PV 675 taking shape.

The PV van is starting to come along nicely now. Since the last post on the van I have managed to get alot done, Here's what Ive done.

A couple of weeks back now I welded the underframe with my MIG welder (after changing the wire and gas). This came about from a discussion with my brother about welding alluminium with my MIG welder and we came to the conclusion that there would only be one way to find out if it would work...... HAVE A GO.
So I did. This was my first time welding aluminium and it wasnt as bad as I thought it would be. Ill have to buy some more S trucks so I can improve my alli welding skills.

Welded up underframe.



After I welded the underframe I then began to work on the body. I cut out the body sheets to size about 2 weeks ago and started to glue it together. Tonight I glued the last of the supports inside the body and that has finished building the body. Now I will have to turn my attention to detailing the body.

Completed Body ready for detailing.

Tonight I have also decided on the number for the PV. A while back I stumbled onto some information on the internet about the PV vans including a list of numbers that a few (maybe it was a complete number list???) PV vans were numbered. Using this list of PV van's I have decided to number mine PV 675.

Thats all for now.

Until next time.......

Name Change.

Just thought I might let everyone know Ive decided to change the name of my blog. Ive been thinking about it over the last week or so that the original name of the blog was a bit long and a mouthfull as well. So now we have The Waratah Railway Workshops.

Over the last 2 weeks or so Ive managed to get a large amount of work done to the PV Explosive Van. Once I return back Home after this weekend and get a little bit more work done on it I will give you all an update on my progress.

First Job in the new shed.

Its been a few weeks since Ive made a post so here goes.
Ive been very busy with moving here to the new house and working some very long hours with the new job.
Ive managed to partially set up the new workshop but its no where near organised yet!

Tonight I completed the first job in the new workshop. I made up a very simple tool to remove some stuck injector cones in an Injector.

To cut a long story short ive been having a fair bit of Injector trouble with my loco 1248.
At the easter AALS convention at Edgeworth I purchased two Injectors from a supplier that was selling various parts at a trade stand there.

The first injector was a Warrick Sandberg injector. I baught this one because Warricks injectors have an excelent reputation for reliability etc, So I figured I would buy this to hopefully solve all my injector trouble...... When I baught this injector from Oldmate with the trade stand he told me "That injector is untested and brand new but doesnt come with a test certificate like my ones do".
Anyways I tried the injector on my engine straight away......No go it didnt work.
So i fitted the other "cheep" injector and continued to keep running.

Now a few months have past and I happend to be speaking to Warrick and mentiond that I had purchased one of his injectors from Oldmate, and he replied "ive never sold him any of my injectors, let me see it" so he had a look and within seconds said "well I can tell you this is not brand new".
Im not impressed that Oldmate who had the trade stand has sold me second hand parts knowing they are second hand and tell me they are new.........

The Sandberg Injector.

Today I was speaking to Warrick about this injector and what could be wrong with it. He told me an idea of a way to get the stuck cones out to work toward getting to the bottom of the problem. So after work tonight i made up the little gadget to get the cones out.

Ive used a piece of scrap steel to clamp onto the cones to remove them without damage.

The injector cone remover gadget shown clamping a cone.



So now its apart tomorrow its back to the drawing board to work it all out.

During the week Ive also had various other parts turn up in the post for different projects that I have on the go. I had the rest of the Warm white LED globes for Lower (and maybe Upper) Quadrant signals, And the remaining parts that I was waiting for from railcraft for the PV.

Allthough only a couple of parts turned up I thought I might show you some of the parts ill be using on the Van.

PV parts from Railcraft.

Thats about all for now. I hope to keep moving with the PV soon. Id like to see it finished.

4 Wheelers

Well theres plenty going on at the moment.
On Thursday I had a phone call from the Real estate to say that my application has been approved. Tomorrow I go down there to sign all the papers and get the keys. The Waratah Wagon and loco shops (Western Division) can start setting up shop tomorrow.

This morning instead of packing box's of stuff for the move I decided I would attack the two Warrick Sandberg S trucks I have and do those last couple of jobs needed to finish them. One of the S trucks Ive had running for a while, but the second one has never hit the tracks yet.
This afternoon I fitted handbrake wheels and release's on both wagons as well as the shunters hand rails.

Handbrake fitted to the second wagon.

I attacked the second S truck first. The parts used for the handbrakes have come from Railcraft, and are excelent products. The handbrake wheel is lazercut from steel and the ratchet and handle are made from polyurathane.

The finished products on both wagons. Both are now fitted with handbrakes and shunters handles in the body.

The photo above best shows what I achieved today. As they say in the classics "a picture says a thousand words".

All that remains on both S Trucks now is a final coat of NSWGR wagon grey and lettering and numbers.

During some spare time last week I managed to get a few bits and pieces done on the PV underframe.

All 4 axlebox's have been filed to suit the w irons and all now fit. Just a few small bits need attention before the underframe can be sent to Oldmate Welding PTY LTD for welding (welding aluminuim is a bit beyond my welding skills).

         Allmost ready to go PV underframe.

The above photo shows the PV underframe. I have used railcraft axlebox's and bearings with Warricks S truck wheels and underframe and the combination of these is 100% PERFECT. The underframe needs no modifactions to recieve these axlebox's. All that you need to do to make them fit is file the axlebox's down a little and out where the box's slip into the W iron. Perfection.......

Well thats all for now..... The big move starts tomorrow........

Packing up.

Yesterday I flew back up to Qld and returned to Toowoomba to collect the remainder of my things and (most important of all) my XR6 ute.
Today I made a quick dash out to the outlaws place (thank god none of them were home) to finish up the PV van wheels, as I now loose access to a lathe until I buy my own. So today was the day the wheels had to be finished.

Completed PV wheels.

As I mentioned earlier on in the post I have returned to Toowoomba to pick up the rest of my gear that is at my girlfriends house. I now have a job back in the home land of NSW where I have begun working for a company that repaires and maintains diesel loco's for SSR and IRA.

I have spent the afternoon packing up the tools and material that I have in the shed and tomorrow Ill pack up the rest of my stuff in the house and load up the XR6 for a early morning departure on saturday for Sydney.

So next week its back the real estates where I hope to rent a house soon and set up the new Waratah Wagon and Loco works (Western Division).

The Prototype and the Model.

On the weekend that has just past I Travelled to Robertson on 3642 as apart of the NSWRTM's "Southern Highlander". It was a great trip a fun day was had by us service crew and the loco driver and fireman as well.

I managed to take a couple of photos in between attending to the needs of 3642.

3642 has been prepaired for the run to Eveleigh. 8.7.11

3642 has been watered, banked and shares the roads outside the LES at Eveleigh with Goodwin-Alco group's 4486 and 4473.

Goodwin-Alco's latest loco to return to trafic, 4464 poses with 3642 out the front of the LES.

Standing at Robertson 3642 has been serviced and is ready to return to Sydney via the south coast.

Well that was my weekend with the prototype. Now its time for the model. Hot off the press comes this photo of the latest tender progress. Here you will see that the floor pieces in the coal space have been cut out. Now its time for the fun part of tender construction. RIVITS.

Oldmate Lazercutting and sheet metal has been busy again more tender parts.

New floor in the coal space.

Thats all for now.

S Truck, PV and Tenders!

Theres been plenty going on since the last post.
Over the last few weeks Oldmate sheetmetal, Welding and Lazercutting has been busy programing various tender parts into the lazer cutter to further progress with the construction of our two tenders for a NSWGR 36 class.

 

Here we have the main tank and baffles cut out. Allthough the photo doesnt show it the holes for the rivits have been cut out as well.


Soon the remaining parts of the turret will be cut out and we can begin riviting both tender bodys.

There has been plenty of S truck progress since the last post. The S truck is comming close to completion,as it stands this afternoon there isnt much left to do on it.
All that remains on the S truck is: Drill holes in the knuckle couplers and fit to the wagon, Make a trip to bunnings to buy bolts to hold the couplers into the coupler pockets, Fit dummy hand brake wheels (this wont happen until later because those parts are in Toowoomba....) , final coat of paint and lettering and numbers. I think the photo below can best show progress.

Allmost finished! Wheels and axlebox's fitted.

We also cant forget the PV explosive van..... I now have the underframe parts for the PV. It is one of Warrick Sandbergs S truck Underframes. The parts will now have to be sent to Oldmate welding for welding before it can progress any further.

Underfame parts ready for welding.

Thats all for now. But I will leave you with this video i found on Youtube last night of me, my engine and freight train passing the cammera at hotpot.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5rZ-iAUaZg