THE TWO FOOTERS    

	“United We Stand”

As a young boy, like most of us, David Freeman started with his first wind up train under the Christmas tree in the 1940s.  It grew into a modest Lionel 027 layout in the defunct home coal bin, then to the current attic setup in his own home.

The outdoor interest began with his parents at the isolated and often lonesome family cabin around 1950 deep in the Canadian wilderness.  David acquired 2 sets of 2 foot wheel/axles along with 20 or so lengths of 12.5 lb rail from a nearby scrap pile of old gold mining equipment left over from the 1920's. After carting the metal across the lake in a tiny open boat with his dog the dream began.  This only child used imagination and a gentle grade to coast the 'steam engine' on which was nothing more than a few 2x4s, wheels, and an old rusty 10 gallon air tank simulating a boiler.  One day he dreamt of pulling the throttle of something of his own in those woods.

The rails and wheels changed usage and in the 60s and carried their small motorboat back and forth over a dam for 20+ years until the 2 foot track eventually rusted and out-lived its tippy marine railway existence.  After having a family of his own it was decided to pull the tiny tracks out of the water, replace them with safer wooden track of 5-foot gauge wand a home built rubber tired marine slip.   The rails were moved to assist in hand maintaining an eroding trench that carried essential tap water pipes from a small reservoir behind the cabin.  This worked well for a few years until the earth stabilized and the softwood rounds rotted away.  In the mid 90s David retired so he and son Peter decided to transform the dumpcart and the salvageable rails into a self-powered railroad.

Since then we have built about 600 feet of raised winding level roadbed, small trestle and bridge, and 2 stall train shed large enough to hold 4 large pieces of rolling stock.  Projects take longer than usual as supplies are mostly second hand and brought in over water in a 14 foot open boat then to be hauled up from the lakeshore, often by hand.  There is no electricity either and with only some weekends most of the time is just spent getting there and setting up.  Other interests and commitments prevent us from making speedy headway and with just 2 of us means the project will take years to finally complete.  When there is little snow we spend the odd Saturday sifting though rotting piles of 'change ties' that CNR has hauled to a local landfill, looking for anything salvageable.  I would not describe it to be fun or cost effective, as we are on a shoestring budget and the father/son afternoon makes it well worth the time.  We decided real creosoted hardwood ties cut down to 3&1/2 feet were necessary to fight the elements and carry our mixed 12.5 to 40lb sized used rail, our chainsaw begs to differ.  With 600+ ties and a stack of odd pieces of rail we are now ready to lay track.  Our roadbed has settled and our home built Plymouth type switcher is nearing completion so the plan is to have operating equipment this summer.  Much of our energy has gone into building an inventory of rail, switches, and ties and just handling to the site alone is exhausting.  With almost no supply of material in Eastern Canada we wanted to be sure we had enough track and funds to complete enough of the project to make it operable so we held off on track laying until now when we were sure that it would be done right, or not at all.

After 6+ years of preparation we are ready to lay the first of several 30 lb switches in our carefully prepared yard outside our train shed.  On a grateful occasion we stripped 3 standard gauge speeder trailers of their axles and wheels just before the scrap metal magnet came along, and with some of those have now nearly completed #1.  She resembles a Plymouth switcher.  Inside the 4'x8' dimensions a Honda 11hp gas/hydraulic setup driving an intermediate shaft that is chain driven to the two axles.  The cab will stand 5&1/2 feet so there will be enough space to comfortably sit us both inside.  We plan to build a flatcar next year to move material and then who knows what, though I continually remind dad that every railroad needs a caboose!

This past Monday was Casey's day to come help on the Railway and since it was a holiday Jerry joined us in the afternoon.  We spent the day finishing the electrical wiring on the Mancha Little Trammer.  After Casey left, Jerry and I were able to plug the motor into the batteries on the flat car and gave it a short 1' test.  Jerry came back this afternoon and we loaded the batteries onto the Trammer and made the final electrical hook up.  We both operated it over the dual gauge and the DCET main - as much of it as there is.

After Jerry left I had a little problem.  Following is what I just wrote to Jerry:
Man it is a good thing you left when you did.  I decided to try running the Trammer over the level track without the flat car.  Set it out on the DCET main up the hill and moved the DAPR flat out to the New Marnell switch.  Then moved the loco down under the "A" frame so I could mark the end of track so I wouldn't run off.  Well I did!!  Thought for sure it would turn over!  The wheel went off the track and right into a gopher hole.  The only thing that saved me was the end of the axle hung up on the 2' rail.  Fortunately the battery cells were not full and only experienced a slight spillage from a couple of cells before I got the loco partly righted.  After about four tries I finally got the loco up high enough to get a block under the wheel and was able to pull it back onto the track by putting the controller in reverse.  Phew!!  Since I had the camera right there I took a couple of pictures.

Well I blocked both ends with a tie and made several runs back and forth.  It does have three speeds on the level.  Not really enough room for it to really stretch its legs.

The Two-Foot Gauge Zoo Railways at Atlanta and Albany, Georgia

Zoo Atlanta has been involved in miniature railways in one way or another for many years. Its first operation, at least 30 years ago, reportedly used a small Cagney or other real steam amusement park locomotive. It was superseded by a small imitation diesel—one of those F-units in which the engineer sat aft of the windshield with his or her upper torso above the line of the open roof—in about 18-inch gauge. This train ran for a number of years with increasing unreliability as the equipment wore out. In 1996, Zoo Atlanta replaced its railroad in toto with a new 24-inch gauge line.

 In keeping with the zoo’s policy of having corporate sponsors for its attractions and exhibits, the zoo approached the Norfolk Southern Corporation to underwrite its new railroad. The railroad came through—with a new C. P. Huntington from the Chance Manufacturing Co. of Wichita, Kansas. The new locomotive had some initial traction problem, but efforts were made to minimize the shortcoming with added weight on the fore and aft trucks—which really propel the engine. The single set of drivers, rods and cylinders on the miniature 4-2-4T are strictly for show.

 The locomotive has the usual truck engine—which is powered by natural gas. The sweetish odor of the combusted fuel is very evident during the ride—particularly, in the long concrete-lined tunnel along the side of a slope used to house the train at night. To provide a sufficient supply of natural gas to power the train for a full day, an auxiliary tender was fabricated—just like the canteen cars that trailed the regular tenders of wide gauge Nos. 611 and 1218 on the NS’s abruptly discontinued steam program. These canteen tenders were also used behind the articulated locomotives in standard gauge Norfolk & Western steam operations of decades ago.

 The new two-foot gauge Norfolk Southern Zoo Express was built with all new track, which appears to be 20-pound rail on treated wood ties. The track follows nearly the same alignment as its predecessor. Because of the restricted clearance in the tunnel used previously by the smaller gauge railway, the roofs of the open-side cars are noticeably lower than they would be on a normal two-footer. A passing siding at the station provides a place to set out cars in an emergency. Since much of the zoo is on a moderately steep hillside in Atlanta’s Grant Park, the train is restricted to the lower, level portion of the zoo. There was talk of expanding the quarter-mile loop of track to a half mile.

 While the railroad at Zoo Atlanta has new equipment in its third incarnation, the two-foot gauge line at the zoo in Albany, South Georgia, which I visited in November 1998, is more of a hand-me-down operation—when it operates. The line was not running at the time because of lack of confidence in locomotive reliability. The gasoline-powered 4-4-0 had been experiencing breakdowns. The entire train, reportedly purchased second hand from the zoo at Oklahoma City, was locked inside its engine house. The track, which appeared to be in very good condition, twisted its way through a forested area away from the animals. It appeared the train had run after dark during earlier holiday seasons past lighted displays—a la the Edaville Railroad of Christmases Past. The hazard of having youngsters and oldsters walk out of the pitch-black woods along the track if the train broke down was too much of a risk to take.
 

For Sale:

Two Foot Gauge Steam Locomotive Phoenix
This locomotive is the first 24" Gauge Locomotive completed this millennium
Based on the HK Porter Type mining locomotive it is ideal for the short line
3 3/4inch cylinders, 5 inch stroke, 12 1/2 inche Drivers
Stephenson Value gear, Steel Boiler 14" diameter operating at 100 PSIG
Stainless Steel SaddleTank
Special Price: US $35,500.00
For details contact:      
 Keith Watson, Loco Works & Foundry
10 Scarp Terrace, Willetton
West Australia, 6155
Email: watosteam@smartchat.net.au

For Sale or Trade:
Miscellaneous switch frogs.
For details contact:       Peter.Freeman@investorsgroup.com

JULY 31, AUGUST 1, 2 &3, 2003

Plans are in full swing for our 2003 Two-Foot Gauge Convention to Virginia, Tennessee and North Carolina.  We have a 57 Passenger Bus under charter and are ready to roll.  To date we have 25 individuals signed up for this year’s convention.  We are hoping to pick up six to twelve more interested rail fans for this trip.  In the past these conventions have been a great time for all with plenty of trains, food and fellowship.  The bus will leave St. Marys on July 31 and we will be happy to stop anywhere along the route to pick up those interested in going.  If you are in the area of our destination, skip the bus and join up with us.  A block of motel rooms have also been reserved to accommodate those attending this year’s convention.

The estimated cost of the trip is somewhere between $280-$300 per person.  Meals, with the exception of a steak dinner on Saturday Night, will be on your own.

If you are interested in signing up for this year’s convention, contact Tom Bauer at (814) 781-3759 or at tpbauer@alltel.net.

 Winter is over!  We received a lot of snow at the B&W this past winter, but this didn’t deter us from doing our winter maintenance.  In 2001, engine #5 (the Plymouth) received the official B&W paint scheme and lettering.  Over the winter we decided to work on the inside and rewire the engine to remove the 1950’s era wiring.  In addition we replaced the panel with lighted switches and all new gauges except for the original Westinghouse air brake gauge.

 Engine #2, the Shay, also had work performed on it.  We widened the fire tray to increase the amount of heat that reaches the boiler.  The goal is to allow the boiler to make more steam.  We ran the engine several times last year on our new branch, but could never make the round trip due to lack of steam. 

 We are running low on places to park at the railroad.  Over the winter, we received over 50 truckloads of fill.  A sewer line is being laid near by and we were fortunate to receive the fill.  Why is this fortunate?  The wye that we are constructing is requiring a lot of fill to keep a proper and safe grade. 

March 16, 2002 view of the wye
 

November 14, 2002 view of the wye

 And finally, the B&W has a new addition to its railroad collection; Wellsboro & Corning boxcar 6506.  The car is 15’ 5” tall, 10’ 08”, and 68’ long and it is a double door (16’) car. It will be a static display at the B&W, but will double as a storage building.

 Here is a great internet link showing some great pictures of the The Haluwasa Shoreline Railroad: http://www.haluwasa.org/railroad.htm.

 Submit comments and articles to:

The Two Footers
534 Armory Road
St. Marys, PA  15857

 tpbauer@alltel.net

or

tom@thetwofooters.com

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