The Kingston Mail A publication of the Australian Railway Historical Society (ACT Division) Edition 44 — 4 August 2008

As any restoration group will know, maintaining historic items is a task that calls for constant and consistent work to keep everything ship shape.

It is no different with railway rolling stock and a lot of effort goes into keeping the Society's carriage fleet in good working order, and looking its best.

Every week at Canberra Railway Museum, maintenance is carried out to keep carriages in serviceable and attractive condition, so the Society can confidently operate both local and long-distance services.

Some of the work is minor but necessary (fixing doors that stick, windows that rattle, replacing spent light bulbs) but other maintenance tasks (such as roof replacements or carriage repaints) require many hours of labour.

Some of the recent projects undertaken at the Canberra Railway Museum yard include:

• First class lounge car BVJ 1457 - this 99-year-old former sleeping car today serves as a sitting car for first class passengers on Sunday Canberra-Bungendore trains, as well as on other services. Window frames are currently being replaced in this car, to provide a quieter ride, and new blinds are to be fitted.
   

• Dance car BVS 2166 - this 70-year-old car (pictured at right) has had several 'lives', originally as a first class sitting car, then as a sitting car with buffet facilities, later an open saloon inter-urban car and since 1989 as a dance car for dinner/dance trains operated by the Society. The car has recently been repainted, which meant work crews needed to clean back some of the earlier paint work before applying a primer coat and then undertaking the big task of the full exterior repaint. As soon as weather conditions permit, a repaint of the underframe will complete this task.
   
• Sitting car HN 2198 - this 69-year-old began life as a sitting car with guard's compartment. Today the Society uses it as a sitting/dining car, retaining the guard's area but with the passenger compartment comprising fixed seats with a table separating each set of 4 seats. It recently had a roof repaint to maintain its weatherproofing as well as enhancing its appearance.
   
• Crew car MHN 2366 - this relatively young item (40 years old) is a former baggage van used on the Southern Aurora and Spirit of Progress services between Sydney and Melbourne. The Society has recently fitted it for use as a crew car and storage van, for use on long-distance trips. Current work on this van will see attention given to the floor in the guard's section, where the effects of weathering are apparent. Once those repairs are complete, the intention is to lay down new floor coverings.

Joining the work crew

The above tasks, and many other smaller jobs, all contribute to keeping our carriage in a safe and good-looking condition for our travelling public.

If you have some time available and would like to get involved with this important work, we are always looking for additional volunteers to help maintain the carriage fleet.

No previous experience is necessary, and the necessary tools and materials, and guidance, will be made available to those taking part in this important work.

If you would like to assist, please register your interest by calling our office on 6284 2790 - leave your name, contact number and area of interest and we will get back to you.

ARHS Volunteers Win Awards from Office of Rail Heritage The recent volunteer award presentation night in Sydney, sponsored by the NSW Office of Rail Heritage, saw volunteers from the Society take out three awards: President Graeme Stanley was given the Lifetime Achiever Award;   Long-time member Howard Quinlan won a Community Relationship Building Award; and   our Queanbeyan Country Link Agency volunteers (represented by team leader Brian Buckley) won a Customer Service Award. Congratulations to all - in all cases, the awards reflected many years of dedicated work.   Important Notice! Maintaining the MTR Keeping open the Michelago Tourist Railway takes resources! If you would like to help, please consider: 1. Making a tax-deductible donation which will enable the Society to buy urgently-needed sleepers for track maintenance. Please send your donation to the Canberra Railway Museum Trust, PO Box 1615, Queanbeyan NSW 2620 (mark it 'MTR maintenance' or similar);   or 2. Join the track gang (usually each Friday and Saturday) and help with track work, bridge repair, vegetation control or other tasks - please contact Erik Jochimsen at email .

NETSITE AUSTRALIA Web Publishing and Consulting Services Netsite Australia provides advice and building services for small business web sites. Is your business losing sales due to not having a presence on the Internet? Free advice and quotations for setting up of web sites. Contact Doug Smith on (02) 6295 3286 or netsite@drscc.com.au.   Tax Returns for Individuals A Canberra rail enthusiast, Bruce Blain (see www.blain.com.au) has over 700 clients throughout the Eastern seaboard from Brisbane to Melbourne. Realistically priced, the tax return is done on the spot. For appointments, phone 0414 270 221.   Advertising If any member wants to advertise their services, or wants to offer goods for sale, or wanted, the Kingston Mail uses small "filler" articles. These will be published at no cost, however, there is no guarantee of where or when the advertisement will be printed, or how long it will be used. Please submit advertisements with wording approximating the examples in this edition, to .

See also: Other editions of The Kingston Mail