The cattle wagon project has been a hive of activity. The first bogie has had the refurbished brake gear fitted, along with the centre casting and float blocks. The springs have also been installed, the leaf springs being reasonably tricky to insert under tension within the confines of the bogie. Work has commenced on the second bogie. The timber spacers for the top boards have been manufactured and are being painted. Work has also continued on painting the partition boards. The badly rusted angle iron outside floor bearers have been cleaned back severely and treated, allowing them to be painted; ready for the new floor boards (already manufactured and painted) to be installed. The timber internal bearers are about to be fitted.

A cattle-eye view of Cattle Wagon T175.

We have received $2000 from a funding agency toward the refurbishment of the tamper and some components will be sent away soon to have repair work undertaken.

Steam Locomotive A67 has had a steam leak in its Westinghouse Pump fixed (damaged gasket) and tested, the locomotive is now running well.

The weedspray of the entire site has gone well, with a good knock-down rate and very slow regrowth. The focus will shift to the lawns once maintenance on the mower and line trimmer are complete.

A mock hold-up was held at the railway as part of the end-of-year function for a local accounting firm. Most of the passengers were dressed up and in high spirits, which made for a fun event.

We also hosted a training session for the Highlanders rugby team. While it was mainly meant to be a publicity stunt, the players were pretty exhausted after lifting wheelsets with the handcrane and pushing the Hunslet Diesel. Both TV1 and TV3 carried the story.

A reasonably successful training day was held to ensure that the crews that work on passenger trains had remained proficient in their duties. Our sincere thanks are due to Russel Glendinning for overseeing this for us.

As a fundraiser, we spent an exhausting but profitable weekend at Port Chalmers lifting and packing some of Port Otago’s track.

The saw bench has been overhauled and the new shaft and bearings make it both more powerful and quieter. The lack of vibration and slip means that it is much easier to use.

Motor Trolley WW 7079 is to receive a repaint. It has always been particularly scruffy and the proposed work should return it to excellent order. To make the proposed work easier, the motor has been removed so that the engine shroud can be repainted. The rough timberwork has been filled and a new front screen has been made.