21.03.2020: Construction work continues
In spite of Corona, work continues in the museum, but of course only as far as circumstances permit. Because the members do not want to endanger themselves or others. After all, a construction site is in operation.
This involves the restoration of parts of the roof of the former locomotive shed 1, where the tops of the walls have now been restored by a specialist company by removing the dilapidated upper layers and reconstructing them with the original. In addition, invisible from the outside, a reinforced concrete ring anchor which can safely take the loading of the new roof covering has been installed, .
Now that the walls and substructures are load-bearing again, the roofers can can get to work, and this will probably be in the next two weeks. In preparation, safety nets have already been hung on the roof substructure to prevent the roofers from falling when installing the rafters.
17.03.2020: Season opening postponed
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the season opening which was planned for 04.04.2020 has to be postponed indefinitely. We will inform you on our homepage when the museum will again be open on Saturdays.
29.02.2020: Preparations for the new season: Part 2
Last Saturday was devoted entirely to our steam engine 50 3570. Here too some maintenance work had to be done. The colleagues removed the piston valves in the two steam chests in order to clean them and examine them for damages. Here are two pictures of the removal:
In the first picture you can still see the piston behind the maintenance flap. In the second picture the piston has already been removed. You can see the empty liner of the valve chest at the top and the circular cover of the steam cylinder below.
After removal of the piston valve, the piston rings which seal the pistons heads aginst the liner were removed, .
Then the piston ring grooves were cleaned of dirt. Our colleague still looks happy before the work starts - he is still relatively clean...
Here is a short explanation of the function of the piston valves of a steam loco. It is well known that the steam pressure in the steam cylinders is converted into motion because the steam presses on one side or the other of the piston head alternately, which drives the wheels via the connecting rods.
The side from which the steam is now fed into the steam cylinders is controlled by the aforementioned piston valves. They open the corresponding inlet and exhaust portds, through which the steam is admitted to and exhausted from the steam cylinders. They thus have the same purpose as the camshaft in a combustion engine. However, the valves also have the effect that the steam-passages in the steam cylinders are, so to speak, short-circuited when no steam is applied and the locomotive is coasting. This prevents the steam cylinders from working as air-brake pumps and thus causing a considerable braking effect.
in the penultimate picture you see the piston valve in its "midgear" position: The two large inner slide valve bodies are in the middle position as if the steam locomotive is idling while rolling. If the steam engine is to work, fresh steam under high pressure is fed into the steam chest, which then pforces the inner piston heads outwards. This either closes or opens the inlet or exhaust ports of the steam cylinders, according to the position of the piston valve in relation to the position of the steam cylinders and the desired direction of travel.
Since all this is difficult to explain, here is a small animation we have taken from the internet page https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steuerung_(steam engine). You can see the cutaway cylinder to the right of the driving axles of the locomotive. On the top is the steam chest with the piston valves, below is the steam cylinder. Depending on the direction in which the locomotive is to travel and the position of the piston valves, steam is either admitted to the steam cylinders through the valve ports or exhausted. If the direction of travel is to be changed, the valve is moved in the steam chest in such a way that the other side of the piston head has live steam applied to it.
22.02.2020: Maintenance work in full swing
Preparations for the next season are in full swing. Firsta the vehicles: Emma's new coal box has been primed and we're now waiting for the air temperature to rise to a level that allows the green final coat of paint. She has to look pretty again by the first event.
Also our excavator T174 is now in the final assembly stage. It has got a new slewing gear drive and is currently in the adjustment and final assembly phase. It is great that it now works again without any problems.
One of the big diesel locomotives is also undergoing some maintenance work. The starter batteries of 118 748 needed fresh distilled water again. After they were installed again today, the battery charger was connected. Maybe we can take the locomotive to the next event ... ?!
The machine trolley is currently being repainted in our work hall. At the moment it is being reprimed and we hope for rising temperatures in the near future so that we can apply the final coat of paint.
Initial work has been done on our new addition, trailer 190 851. The front sides were partly cleaned from dirt and paint and windows were removed so that we can inspect corrosion damage. Unfortunately, it looks as if there will be a lot to do.
And finally to the work on the locomotive shed I. Finally the scaffolding has been erected, which makes it possible to work on the top of the wall. Since water has penetrated from above, the topmost layers must be removed and rebuilt. This will be carried out by a specialist company in due course. After that the roofers will come.
vehicles: Emma, 118 748-3, 190 851-6, Der Katastrophenzug
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01.02.2020: Emma and others in the beauty salon
Only Emma knows how much coal was poured into her coal bunker and shovelled out from there by the countless firemen she has met in her life. So the ravages of time slowly gnawed away at her coal bunker, and rust ate its way through the metal from the inside. Now we are using the winter break for some cosmetic surgery and to give the little locomotive some new metal plates so that she looks pretty again and the coal stays where it belongs.
On Saturday, February 1, we got to grips with the previous metal plates and with a few courageous cuts, we removed large areas of rusting sheeting.
During dismantling, it turned out that not only the outside but also the inside of the bunker was affected by pitting corrosion, so a new piece of sheet metal was welded in place here as well.
After that, a coal chute was fabricated. The inclined plate is designed to cause the coal to slide gradually and automatically towards the cab as coal is shovelled from the feed plate.
Finally a new outer skin was welded on.
Also the small children's locomotive is nearing completion. She is already looking good in a new coat of paint and has new running gear. We hope our little visitors will enjoy it from the beginning of the season in April.
Also on Saturday, February 1st, we were able to secure a few important spare parts for our freight wagon, which is currently being refurbished. Since it had lost a sliding door on one side at some stage, we had been on the lookout for a replacement. We found it on the other side of the Elbe. Standing there is the body of a freight car with similar dimensions to ours, by now completely overgrown and abandoned. It still had a sliding door and corresponding runners and fittings. At least, it did until last Saturday...
vehicle: Emma
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25.01.2020: Latest news
The work on the Breuer tractor, about whose field of use and mode of operation we reported on last time, is continuing. For the first time, the transmission has been opened to see how far corrosion has ... zum Artikel
12.01.2020: The Breuer tractor
Many of our visitors will have stopped in front of a very special contraption. Since it looks a bit shapeless, you can't see its purpose right away. All that is clear is that it runs on rails.
We have ... zum Artikel
