News

13.04.2025: News

Dear friends of our museum, dear guests,
We have to start today's newsletter with some sad news that has shaken us all very much. Our long-standing colleague and co-founder of our association, or rather the initiator of all our endeavours, Klaus-Peter Müller, passed away last weekend at the age of 82. Klaus-Peter leaves a huge gap in our ranks, as he supported the association with drive, determination and a huge network and saved us through many a dark hour. We say ‘Thank you, Klaus-Peter!’ for everything. We will carry the memory of you in our hearts and continue your work. Klaus-Peter Müller will be duly remembered at our spring steam event on 3 and 4 May 2025.
Despite the sadness, we are of course looking forward to the event. It will once again give you and us the opportunity to let plenty of steam blow around our noses. Not only will our now 100-year-old steam locomotive ‘Emma’ be in operation. We are also trying to get an operational class 86 steam locomotive from the PRESS Group, which you may have seen on your last summer holiday on Rügen or Usedom. The steam locomotives and some diesel locomotives will not only be available for viewing at the event. We also offer cab rides on them. A great experience!
Please see the attached poster for details of the opening times and other general conditions. If you would like to help us, please print out the poster and put it up in public places (e.g. on the notice board in the supermarket) so that as many people as possible know about our event.

Our own steam locomotive 50 3570 is still ‘undergoing treatment’. As we have already reported, all the tubes have been removed from the boiler so that they can be replaced with new ones. In the meantime, the boiler overhaul has made further progress. Here the pipe walls have been ground. These are the metal walls in the boiler between which the pipes run. The openings that accommodate the pipes must actually be circular so that the new pipes can actually be installed pressure-tight.


Work was also carried out on our class 114 diesel locomotive. Here, our colleagues cleaned the so-called gap filter. This is a device that filters metallic impurities out of the engine oil. Such a slotted filter consists of several hundred layers of thin metal sheets, between which the engine oil is pressed and which catch the impurities.

Work also continued on the museum site, as we want to prepare it as well as possible for our visitors before the museum opens for the season on Easter Saturday. To this end, some colleagues have put up historical warning signs to remind you, dear visitors, that railway vehicles may be travelling on the nearby tracks. Safety is always an issue these days and we must ensure that there is no unwanted contact between people and machines.


The redesign of the level crossing leading from the gatehouse to the engine shed also contributes to the issue of safety. We are endeavouring to complete the paving work by Easter Saturday so that you can reach the museum easily.

If the construction site is still in place next weekend, please take appropriate care. However, access to the museum will be possible in any case. We look forward to your visit and will be there for you every Saturday from next Saturday until October. Don't forget: Spring steam on 3-4 May 2025!

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12.03.2025: We are working on the boiler of our steam locomotive 50 3570

Over the past few weekends, we have been hard at work on the boiler of our steam locomotive 50 3570. As previously reported, all the pipes inside were to be removed and replaced with new ones. This work is tedious and dirty, so we are pleased that this work has now been completed. Today's pictures show some snapshots of the work. The first step was to loosen the pipes from their anchoring and then pull them out of the inside of the boiler. This not only requires labour and sweat, but also a lot of oxygen and acetylene for the welding torches. It should be borne in mind that the pipes are quite heavy and unwieldy. They weigh between 40 and 80 kilograms, depending on the diameter. So you have to be strong to complete the work. But the drink at the end tastes all the better and you are guaranteed not to need to go to the gym afterwards.







Work also continued on the interior of our 197 805 coach. The wall insulation and panelling have now been completed and are being painted. We are following the historical colour scheme. The window strip is given several layers of light green colour, which also contains a proportion of beige. Once the paint has dried, wooden mouldings are fitted to cover the gaps between the wall panels.

We would like to draw your attention to the start of our museum season. The museum will be open regularly on Saturdays from Holy Saturday (19 April) until the end of October.
Our spring steam event will take place on 3 and 4 May. The now 100-year-old steam locomotive Emma will be in operation. We are also endeavouring to find a replacement for our steam locomotive 50 3570, which in all probability will not be ready by May. But you can still look forward to the event - it's going to be steaming.

https://dampflok-wittenberge.de/download/2025-05-03-fruehjahrsdampf.pdf
vehicle: 50 3570-4

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02.02.2025: Work on the boiler of our steam locomotive

We have already reported on the work on our steam locomotive 50 3570 in recent newsletters. The main focus is still and for the foreseeable future on the necessary repair work on the boiler, which must be prepared.
At the beginning of the year, we had already started to remove the so-called superheater elements from the locomotive's boiler. These are pipes through which the steam flows on its way to the cylinders and is heated to nearly 300 degrees Celsius. This increases its efficiency. Loosening and removing the pipes is one of the hardest and dirtiest jobs on the locomotive, because you are exposed to the soot and rust of recent years and the pipes are heavy and unwieldy. Fortunately, this work has now been completed and the smokebox, i.e. the part of the boiler under the chimney, is now completely empty.

In the first picture, you can also see a round wall at the end of the smokebox, in which dozens of holes can be seen. On closer inspection, you can see that a pipe ends in each of the 38 large and over 100 small holes.

The hot air and exhaust fumes from the fire burning at the other end of the boiler in the firebox flow through these pipes. The hot air therefore heats the tubes from the inside. There is also such a similar wall in the firebox. Between these walls and in the spaces between the pipes, there is water when the locomotive is in operation, which is boiled into steam by the heated pipes. This is the steam that moves the locomotive.
The following picture shows a sectional drawing of a boiler similar to the one on our steam locomotive 50 3570. The superheaters are marked with the numbers 12, the pipes in the boiler with the numbers 14 and 15, and the green colour indicates the space in the boiler where water is heated to steam when the locomotive is in operation. The space in which the steam collects above the water level is marked in orange. The smokebox (No. 28) is on the left-hand side of the drawing, the firebox (No. 16) on the right-hand side.

Now you can imagine that the pipes mentioned are exposed to a very high thermal load from the inside and to contact with water from the outside, which causes them to rust and gradually wear away. The pipe walls therefore become thinner over time. As it is essential to avoid the situation where pipes become perforated or even burst, they have to be replaced with new ones after a few years. And that's exactly what we plan to do again so that the boiler can be operated safely for the next few years.
Once the superheaters had all been removed, the work shifted to the firebox. Here, the so-called brick arch (no. 20) had to be dismantled. This is a round arch made of fireclay bricks, which is intended to prevent the flames in the firebox from hitting the pipe wall located there directly. To do this, you have to climb into the firebox through the fire door (No. 19) on the driver's cab of the locomotive, which is only possible if your waist and shoulder width do not exceed a certain size.


Once the brick arch had been removed, there was now enough space to devote to removing the pipes in the boiler. It should be noted that the tubes are only welded into the tube wall at one end, namely in the firebox. At the front end, in the tube wall in the smokebox, they are merely rolled in, i.e. mechanically widened with enormous force to such an extent that they are tightly stuck in the tube wall, but not firmly connected. The reason for this is that the entire boiler and the tubes inside it become several millimetres longer or shrink when the fire in the firebox goes out and the boiler is taken out of operation. In order to avoid tension in the tubes, they can push through the tube wall a little at the rolled-in end when heating up and cooling down. If this were not the case, they could buckle when heating up or even tear when cooling down.
Now, our task is to burn away the weld seams of all the pipes in the firebox with a welding torch and grind away the residue to release the pipes on this side.

Then, and this is when it gets really intense, the pipes are driven forwards towards the smokebox using a kind of pneumatic hammer so that the end rolled in at the front comes out of the pipe wall and the pipes are loose there too. Then you can pull them out completely at the front and replace them with new ones later. But it will be some time before then and until then the whole project will only cost our labour.
After that, it will unfortunately be very expensive, because the cost of making a new pipe alone - depending on the diameter - can run to several hundred euros each. If you consider that we are talking about 170 pipes, this alone adds up to a considerable amount. Then there is the installation by a specialist contractor that is authorised and certified to work on pressure vessels such as our boiler.
And this is where you come in: If you would like to support us in getting our steam locomotive back into operation, you can help us with a donation, no matter how big it is. Every euro helps. Become a pipe sponsor. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions. The members of our Executive Board will be happy to answer your questions.
What else has actually happened?
The work in our carriage 197 805 is continuing. At the moment, the walls are being painted so that the luggage racks can be installed soon. We will then turn our attention to the heating and the floor covering.

We are also currently working on our access road. If you have visited us before, you may remember the wooden planks that were fixed between the rails on the way from the gatehouse to the engine shed to ensure a crossing. These planks have now been worn out by heavy vehicles and need to be replaced. The new solution consists of paving the level crossings, which should be much more durable.

vehicle: 50 3570-4

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22.01.2025: Work and pleasure at the start of the year

Dear friends of our museum, we would like to wish you all the best for the start of the new year - even if it is a little late. We have started the season with a lot of work, but also with pleasure.
The first task was to prepare our steam locomotive 50 3570 for the replacement of the various pipes in the boiler. To do this, the so-called superheater elements had to be removed. On our locomotive, these are 38 of them in which the steam from the boiler is heated again before it is fed into the locomotive's cylinders. This increases its efficiency.
Unfortunately, the fastening screws of the individual elements are constantly exposed to the exhaust fumes from the locomotive's fire during operation. As a result, the bolts are often difficult to loosen and the nuts must first be heated red-hot with a welding torch. This causes them to expand a little and they can then be unscrewed with great effort.
However, by joining forces, we managed to remove the entire set last Saturday. It was extremely strenuous and dirty but satisfying work.





Other colleagues were busy moving the heavy display cases into the new exhibition room in the south gable of our locomotive shed. As it is located on the first floor, all the frames and glass panes of the showcases had to be lifted up by forklift truck. The frames were then assembled there. The glass panes will be installed soon.





Our excavator is also making progress. All the body work on the driver's cab has been completed. A replacement engine will soon be installed, which is already waiting to be used in our workshop. As soon as the temperatures allow, the excavator will be painted. We will then reinstall the windows. We hope that it will shine in new splendour again for our first event in May 2025.

Of course, we should not only work, but also celebrate properly. Traditionally, we don't have a Christmas party, but get together for a New Year's reception. This was also the case last weekend. We kicked off the new year with lots of coffee and cake, followed by savoury food and drinks. A great event.

vehicle: 50 3570-4

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