Chris' JT&S Grand Scale Railway Blog.

2008/09 End of Season Report.

2009-05-11T12:07:00.000-07:00

Another season in the desert has come and gone. We can all be proud of what has been accomplished this year, and our Spring Meet over the weekend of May 2nd-3rd was our best ever. We are finally through the Rock Cut, our railway has been expanded significantly thanks to Brendon Hilton and his track crew, and the turntable is painfully close to being functional thanks to Ken Eells, Mike and Josh Brehm, Bill Souder and a host of others. The picnic shelter now has power provided by Bill Shepherd. Thanks again Bill!

Through the cut during the Spring Meet.

Ken Eells punches tickets while Mike Brehm attends to the Shay.

The Spring Meet on the Grand Scale was well attended. We were once again joined by Rita Allan's Girl Scout troop, as well as noted magazine publisher John Sayre, whose publication, Large-Scale Railroading has featured the JT&S Grand Scale Railway in past issues. Our Shay #6 ran all day Saturday, a few minor problems cropped up, but they will be easily repaired in the Fall. Such is the way with steam. The traditional beer-brat dinner feast was well recieved. In fact I was lucky to get a couple before they were all scarfed down!

Brendon Hilton brings the train out of the Rock Cut.

I would like to think that the Grand Scale is just now hitting it's stride, and I am sure much more will be accomplished next season and in subsequent seasons. I wish to thank Tom Arnold for his patience and support, was well as everyone who has encouraged me these past ten years, especially in the early days when progress was slow. With the momentum that has built up, and the capable bunch of guys now dedicated to building this diminutive railway, things can only get bigger and better. Thanks also to my wife Rita who has been the most patient of all. This has been a truly unique experience. We have taken an abandoned railway in the middle of nowhere and turned it into what it is today, through no small effort I might add.

That's about it, I'm outta here. The Grand Scale is adjourned for the season. Have a great summer and stay safe. - Chris Allan

One ticket to the end of the line.

April work day report.

2009-04-06T09:56:00.000-07:00

The seasonal winds blew with gusto all last week, and we were anticipating the same for Saturday April 4th. Happily there was only a light breeze during the morning and relative calm prevailed during the afternoon and evening.
Those in attendance accomplished a great deal. Mike and Josh ably bolted down the turntable deck and end timbers. Kevin and I moved several yards of ballast material over to the turntable lead, and while a lot more needs to be added, we definitely made a dent. I raised a pretty good blister in the palm of my right hand, which is now reminiscent of a stigmata effect.
Ken and Dick built a loading platform next to the newly named station stop of "Split Rock" (thanks Liza!); it is evocative of one of the little team track docks on the old Carson & Colorado narrow gauge in the Owens Valley of California. The dock, built of recycled materials, has both form and function and is a welcome addition to the loop area's theming. Some grounds cleanup was also performed. A great deal more needs to be done.
Remember the date, Saturday, May 2nd is our annual Grand Scale get-together. Please let me know if you are planning on joining us for the evening brat-fest, so we don't run short. Bring a small appetizer or salad if you wish to throw into the fray. Just like last year, alcoholic beverages will be curtailed until after 5pm., unless you plan to be running the locomotive then alcohol is prohibited - no exceptions. We will again be joined this year by Rita Allan's Girl Scout troop, a fun bunch.
Have a joyous Easter, I look forward to seeing all of you for our season ender! - Chris

Thanks for the pictures Ken!

Spring has arrived.

2009-03-25T12:38:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone, hope that you are enjoying the first signs of Spring now that it has officially arrived. Our next workday on the Grand Scale will be Saturday, April 4th. The project in the forefront should be cleanup of the area for our meet in May, as we will be hosting many new people, and we need to make a good first impression.We will also be working to make the turntable functional for the May meet. Ken Eells has been up working a couple of days each week on the pit rock work and filling and contouring the pit to conceal the concrete work. We may start laying down the loop rail during the meet, which would be a great demonstration for our visitors.

In addition, here is what we need to accomplish in the short term, and continue after the Summer break:

Cleanup of the "Boneyard" area, including moving the sand house back up into place, sorting and piling the rail, either down there or staging it up above to go across the bridge, and moving the tie piles back up next to live rail.

Get the speeder functional, which can be done at Brendon's over the summer.

Get some wheels back under the ballast car, which can also be done over the break.

Get the track that we have down ballasted, lined and tamped.

Weld on the steel walkways onto each side of the bridge, which we will hopefully convince Roger to do in the Fall. ;)

Re-stake the centerlines for the Mule's Relief fill on the west side, Rick can help us to remember where the current buried stakes are.

Re-contour the area in the wash and terraform to get rid of the "construction zone" look. Remove the road up to the loop, and replace it with an unobtrusive footpath.

We need to have the majority of these projects complete before we move on to the next "big" project, whatever that may be. Working as a team, most of the above projects can be done in a couple of weekends, so they shouldn't affect our Manifest Destiny too terribly.

Have a great week, and I hope to see you on the 4th! - Chris

Pic by Bill Souder

March workday report.

2009-03-10T14:02:00.000-07:00

Ken Eells poses with the turntable, note the first lead reached the pit wall during the March workday.Thanks to everyone who pitched in on the project, including Ken, Mike, Joseph, Bill, Tom, Paul, and Brendon. The next workday, April 4th we will ballast tamp and line. With some luck we will be turning by the May meet.- Chris

More turntable progress.

2009-02-26T11:30:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, February 25th, Ken Eells and I traveled to Joshua Tree for a day of work on the turntable. We were joined by the ever-affable Bill Souder. The modified overhead trolley wheels donated by Mike Brehm were welded into place and a start was made on the deck. Treated 4x4's were placed and 2x6 planks were screwed down as edging to hold the bridge timbers in orientation. Two handy sticks of rail were thrown on for demonstration purposes. It now has the look of a proper turntable. Thanks to Ken and Bill for their excellent efforts!

The weather was gorgeous, as it can be this time of year. A bit of wind kicked up later in the day but didn't hinder our efforts. We stopped into Don Jose's in Anahiem Hills on the way home for our evening meal, which topped off our productive day.

Our next workday is coming up on Saturday, March 7th. I would like to continue tuning up the turntable, as well as work on the lead track coming into it. Remember to save the date, May 2nd, which is our big annual meet on the 15" gauge. With a little luck we may be able to debut the turntable then! If enough people show up we can also start putting the Shay back together now that the hard freezes are over. Work on the balloon track through the cut can also progress when ready.

Until then, be safe and I hope to see you all in the desert soon!
- Chris Allan

A Cold February Day.

2009-02-08T15:30:00.000-08:00

Saturday February 7th was cold at Joshua Tree, thankfully the fire built in the Franklin stove at the Pullman picnic shelter was enough to stave off any minor discomfort. More was accomplished on the structure thanks to Bill Souder, Mike and Joseph Brehm, Rita Allan (who lit the fire) and Tom Arnold. The north wall is now sheeted, and the refrigerator is up on the slab poured by Bill Shepherd (Thanks Bill!). The sheeting generously procured by Eric Bauer is being put to good use.

Ken and Mike worked on getting the turntable end wheel assemblies fitted in preparation for attaching the wheels provided by Mike. Tom Arnold rigged up power for my wire feed welder (Thanks again Tom!) and the assemblies were tacked in place. A bit more work remains before the table is wheeled, but we are getting close! Ken and Judy Eells managed to make it up despite having to move out of their house the week before, as well as Judy having just been through throat surgery. We applaud their efforts during these adverse times, and wish Judy a speedy recovery.

Tom, Brendan, and Robert continued grading for the balloon loop using a tractor provided by Robert. They also hauled some rock down to the mini-train loop for, I would assume, retaining walls. The little puttering carts full of material popped up and down the hill all day.

Several esteemed guests dropped by to view our collection of railcars, including Nick Kallas, General Manager for the Illinois Railway Museum, the largest and most diverse railway museum in North America. Nick and I have crossed paths a few times over the past 25 years, and it was a pleasure catching up and comparing notes on our museum preservation efforts.

A friendly contingent from the Pacific Southwest Railway Museum stopped in, led by their president, Diana Hyatt. They toured our railcars and we spent some time getting to know each other. If you have the chance to get down to Campo, near San Diego, don't miss a visit to their railroad museum, and even better yet take one of their trains to Tecate, Mexico. It is, I am told, a rather unique experience not to be missed. I hope to do this with the family in the near future.

We will be back out for the workday on March 7th, 2009. I look forward to seeing all of you then! - Chris Allan

A Turntable "Themed" Report.

2009-01-15T16:39:00.001-08:00

Today's post is from our intrepid Roundhouse Foreman and designer Ken Eells. Ken's report brings us up to date on turntable progress and plans. -Chris

15” Gauge Turntable Report Part II

First of all allow me to express my gratitude to everyone who has commented on how nice the rockwork on the turntable pit wall is looking so far. That part of the project is about halfway done and thanks to the excavation crew on the Cut, we are using some very nice bluish rock material that they “dug” up.

Thankfully, we have definitely turned a corner with the turntable and are getting set up for a huge February 7th assault with Chris’ wire-feed welder. The turntable crew will be welding on the “training wheel” assemblies, 4 X 4 steel crossties and if time allows, they will be welding down the 12# rail.

From that point forward, I will be directing the theming aspect of the turntable which will impart that nice rich rusty, crusty, aged and grained look that the Rio Grande Southern railroad was so very famous for. It will be a thing of beauty.

Our current construction schedule has us completing Track-4 (inbound track) up to the turntable by early April. That gives us plenty of “tweaking time” before the May Spring Meet in order to make certain that railroad operations are both safe and successful.

From there we will be spring-boarding off of the turntable and onto the roundhouse. By that I mean that we be building from the success of the turntable and step up the call for donations in order to get the wood framing going on the roundhouse by November ’09. Our initial goal is to put together an amount of $10,000 to get things started with, but more on that later.

In the meantime, we will finish up the turntable for this season which will definitely put a new spin on things for the 15” gauge railway. -Ken Eells

Railroading- a dirty business.

2009-01-11T12:12:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, Saturday January 10th, 2009 saw another great effort by Brendon Hilton and the grading crew. Several more dump truck loads of rock were removed from "The Cut". There is every indication that we may see track laid through it soon. Brendon writes:

"Our work day yesterday was another big step forward on the cut project. A big thank you to the team. Mike, Robert, Tom, Lars, Eric, and Jon spent the day drilling, hammering, and mucking. It was great that the Tolins had mucked out the previous shot, so we were able to get right to work with the air tools. The results were impressive. Sunday morning, Mike, Dad, and I filled about 20 holes with Dexpan and it could be the last shot. We might need one more drilling session for clean up, but we're there! The dump truck fits through now, so everything else is just gravy."

Click for a Slideshow from Jan 10th.

Rita and I worked on the Pullman picnic shelter. Some of the siding generously donated by Eric Bauer was put up on the north side. More will go up next month.

In the meantime, please enjoy this account of life on the railroad in Ridgway, Colorado back in the day, taken from the Ouray News of January 7th, 2009. This account features the historic facility we are emulating for our Joshua Tree Grand Scale Railway, being built under the direction of our own Ken Eells. - Chris

Coal-darkened tickets tell dark side of railroading

They are more than 85 years old, but when you sort through them your fingertips turn black.

Some are coal tickets with lingering coal dust that were filled out by engineers on the Rio Grande Southern Railroad after having their tenders filled with coal. Others are dark lubricant-smeared oil tickets from the Ridgway trainyard.

Archived at the Ridgway Railroad Museum are Ridgway, Vance Junction, Rico and Ute Junction coal tickets from March 1920 and oil tickets from October 1916.They are part of the materials rescued by Bob Richardson, founder of the Colorado Railroad Museum and saved by Ridgway resident Smiles Dunn until the Ridgway Railroad Museum was established.

Coal was mined near Ute Junction. It was loaded into gondolas (cars open at the top) and transported by rail to loading facilities. At Vance Junction the coal was transferred to coal chutes, but at Ridgway the gondolas were stored until the coal was used.

The Ridgway roundhouse, where repairs and mechanical work were done, was located to the south of what is now Mountain Market, approximately where the hardware store sits. The coaling area was slightly beyond that, just east of the present Drakes Restaurant.

Even something as simple as a coal ticket has a story. Experienced and long-time RGS engineers signed-off on the coal tickets at Ridgway – names like Ervin, McDonald, Talbert, Phillips and Davies. According to Josie Crum in her book, "The Rio Grande Southern Railroad," Ervin and Talbert had been part of a three-engine pile-up in 1909. Davies had ended up in the bottom of a gorge by the Butterfly Mill under bridge debris after an engine derailed in 1910.

Engines leaving Ridgway needed to have full tenders to make the long climb over Dallas Divide and on to Vance Junction or Rico. The tickets showed that loaded coal ranged from one to five tons with most tenders taking on three tons.

In Ridgway, a gondola loaded with coal was placed on a raised track. The engine and tender were pulled parallel to the gondola on a slightly lower track. Coal needed to be shoveled up over the sides of the gondolas and into waiting tenders.

"Coal heavers" not only suffered from aching backs, but clenched fingers as well. Old timers told stories of fingers that cramped around the handles of shovels after hours of labor. At the end of the day, the fingers remained clenched and had to be pried open. Heavers were at the bottom of the pay scale were paid, in 1917, only 10 cents per ton of coal shoveled!

There were many jobs on the railroad that required manual labor, but in my view this was the hardest, with the worst rate of pay. Yet, tons of coal were shoveled daily to provide the energy for the RGS steam engines.

Vance Junction was a major coal loading facility. Handling large amounts of tonnage created a paper problem. RGS Employees frequently ran out of coal tickets. Oil tickets were substituted with the word "oil" crossed out and the word "coal" penciled in. The gravity-fed coal chutes, seven miles southwest of Telluride, can still be seen today.

A. Nordeen signed each oil ticket at the Ridgway shop. The tickets show which engine was serviced and its destination. Generally, 1-1/4 to 1-3/4 pints of valve oil and 2-1/2 to 2-3/4 pints of car oil were required.

Occasionally, cotton waste was also requested. Some oil tickets were for replacement of shop supplies as was the case on Oct. 3, 1916, when 16 pints of headlight oil was ordered. The coal and oil tickets also speak to the economic state of the Rio Grande Southern Railroad. Each one is imprinted with the words "Denver and Rio Grande Railroad." By 1916, the RGS was in receivership and under control of the D&RG. RGS forms were frequently "borrowed" from the larger railroad.

The archived tickets may be gritty and smeared, but they provide an interesting look at the heart of the Rio Grande Southern – and its day-to-day operation.

Rocks rocks and more rocks...

2008-12-15T10:10:00.000-08:00

Here is a slideshow of the latest progress on the rock cut excavation, sent in by our Grading Foreman, Brendon Hilton. Brendon and his crew have shown determination and grit in their ongoing quest to get track through the cut. Nice work guys! -Chris

The Rio Grande Southern Railroad: Joshua Tree Style, Part 1

2008-12-15T10:04:00.000-08:00

Here is a thumbnail history lesson from now frequent guest blogger, Ken Eells. Who knows? You might learn something! - Chris

It was 1889 when Otto Mears decided that a railroad through western Colorado would be a viable venture, as there were growing mining, timber and livestock interests that the right railroad could service. Mears proceeded to incorporate the Rio Grande Southern Railroad and two railroading legends were born.

Known as the “Pathfinder of the San Juans”, Otto Mears already owned other railroading and mining interests. Not only had he built and operated wagon toll roads in the San Juan Mountains, he was the primary owner of the Silverton Railroad as well as owner of numerous mining operations. With the advent of the Rio Grande Southern Railroad, Otto Mears would create an instant western railroading icon he would coin; Silver San Juan, Scenic Line.

The plan was very simple as the RGS would begin in the yet to be incorporated town of Ridgway, Co. and head south to Durango, 162 miles away. Executing his plan however, was not so very simple as the surveyed right of way began at an elevation of 7002’ rose to that of 10250’and back down to 6523’. The grade for the railroad varied from just under 2% to that of a whopping 4%. Snow drifts at the higher elevations were measured in the tens of feet.

As a three foot gauge railroad, the RGS would be able to seamlessly connect with the Denver and Rio Grande’s Ouray branch at Ridgway and again in Durango to the south. The railroad would have two districts with the first operating from Ridgway to Rico for a distance of 66.2 miles and the second district operating from Rico to Durango for a distance of 95.9 miles.

By March of 1890, 5.5 miles of track had been laid from Durango west to the Porter Coal Mine and the RGS was born. In just two short years of its inception, the 162 mile line was complete and immediately profitable. Then in 1893, the Sherman Silver Purchase Act of 1890 was repealed by Congress and the mines that Otto Mears had built his railroad to began closing, one after another. The whole San Juan region began to die economically and Mears lost control of his young brainchild forever.

The RGS continued on under new leadership well into the 20th Century. With hiccups, bumps and even successes along the way the RGS served the San Juan region for several decades. By 1930, revenue was down and operating costs were high. In 1931, the RGS began constructing a series of internal combustion powered conveyances that would allow for the reduction of normal steam operations thereby cutting operating costs, but maintain revenue business.

Initially known as Motors and eventually Buses by the management, these unlikely looking and operating mechanical concoctions began plying the rail delivering Passengers, Mail and light freight up and down the line. Seven different units were constructed in all and allowed the little railroad to remain in operation. Who originally coined these Narrow Gauge legends as Galloping Geese is somewhat vague, however if the webbed shoe fits . . .

The RGS had another unique distinction, although a bit more sobering. Without many learning of it, until long after World War II had ended, this little railroad had been employed to haul a secret cargo by our government. Previously mined and discarded in mine tailing dumps, seemingly insignificant ore was being loaded into boxcars by miners wearing three piece suits. As it turns out, these materials were subsequently used in developing the first atomic bomb.

The RGS operated until August of 1952 at which point this storied little rail line would cease to exist. But now, a portion of this celebrated railroad is being constructed in 5” scale at the JTSRR Museum as the Ridgway Engine facility of the Rio Grande Southern Railroad.

Journey back in time with us to an era of Big Bands, Coal Soot and War Bonds as we present the RGS, Joshua Tree Style. -Ken Eells

Some historic photos of the RGS in Ridgway, CO.

Ken's musings.

2008-12-11T11:58:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple of items sent in by guest blogger Ken Eells, our jovial roundhouse foreman. Enjoy! - Chris

Railroad Scenery of the Ages

What theme park magnates Walt Disney and Walter Knott had to go through to recreate naturalistic scenic settings for their park railroad attractions was nothing short of magnificent. However, for those of us constructing the JT&S Grand Scale Railway, we could never afford the astronomical costs associated with that level of scenic theming for the railroad. Instead, we have relied on Mother Nature to provide for our Grand Scale Railway: Her very “Grand Scale” scenery.
Born 100 million years ago as a molten liquid that made its way up to the earth’s surface and cooled into massive blocks of a granitic rock called Mozogranite, reshaped and reconstituted many times over with heat, pressure, wind and water has yielded a most amazing desert landscape with which to develop our rail line through.
While some may curse the extreme terrain that we must tackle, we both celebrate and relish the challenges that this unique desert landscape will impart. Once the first leg is graded and rail is laid up to the waterfall in the dry wash, then the dramatic Mojave Desert vistas and unique geology as experienced from the trains will be nothing short of Grand Scale.
-Ken Eells

The Grand Scale Turntable

Exciting news: those visiting our museum have turned the 15” gauge Grand Scale turntable into a real conversation piece. All sorts of questions are being asked regarding its design, construction and ultimate operation. So let’s take a brief look and answer some of those questions.
Our turntable is a very closely scaled representation of the one that was used in Ridgway Colorado on the Rio Grande Southern’s three foot gauge railroad. The original was built about 1900 and operated well into the 1950’s. The prototype 50 foot long bridge was constructed of riveted iron girders set in a stone pit. It serviced the seven stall brick roundhouse and operated with one inbound and one outbound track.
In 5” scale, our welded steel bridge is 20’-10” long which is very sizable in its own right. Just like its big brother, the bridge floats on a center thrust bearing. On either end are two iron caster wheel assemblies that engage the top of the ring rail only when a piece of railroad equipment is rolled onto or off of the turntable. When a locomotive is perfectly balanced on the bridge, the center thrust bearing takes the complete load, leaving the wheels to ride about ¼” above the top of the ring rail.
In this configuration the locomotive can be easily turned by one person. This is exactly how the prototype operated, though you could expect to see as many as four men turning the heaviest locomotives. That is how these Victorian era pieces of railroad equipment earned the endearing term of “Armstrong” turntables.
-Ken Eells

Ken Eells in an contemplative state.

Rocks - Friend or Foe?

2008-12-06T12:22:00.000-08:00

Rocks seem to be a major- if not the major theme of our 15" gauge railway. What makes our Joshua Tree property special to me personally is the unique topography, the rock formations, and the visual chaos that gives way to a certain grace after you spend some time examining the landscape.

These stony features are also a barrier to the manifest destiny of our little rail line, as evidenced by the Herculean task being undertaken by Grading Foreman Brendon Hilton and his grading crew. The cut being hewn through the seemingly solid rock continues to be worked. The vein of granite at the very bottom of the excavation has proven to be especially problematic:

Bill Shepherd and Brendon Hilton on the rocks. - Rick Mugele

Now to consider the aesthetic. Rocks can benefit our efforts as well. In recent weeks Roundhouse Foreman Ken Eells has been laboriously placing a veneer of rocks over the turntable pit walls, obscuring the cinder block so expertly laid by Bill Shepherd earlier this year. The result is quite pleasing and helps to blend our efforts into the surroundings. The grading crew's efforts have helped Ken as well, producing an endless supply of muck rocks that can be selected for inclusion in the wall:

Turntable wall and ring rail. - Ken Eells

Thanks again to everyone who has given their time to these projects. No small amount of effort goes into them, and it is appreciated. Our collective vision will be realized one day, and no doubt, love them or hate them, rocks will continue to play a big part in our visions, and our nightmares.

- Chris Allan

Rock Drill at Rest. - Ken Eells

Welcome to the Blog!

2008-12-03T11:47:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone and welcome to the new JT&S Grand Scale Railway Blog. This blog will provide progress updates on the goings-on at our 15" gauge railway, and will eventually replace the old web page, which is at best, cumbersome.

All of the links and features on the old page will be here as well in time, so please be patient, stuff takes time.

Thanks again to all of you who have supported our team effort in the past, and thanks for all of your future support. We wouldn't be able to do it without you.

Check back soon for updates, and have a wonderful Christmas and a prosperous 2009!

-Chris Allan