Rockhill Furnace Work Session: May 3-4, 2008

The fifth work session of 2008 was held May 3-4, 2008. The weather started dry but ended up with scattered showers.

Attendees included Dave Phillips, Andy Van Scyoc, Lee Rainey, Charles Wootton, Bob Goldby, Barb Morgan, John Morgan, Ray Davidowski, Nick Parsons, Jim Bacon, Bill Adams, Dave Dietz, Richard Shell, Steve Jacobs, Chris Coleman and Reggie Arford.

Machine Shop/Boiler Shop (Paint & Windows)

4½ windows on the west side of the buildings received putty and the finish coat of paint prior to rain storms which swept through Saturday afternoon and wetted down the wood, preventing any further work. On Sunday, the restoration work moved indoors as staples, tack strips, torn plastic sheets, dirt and debris were cleaned from around the windows, workbenches and floors in the shops.

Machine Shop (Structural & Machinery)

The first load of long 8x8" beams and many 2x4s and 2x10s for the Machine Shop/Boiler Shop roof beam replacement project were delivered Saturday morning. This lumber will be used to build jacking and support posts for the roof trusses in the machine shop. A number of repairs were made in the roof trusses of the Machine Shop including the installation of reinforcement gussets on the bracing installed on the #2 truss during the last session.

On Sunday, additional bracing was added to both the #1 and #2 roof trusses and the first 8x8 post was installed in the wheel press pit.

Work continued on returning the Shipley drill press in the Machine Shop to operation. Additional adjustments allowed the press to actually drill holes in 1/4" sheet steel. In future sessions, machine restoration will proceed to other machines.

Garage

Several roof board repairs were performed on the east and south roof faces.

Hopper 802

Side-dump hopper 802 has been switched by the railroad crew to reside with the other hoppers in the yard. Some paint touch up brings an end to this three year project.

Boxcar 168

Saturday's work included fabricating a set of steps for the east side of the car. While this was going on the carpenters continued building and fitting the wooden pieces that will become the frame openings and wooden trim on the finished car.

Sunday's efforts included completion of the east side steps and their installation, welding up of many old rivet holes on both ends and the east side of the car and welding a number of steel patches into the east side of the car. More trim pieces were fabricated for eventual installation on the car. Primer was applied to a large portion of the steel including the frame, bolster and ends. Late Sunday afternoon, the carpenters began installation of stringers for the wood deck.

Combine 14

On the south platform, two wood end beams were repaired in rotted areas with sealer and epoxy. They were then sanded in preparation for new blocks

Track Repairs/Jordan Creek Retaining Wall

Twenty-seven ties were hauled over to the paint shop lead in preparation for installion. Twenty five are slated for the lead track and two for the Jordan Creek retaining wall.

Coal Dock/South Water Column

A drainage pipe installed by FEBT volunteers a couple years ago was cleaned of debris and began draining water away from the Coal Dock again.

The grates were removed from the top of the drain pit at the south Rockhill water column. Using a generator and sump pump the pit was pumped out over a period of several hours and the many years collection of debris and mud in the bottom of the pit was shoveled out. The pit was then inspected to discover how the drain might be repaired.

Lumber Shed

A large number of loose roofing sections were refastened on the roof of the Lumber Shed.

Rockhill Section Shed

The replica rolled roofing applied to the south side of the Section Shed in 2003 was destroyed by high winds over the winter. It was decided to apply a more conventional asphalt shingle roof, using extra shingles from the re-roofing of the Orbisonia Station. The roof, while less original, is much more durable.

Rockhill Section House

All the loose roofing sections were fastened down in preparation for the application of roof coating during the next session.

Next Work Session

The next Rockhill work session will be held from May 19 to May 23. See you there!