turning into a "killing field". Scott Smith wreaked havoc with a number of trees with his infernal machine. As you know, trees feel pain when they are cut. Not respecting this valued precept, he smacked several with the blade of his machine repeatedly.T heir cries could be heard-over the entire New Hope Valley. Pickets from the Envirnomental Arborist Foundation showed up too late to chain themselves to the unfortunate objects of his ardor.Several trees that contained nests of the endangered Merry Oaks Rust Throated Warbler were mercilessly destroyedr Jim Meade was able to close the rear door of the Burro crane with heavy metallic persuasion. It is now painted with a new Pantone color, Bilious Vermillion-I hope that the new " terlet" being considered will incorporate elements of the two holer in the woods and the old one holer relic. Maybe use wood from the old ones for mirror frames, window frames, door parts-etc. to maintain the rustic nature of the predecessors.?
From the pen (or keyboard) of Dr. Bob Majors
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A message from David Chasco 3/23/12
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Why is it volume 23? Was the first issue published in 1965?
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We may have to add a literary column to our website.
In the genre of Dr. Bob’s stories, Scott Smith has posted the following:
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 12:29 PM
Ted has a new girlfriend and her name is "Creampuff"! She's a bit younger than he is (she was born in 1964), but it's fair to state that "she's been rode hard and put up wet".
Ted told me today that she had the "hots" for him so bad, that she was SMOKIN!
I told Ted that was because he was driving her with the emergency brake on....
What's interesting about their relationship is that when Ted "strokes her just right", SHE is the one that "gets it up"; not sure about Ted....
Talk about an "on again / off
again" relationship; Ted has already "dumped her" twice today!
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The new logo approved by the BOD on 2/18/12
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Fence removal 2/15/12
In preparation for the new caboose:When we removed the fence around the track from car 200’s platforms southward. We numbered each section.
The sections on the east side, the chain link sections were numbered 1 to 7. 1 being closest to the unloading platform. The hardware for connecting the sections is under the unloading platform.
The sections on the west side, the plastic fence are numbered 1 to 14. 1 being closest to the loading platform. A couple of the plastic mounting brackets on the fence posts are broken and need to be replaced when the fence is assembled. All of the screws were installed in the fence posts.
Remember that a square drive is need for these screws.
Engine #75 is another example of Bob Majors work at Bonsal.
The continuing commentary of Dr. Robert Majors 2/1/12
Click HERE for the complete works!
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Engine #75 is another example of Doc Majors work at Bonsal
End of (SR) boxcar 28655 was finished this date.
Bill Brooks worked all day long to make a front end loader operational, with consultation from our local real estate entrepreuner.
Chris and Jim worked on MOW projects.
Visitors from Maine toured the area.
Vegetarians from Chapel Hill picketed the Swift's Premium fridge, apparently sent by Paul and the others from the Yates Motor Company group. I called in the Swat team from Harris Plant and they were rapidly dispersed.
The two buildings moved to the G Scale site are now rented to very nice families.
They are using the Porta Potty on the other side to comply with HUD regulations.
All paint was applied to the Merry Oaks side of the fridge. Fill in around rivets and such will complete the project, save for the hatch covers.
Yes, the family loves the double door accent, but disdains the old wooden out house, prefering instead the blue plastic enclosure.
Have we applied for the Federal grant for insulated windows?
We'll need a minorty contractor and an environmental impact survey as well.
Translator who speaks esperanto must be onsite 24/7.
I took away their orange extension cords that had extensive tape repairs and they are using whale oil lamps.
Dec 14, 2011
The saw mill was in business today. We had to cut the new fencing
material to 10' lengths and add dog ears.
We also got to see a very
large machine go under our railroad bridges with only a few inches of
clearance.
Thank you for coming today to make this project seen so easy
12/12/11
Below are numbers graciously provided by Bob Crowley, who has meticulously tracked our ridership over the years.
These are tough numbers to beat:
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New signs for the the parking lot by John Betz 12/7/2011
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11/16/11 Sketch of fence to be erected
Possible changes to the schedule for 2012 REVISED
Possible changes in the schedule for 2012
Six options proposed by the BOD for changing the schedule and running days next year.
9/5/11
Ridership during the September ride day was 1,329. We had 544 pre-sales, 313 walk-ups and 472 Groupon redemptions. Groupon redemption rate for the month was 78%, down from 82% last month. Total Groupon redemption for the entire promotion stands at 48%. We broke the record for the most people on one train during our 12:15 run with 299 riders. Total ridership for the year, excluding Operate-a-Loco, group rides and charters is 5,268. This is up for all previous years at this time that I have data for (2006-2010: 4400, 4652, 4459, 4200, 4753). I will post these numbers on the bulletin board next time I am in Bonsal.
9/4/2011
This is what happens when the flipper board for car
200 was in an unloading position when the train was leaving.
We will need to replace 3 sections
We need to get the blue lights working correctly before the train crew makes
another costly mistake.
Thanks for coming out today. We had over 1,300 riders.
Robert
Wed, May 11th, 2011
There were only four of us at Bonsal today, Bob Majors, Mack, Doug and myself. Scott stopped by a couple of times.
When I arrived, I discovered that there was no electric power. Scott determined that the fuse at the transformer was not the problem.
I called Progress Energy and after several call backs, it was determined that the power was shut off because the electric bill was not paid. Scott spoke to John Morck and as of 2:30 PM, Progress Energy was on their way to Bonsal to restore the service.
Bob was working with Bondo and did not require electric power.
Doug was painting car 201.
I was working on the blue lights for car 200. I will be installing temporary wiring for the blue light system next week. See Platform Electrical drawing in the Reference Info page for details. The permanent wiring will be installed after we trench in the conduits to the two new platforms for car 201.
David Mathews plans
to run new 20 amp lines for the platforms on the Daisy street side. When
we add these circuits, we will install the permanent wiring for the blue
lights. We will be adding to more unloading platforms on the Daisy street side for cars 200 and 100 these platforms will have utility outlets and power for flood lights.
Hope to see you all next week, Ted
wed, 3/30
Hi on a very rainy day....
As most of you were in your warm dry homes or offices, the Wednesday Crew was enjoying a wet day at Bonsal.
At the start it was hardy raining and then it really started....
We stated fixing the platform for it permanent placement as you can see
in the picture we even add a cover so we wouldn't get wet.
This worked until we had to step outside or worked on the steps.
The other crew got to work inside of the car to finish painting and
installing the seats except for Pete who had the job of getting the
bubble gum off of them.
He has lots of samples to sell in the gift car.
We finally give into the rain and left about 1:00. Most of us were soaked to the bone!
I also included some pictures of the ticket building and how wet it was around it.
See you next time.
Robert
3/23/2011 Car 201
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3/23/2011 Car 201
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3/23/2011 Loading Platform for car 201
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3/21/2011 New Ticket Booth
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3/14/2011 The new ticket booth nears completion
1/12/2011
Because the roads will be icy tomorrow morning too, I think we should cancel our work session.
We will plan to work this Saturday morning starting at 9am.
Plan to bring your lunch. Also plan to stay for the BOD meeting at 4pm (instead of 3pm) at Scott's shop building.
Robert
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1/5/2011
The Wednesday Crew is back from the holidays...Here are some projects we worked on:
David Mathews and Ted Dunn added another circuit to the loading platform's outlets. These circuit breakers are in the panel behind the old ticket booth. The two 20 amp circuit breaker are in the panel on the rear of the old ticket booth (right side bottom).
We have had several problems w/the only one circuit feeding the 3 outlets.
During the Halloween rides, when using the many halogen lights on the platforms, the single circuit was blown several times.
Also while building car 201, an air compressor over heated while the saws were used at the same time.
Ticket/Station Building: Work has started again w/a final completion date of April 27, 2011.
Leon Lucas started trimming the doors, windows and attic opening.
David Mathews started installing the inside outlets and switches. (The outside outlets will be installed once the under the roof material is completed)
We had a discussion w/our crew on how the interior and exterior should be finished.
Next week if we have enough crew, we will finish the inside trim, start the flooring and building the deck foundation.
Come join us on Wednesdays.
Remember the next BOD meeting will be held at Bonsal (Scott Smith's) at 3pm on Saturday, Jan 15. ALL members are encouraged to attend
Robert and Dave
The ticket booth with deck and fence layout
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1/3/2011 MESSAGE FROM THE LEADER:
Happy New Year!!!
Our holiday is over, it is now time for us to get going on our Bonsal projects.
We need to finish these projects in the next 17 weeks... May 1st will be here soon...
1. Ticket/station building
2. Car 201
3. A deck for engine 17 crew
4. Loading and unloading platforms for car 201, 100 and 200
5. and maybe start rebuilding car 101 as a closed car similar to car 201.
To view our Existing Projects and Future Projects, visit our new web-site list below.
and if you would rather do track work it has already started.
Talk w/Jim Meade jbmeade@mindspring.com or Chris Boli cboli@nc.rr.com about their schedule.
Its is going to be much warmer this Wednesday than it was in December so plan to come out and
join the fun of making your Museum a better place for all our visitors.
See you by 9am and bring your lunch.
Robert
This morning. we again were at Bonsal in the 17 deg temperature. I
thought when one retired, we got to sleep-in in our warm bed and house.
Oh well, we choose to be at Bonsal to keep the work going.
We finished boxing in the ends on Car 201.
We removed and stored the canopy which always caught the rain water. We didn't want the snows to tear it down.
At lunch, in the warm 335 caboose, Hook Horton treated us w/KFC, Carmen
Chasco provided us w/her famous cookies and Charles gave us a bag of
coal!
We are taking the next 2 weeks off to enjoy the holidays and our warm houses.
We shall return on Wednesday, Jan 5, for more fun working on our project list.
Come join us if you are retiring in 2011 and would like to learn some new skills.
Check out the Wednesday's Crew new web-site listed below. Ted Dunn is
the administrator with the help Frederick Farzanegan (a Wednesday Crew
member who has a real job).
I hope each of you have a wonderful holiday and a Happy New Year.
Robert
Wed 12/15
The Train Rides are over for this year and now we can get back to our other fun projects.
For the Christmas Rides we had a total of 2,310 Dec 4 & 5, and 2,134 this past weekend and it snowed or rained 3 of the 4 days!
The total ridership was 13,423 for the year. We must be doing something right.
For this Wednesday (of course it is going to be cold again):
1. Car 201 Continue to finish the trim work and Dave's project list
2. Start the platform deck for engine #17 (unless the ground is frozen)
3. Have lunch and desserts in caboose 335.
4. Go home where it is warmer.
We will plan to start by 10. Even though the temperature was 20 deg
last week, it felt warmer as there was no wind or maybe we are just
getting use to the cold.
It is Wednesday, December 8th and it is cold.