Issue 542 March 2016 Worth £ 3/0/0

Extracts from the Newsletter of the National Steam Centre

In This Issue

Walker Air Blast Engine Surfaces

Lighting Plants Gifted

Our eye catching new sign on Ferntree Gully Rd financed by a Knox council Community Grant

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Sam Newman tackles the Carngham hill with Tom Lord in hot pursuit with a third steamer just about to start the stiff climb

M.S.T.E.C. was well represented in the first Great Southern Steam Trek with 5 steam entries and 1 vintage car . The Trek Started just outside Ballarat and travelled along the Carngham road to Beaufort to meet up with a contingent of more steamers and a variety other vintage vehicles at the Historic Railway Goods shed for lunch . The shed and vehicles were then on display to the public as a run up to the 106 th Goldsmith Rally . The plan was then to travel enmasse the 15 km to the rally grounds . Unfortunately the dry conditions meant it was prudent to float the steamers for the last leg Never the less an impressive contingent of historic cars, tractors and trucks completed the last leg of the trek to everyone’s enjoyment MSTEC members taking part were :-

Sam Newman’s Sentinel steam waggon ( top photo ) only recently back in steam required a huge effort to get it fit for the Steam trek . Robert Jone’s / Dave Mickle’s ( right ) Yorkshire Steam Wagon Ethel in a forest setting on the Carngham road approaching Beaufort.

Navy Steam Club’s ( Below left ) Foden wagon did not perform up to expectations after some engine work and struggled along at reduced speed with a hot big end bearing but eventually had to retire along the way . Warwick Bryce’s ( Below right ) 1925 Chev buckboard .

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Ross & Jo Lloyd’s ( Right ) Marshall road loco and wagon loaded with bins specially made from steam cut timber from the Smith Brother’s Emu Creek Sawmill at Lake Goldsmith . Floated from Melbourne to Beaufort it was intended to road it the last 15 km to Lake Goldsmith however weather conditions prevented this .Thanks to the Goldsmith organizers all steam engines were transported from the Goods shed to the rally grounds thus ensuring a great weekend was still had by all and their crews.

Peter Jackman ( below) transported his Sentinel Steam Waggon to Goldsmith with the intention of joining the trek at the Historic Beaufort goods shed but due to the dry conditions was soon returned to Goldsmith by float where it performed for the rest of the weekend.

Above & Below Historic Beaufort goods shed museum a collaborative project between LGSPS , Pyrenees shire and Vic rail.

Other steam waggons on the run were Tom Lord’s Replica , Paul Dove and Karen’s Sentinel , Science Works Sentinel , Andrew Johnson’s 1925 Super Sentinel DG ex Des Lang , and Robin Gibb’s Sentinel . Counting Warren Harris’s AEC truck , a beautifully restored Oshkosh tanker and Warwicks Chev gave a total of 11 vintage vehicles taking part in the trek while Bob Butrim and Bruce Roberts Sentinel being unregistered travelled on the back of a truck . Back up vehicles included , tray trucks fitted with various water tanks and 2 private ex CFA fire trucks plus various support vehicles with trailers loaded with wood and water which made quite a procession.

By now you should have noticed the variation in spelling of wagon . Sentinel always used the old European double G while a single G has become accepted in recent times

File photo

Most of the team at a water stop at a lay-by just past Carngham

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Above Route of the road run . Roads had little traffic with the exception of the short highway section which had wide paved shoulders so traffic was mot disrupted. Disappointedly some people may have heard some distorted stories but to keep things in perspective the Trek was accompanied the whole distance by several water trucks and trailers as well as 2 ex CFA fire tankers and supporting crew. Conducted in full consultation with all authorities and with fire restrictions not yet in force no damage or harm occurred demonstrating the planning and arrangements put in place were effective . A great achievement to those who took part and all those who assisted with the organizing and making their facilities available. There is no doubt the inaugural Great Southern Steam Trek was a great success and thoroughly enjoyed by participants and the public there is already talk about what to do for the next one . Warwick

Above This photo from the ABC website leaves no doubt at all that it is the elusive 4 cylinder Walkers Air Blast Diesel . Made in Australia under licence to Mirrlees, Bickerton and Day of England it is similar to our Willans engine except being 4 cylinder instead of 3 . Continued

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An Insight into John Dixon It is obvious John Dixon was favourably remembered and well respected by many in the Steam movement . These comment from Bill McRobb, on hearing of his passing, leave no doubt John certainly left a positive mark on Marine Engineering in Australia John Dixon was head of the Marine Engineering Department at RMIT in 1969 ( we were using slide rules, and I still have it) and 1974 when I was studying for my Second Class Marine Engineers Certificate Part A and Part B, then 1st Class Engineers Certificate, close to 2 years full time study. Fred Rostron was also there studying for his Extra Chief Engineers Certificate. Fred is now working for AMSA in Canberra. Kevin Lord was also one of his students. I have studied mainly at the RMIT and Newcastle Technical Colleges from 1968 to 1985. He was without a doubt the best teacher we ever had, there were no excuses for not getting through the work load that he set. He was well informed and up to date with his lectures. A Great Teacher, Bill McRobb

An email from Geoff Bellinger announcing the discovery of the Walkers Air Blast Diesel engine has created great excitement around the club since we were aware of the engine but had lost track of it in recent times and feared that it may have gone for scrap . Geoff noticed an ABC news report from North Queensland about a rare Sugar Mill engine being restored by a local club . Following are a few the main points from the article by Nathalie Fernbach , ABC North Qld http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-02-18/retirees-power-on-to-build-burdekin-powerhouse/7180150 Burdekin Machinery Preservationists at Brandon just south of Townsville are spurred on at full power restoring and installing to working order two sugar mill engines in their museum shed . One is an air-blast-injection 4 cylinder Diesel engine made by Walkers , Maryborough Limited, Queensland and donated by Wilmar Sugar. Alf Shand club Club treasurer

said the Walkers machine in particular was very rare as it is number one of just 18 manufactured by the factory in Maryborough only one other one , a single cylinder , in working order, is known to exist .

Above At work on the concrete block for the Walker engine. The report goes on to mention that a wall of the Kalamia

sugar mill had to be removed in order to extricate the disassembled components of the engine donated by Wilmar Sugar so that would appear to be where it was hiding . This is great news but what is even more exciting is a photo showing the construction of the engine foundations are very near complete and that it will soon be operatioal and able to generate electricity. This is a great credit to the team and the rest of the report goes on to outline how machinery preservation groups make a substantial contribution to the community keeping retired people occupied while at the same time creating an asset that benefits the district , something we entirely concur with . Left Engine no.1 in the final stages of assembly at Walkers . In the foreground is the air compressor frame (The Queenslander, 5 March 1931) Photo supplied by Rohan Lamb.

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In with the New , Out with the Old The big day finally came after months of work by Rohan Lamb and a few helpers in designing and arranging the manufacture of the smart new sign for out the front of the National Steam Centre . With the body of the sign made from Cor-Ten weathering steel it certainly fits in with what our hobby is about . Actually by the addition of alloys including chrome , copper silicon & phosphorous a special type of rust forms that only proceeds to a certain stage then becomes impervious to water and oxygen so further rusting stops . Funded from some of the Knox grant money it is a very smart looking sign even going so far as having our club traction engine icon ( in stainless steel ) on top . The only disappointment is that it could not be bigger as government regulations impose a 3 square metre limit for advertizing signs in parklands . Safety Around the Club Kaylene Blair sent in this photo of the new and substantial mesh guard recently constructed to go around the chain and gear reduction drive on the rail bending machine and congratulates the rail team on their initiative “The Safety Committee would like to thank the Railway Section for noticing a Risk/Hazard and coming up with a homemade Guard to fix the problem. It’s all about Preventing an Accident. Well Done!! “ Submitted by Kaylene

Rally Promotion Fortunately we have a bit more flexibility for temporary banners promoting events and 3 have gone up in the run up to our rally . In view of the constant remarks by visitors that they have been going past for years and never knew we were here we are trying something a bit different this year . One is a banner high up on the Southern Steam shed that is visible from the motorway . Hayden and Warwick had a bit of fun putting this up as first special brackets had to go on the roof to support the banner then eye bolts part way down the wall to tension the bottom Then the challenge started , how to get the rope through the eyes ? Rather than getting the ladder it was tried lowering the rope down from the roof although without really expecting success . Talk about threading a needle but surprisingly it was possible . Above The banner .high up on the Southern Steam Shed . The highest and closed building to the motorway Attention Grabber Out the Front To make sure passers by notice we will soon be having a rally it was decided to put something out the front that would be a bit hard to miss . To this end a certain army tank on a big green truck has been parked out the front on a number of open days .

Dave Rochester and Ray Bedford watch as Aaron Morris pulls out the old sign no sooner than Rohan Lamb had the new one firmly bolted down

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It is a bit hard to judge just how effective it is but on the first day at least 4 vehicles were noticed to swing in and stop to take photos . It also caught the attention of the hundreds more creeping past in the afternoons traffic jams . Talk about Mix Ups We have already had a mix up with ballast for the railway extension when 40 mm screenings arrived instead of the ordered 14 mm so when Ray Bedford was overheard asking if anyone had a small dumper truck the club could borrow to spread ballast between the rails the opportunity was too good to be missed as Peter Morris was expecting a 40 tonne monster from his work to drop in .

Above Geoff Bellinger standing beside the dump truck Ray “ ordered “ . By all accounts Ray was a bit taken back when Peter arrived in the monster and told him although it took a bit of doing he had managed to get his hands on the dumper Ray wanted.

The Start of a Monster Clean up In accordance with the long term plan for the grounds a good start has been made on clearing the treasures area behind the main shed as this area is earmarked for green spaces and exhibition hall extension once the railway relocation is complete. The Morris boys and Warwick have completely cleared the treasures up to the rear of Bay 4 with much private

stuff going in the skip or scrap bins. Items worthy of keeping have been transferred to the new treasures area prepared by the Morris's using fill removed from the railway cutting and topped with bitumen chippings . This produces a firm dry standing in an inconspicuous area to the west .

Above The new treasures area prepared by the Morris's’ . Peter is conducting an experiment to see if truck wheels are a suitable substitute for pallets as during clearing behind the main shed it was discovered all the pallets used to keep items up off the ground had rotted away letting then sink into the mud and leaving nests of rusty nails. The next stage , after the rally now , will be sorting through the treasures south of Bay 4 and moving items associated with restoration projects to the new location . Please note much of the material in this area may look like junk to the uninitiated but most are items associated with major projects such as the Lyttleton hull, club traction engine , Willans and Sugar mill engines and Ruston Steam Shovel so nothing is to be chucked out without consultation with those in the know.

Above The new green space created by shifting the railway to the East boundary . A major effort was put into clearing this area up in time for the rally so it’s first use can be for exhibitors parking .

Above The combination of Army Tank , new Sign and Rally banners out the front are getting the attention of those passing on Ferntree Gully road while flyers are provided for those that stop. Who has got something else to vary the display?