2011 STEAM GALA

The Sandstone Heritage Trust 2011 Steam Gala is over and the photographs are starting to come in. A lot happened and although relatively few people attended they were treated to some spectacular photographic opportunities. The highlight was undoubtedly the 3 x NGG16's and one NGG13 working together. Undoubtedly a first in the world.

As is customary at the Sandstone Heritage Trust many other items complemented the 2-ft Narrow Gauge Rail activities on a daily basis.

In this picture a rare Marshall MP6 tractor waits at the level crossing towing a rare CAT R2 Dozer.

Another advantage of steaming four Garratts at one time is we were able to place them together on four adjacent lines for a photo opportunity.

For those fortunate enough to watch four Garratts thundering through the beautiful Eastern Free State on a sunny April afternoon was enough to give one Goosebumps.

You could chase the train with a 1901 B5 Traction engine, a 1951 F100 Ford, a Mk IV Sherman, a Saracen, a Caspir, or any one of dozens of other possibilities in the Agricultural, Military or Steam categories.

 

The magic of Model Engineering

Charles Viljoen brought his beautifully engineered 1904 Arnold Jung locomotive and placed it on display for the guests.

Thank you Charles, your efforts were much appreciated.

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Our two venerable old buses performed a great service transporting photographers ahead of the trains so they could always be in the right place at the right time. This is our lovely old Bristol bus which featured in the film "Cry the beloved country".

Our AEC, which has been on the farm for many years and which was donated to the Sandstone Heritage Trust by John Allen, was also pressed into service where required.

This line-up of old items waiting to cross the railway line include a 1927 Chev, a 1947 John Deere Model H, a 1953 Field Marshall Series III, and of course our Bristol in the foreground. A team of oxen can be seen in the distance.

A Bristol load of passengers is forced to take to the lands to overtake the majestic B5 Fowler Road Locomotive trundling back from a photo shoot.

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BSA Rail Car

Our BSA was a great attraction. It was very useful if one wanted to follow a train or just take a few guests on a ride.

Hans Hermann (sitting) was one of the guests who enjoyed a ride in the Rail Car with his sister and brother-in-law from Hamburg, Germany.

 

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Patrick Polo, a visitor from Switzerland, attended our Gala in 2010 and was at Sandstone throughout the 2011 Steam Gala.

Patrick has always been very generous in providing beautiful photographs taken at previous events.

This is a photo of Patrick posing with a few of the many framed photographs that he donated to the Sandstone Heritage Trust. These are hanging on the wall in the main office.

 

 

 

Sandstone Heritage Trust steams four Garratts for select group of international visitors

On Sunday afternoon, 10^th April 2011, a combined crew of South African and international drivers and firemen drove four Sandstone Garratts into the record books by operating a single train over sections of the Sandstone network. NGG16, No. 153, NGG16, No. 113, NGG16, No. 88, and NGG13, No. 49 operated together pulling a 35 wagon train through the Cosmos in the beautiful Eastern Free State.

The occasion was the 2011 Sandstone Heritage Trust Steam Gala which runs from 9^th to 16^th April 2011.

The weather has been impeccable throughout the event thus far but on Sunday afternoon big storm clouds came in over Lesotho and for a short while blocked out the sun – at exactly the same time that the photographers were lined up to record this momentous event. Nonetheless, the first pictures that have come in do justice to the occasion.

Ron Nell of Frameline Film & Television was on hand to record the event and a DVD of the entire week’s proceedings will be available in a few months time.  Should you be interested in receiving details of this top class DVD production please record your interest by e-mailing Joanne West at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Photo Gallery

Photo credit: David Benn

Photo credit: David Benn

Photo credit: Wilfred Mole

Photo credit: Wilfred Mole

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Dennis Moore has just sent us the following photographs which he took during the course of the event.

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David Benn, always the first to make his magnificent photographs available, has supplied the following photographs.

David is still out there taking photographs so expect more great pictures to follow.

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Photo credit: Wilfred Mole

Photo credit: Wilfred Mole

Photo credit: Wilfred Mole

Photo credit: Wilfred Mole

Photo credit: Ernst Pfeffer

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Hannes Paling has just supplied us with these exceptional photos which he took during the course of the event.

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Photos by Peter Randall

 

 

 

 

 

 

Weekly Report - By Stephen du Preez

Stephan du Preez has submitted a report which will be of particular interest to visitors of our April event.

We are making good progress on all fronts and providing there is no extraordinary weather conditions we should be on track.

We have enjoyed considerable support from our technical personnel who are normally based at the Bloemfontein Repair Depot, and we would like to thank both them and the Sandstone staff for their diligence over recent weeks.

Stephan’s report is below for your interest:

 

Rail Repairs

The repairs at Pandora and the length of rail from Pandora to Vailima have been repaired. Work has started at Vailima.

Below you can see some photos of the before and after the repairs have been done at Pandora.

Flood damage at Vailima

Below are some photos from the damage at Vailima. The holes have been filled with building rubble which will be bonded with soil crete to give it the required strength.

Postal wagon

Wouter is finished with all the damaged plates on the wagon and has started painting the frame and the roof of the wagon. I have given Peter the amount and colours of the paint needed for the body of the wagon he is busy getting quotes from some places.
 

Testing and repair of steam locomotives

Leon and Isack have been hard at work to get the locos ready for the event. They discover allot of work that will need attention due to lack of maintenance. I do my best to accommodate them in any way I can. They have steamed up NG17, Lawley 97(James Hall Lawley), NG4, and NGG16 (no.153 & no.49). Most of the locos have some valves and glands that are leaking. All the locos tubes are being washed out and problems fixed as they go on. They are concentrating on the biggest problems first. We are also making notes on all the problems on every loco. I am keeping book on the repairs and work that need to be done on every loco so we can know exactly what is wrong and no time has to be wasted to look for every problem.

The problems that have been fixed

NG4

• Regulator did not close

NGG16 (No. 49)

• Hole in supper heater fixed
• Regulator valve have been re-seated
• Lead plug replaced
• Safety valve seat replaced
• New copper dome gasket fitted

Lawley (BR)

• New pins fitted on brake gear

NG17

• Replaced broken water gauge glass

BSA Rail car

I have fitted all the bolts on the suspension with new bolts and lock nuts and washers. Some modifications have also been made to the sprocket on the rear axle. I test drove it and it did not give any problems.

 

 

Weekly report

We have received the following weekly report from Stephan du Preez on what his department got up to this week.

Click here to view the report - 3.9MB Word document (opens in new window)

A STEAMING YEAR!!!

This year was a very good year for the Sandstone Steam Railway and many train tours were hosted however this is only a small part of what we really are doing down in the Eastern Free State. Also was it a black year for Steam and we lost so many locomotives to the cutters. Chamdor was a disaster and SANRASM as well, but we still are steaming on.

Gert Jubileus has submitted his latest weekly report.

Click here to view the report - 1.13MB PDF (opens in new window)

 

Sandstone talk to East Anglian Group of the WHRS

Kim Winter has visited Sandstone many times before in the past and we hope to welcome him again soon. He has sent us a report on a talk he recently made to the East Anglian Group of the Welsh Highland Railway Society which some of our readers may find of interest.

Click here to view the report - 1.3MB PDF (opens in new window)

The Sandstone Heritage Trust continues to recover the sad relics from the SANRASM "museum".

All items will be stored in a high security zone in the Eastern Free State.

 

Consolidation continues

The well known steel shed at Kommandonek Farm next to the tar road has been dismantled and is being moved to the main complex at Sandstone Estates. The structure will be used for classic and vintage machinery storage.

St. Helena Days

The SANRASM tragedy has rocked the Preservation community in South Africa more than any other event that has probably ever taken place. Although it was admirable that locomotives were collected and for some inexplicable trucked into the middle of nowhere to be abandoned in Blue Gum plantations or alongside informal settlements, the fact is that the perception exists that the items were safe, i.e. that at least SANRASM had at least one or two or more of each type of Mine locomotive etc. and that they were therefore safe. Overnight that was no longer the case.

The Sandstone Heritage Trust has gone head to head with SANRASM on many occasions and because of Sandstone's relative lack of credibility were not able to negotiate the acquisition of locomotives. However, there were exceptions, as in the case of St. Helena Gold Mine.

This report, which was prepared by Gert Jubileus at Sandstone, is an interesting one because it highlights the fact that just because a locomotive or locomotives go into Preservation it doesn't mean to say they are any safer than they were at their point of origin. Undoubtedly this report will be followed by many more which will deal individually with each class of locomotive that exists in South Africa.

We invite comment and contributions from visitors to our web site.

Click here to view the full report - 720KB PDF (opens in a new window)

RESCUE TO SAFETY - MASSIVE SHED IN TOWN

After years of continued high security costs to guard the trains in the Ficksburg Shed, it was decided to withdraw security from the shed. This however turned out to be a bad decision and one break-in resulted in a R600,000 loss in spares.

The management of the Sandstone Steam Railroad recently decided to move this shed to the yard in Hoekfontein Farm where it will be used for the storage of all unrestored Narrow Gauge wagons and locomotives.

Click here to view Gert Jubileus' report on the move - 1MB PDF (opens in a new window)

Country Music on a Steam Train

Reefsteamers will be running a special train on 4th September 2010 where several Country Music artists will be appearing. 

Unfortunately this article is no longer available.

 

 

Sandstone Heritage Trust - Rail News

RN 129 - Railways Africa Article by John Batwell - Issue 2/2005

Click here for a larger view of the article

Sandstone Heritage Trust - Rail News
20th January 2006

RN 149 - The little 2' gauge ex-Ratanga loco

Regarding the little 2' gauge ex Ratanga loco mentioned, which Gert Jubileus is tackling at Sandstone (although he's had to drop it till the festivities are over!) here are some pics I took on the first recce. It's always nice to have some 'before' pics!"

Andy Selfe.
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Sandstone Heritage Trust - Rail News

17th January 2006

RN 158 - David Shepherd reunited with his South African 15F locomotive

3rd May 2006

23rd May 2006 - New photos added to David Shepherd Tour article >>
View Tessa Joughin's photo gallery - "Avril" >> (unfortunately this article is no longer available)
RN 165 - A day to remember - by C.A. Janisch >>
Read the reply -  RN 170 - "RE: A day to remember - by John Ashworth" >>

On the 27th April, world famous wildlife artist and rail enthusiast, David Shepherd, travelled between Ficksburg and Kommandonek (part of the famous Bloemfontein to Bethlehem line) in the Eastern Free State of South Africa behind his 15F steam locomotive number 3052. The locomotive, which is in the custody of the Sandstone Heritage Trust, of narrow gauge fame, was specially recommissioned for this event by Sandstone after being out of service for some 2 years. David was granted special permission by Spoornet to travel on the footplate of 3052.

 

3052 was steamed on the 26th and David had an emotional twilight reunion with the locomotive presented to him by Spoornet in 1991 in exchange for a specially commissioned painting of it. After some quiet time on the footplate in the evening, David expressed his strong attachment to the loco, which is named "Avril" after his wife.

 

The locomotive has been in the custody of Sandstone since February 2004 but David last travelled behind her on a fleeting visit to South Africa in 2002. The 15F was the most numerous class of the then South African Railways, 3052 being built by North British in 1946. The spectacle of this massive loco on 3'6" gauge prompted David to remark that it made his British 9F, 92203, "Black Prince", look small!

Three trips were made in glorious weather during the day over the scenic 13 kilometre route.
After the excitement of the day David was treated to a special sunset run on the Sandstone Narrow gauge behind Sandstone's 1895 built, ex-Beira Railway Lawley 4-4-0, BR7.

3052 performed faultlessly and it is hoped that David will be able to enjoy his locomotive again on a future trip to South Africa.

T. Green No. 2135 -latest report 

On Sunday 9th May 2010 2135 was prepared for a full steam test and road run.

After much work over the winter the engine sounded much better but final timing was still necessary.

We took the roller for a test run of about half a mile, the engine sounded OK, but the gear train was more than noisy and the vibration was horrendous!

And so it was back to the yard and back to the drawing board.

Here we had a conference on what should be done. We decided that the gear train needed to be stripped down and assessed, and repaired as necessary.

And so on Thursday 13 May we started to strip the gear assembly.

Firstly let me explain how we thought that something was amiss.

After the primary gears and selector had been repaired, changing gear was very difficult, this we assumed was that it needed 'running in', but we now know better.

The primary to secondary meshing was too deep! More about that later.

After removal of the ash pan, for 'jacking purposes' the engine was jacked and supported with timbers, for safety, the wheel hub cap removed and the pin and sleeve removed in readiness for rear wheel removal.

This done and the wheel rolled forward and tied off for safety.

We then proceeded to remove the gear guards and put in the barn out of the way.

What greeted us was horrendous.

The differential spur gear was 85 thou loose on the bevel gear shaft, this sleeve bearing was later found to be the original and was already worn out. After removal of the differential spur gear, (laid flat on a pallet) it was found that the 'new bevel gear', which is the drive to the roller was loose on the drive shaft, was later found to be 15 thou too loose! (Should be a 'drive on fit',) and could be pulled off easily and the flat bed keys just fell out! Should also be a tight fit. These keys had had some weld added and filed to 'fit' but were 100 thou too loose!

So together with the diff spur movement and the bevel gear and keys moving, the gear teeth have suffered, and will also need redressing.

So now to the secondary shaft, this was also too loose, both play in the sleeve bearings and laterally (side to side), of some 80 thou and 185thou. Respectively.

This shaft was then removed, for bearing replacement.

So correct gear train meshing could never have been attained, with a combination of incorrect sized bearing, or worn bearings or incorrectly fitted bearings and keys!!

Also to add to the problems, the main drive bearing support casting, which has taken the brunt of this vibration, is cracked, (this has been braised before!), I may however get away with this as it is, we think, supported adequately. See enclosed photos.

So in short the mechanics of this beautiful rare engine have been a total 'Stuff up'

And have caused me a lot of work and some considerable expense, and it hasn't stopped yet!

My biggest headache is to reduce the bore of the bevel gear, this I intend to do by having it's internal diameter chrome plated and reground to fit, plus new keys.

I don't want to have to have a 'new' gear cut, as that would really cost.

As you can imagine this work, could take me the rest of this years rally season, mainly because I am at the mercy of specialist engineering services, but when completed and the engine timing finally done should give me a good mechanically sound engine and roller.

I will then need to have it boiler tested for another year.

In conclusion, so far, I think that the 'Restoration, mechanically' has been very suspect, but at the same time a steep learning curve for me.

Photo gallery