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Illinois Live Steamers!
41 Years of Friends and
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Illinois Live Steamers!
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| ILS Bridge Project - Part 5 or... Time for the Master Blaster By Carl Baskin Several members stepped forward to assist with the final phase of the bridge preparation. On Saturday, Jan. 3rd, ILS member Dick Parker, volunteered to transport the bridge. He arrived early at Chris Kamin’s house in New Lenox to “load up”. Dick’s ramp bed truck made for easy loading (see photos 42, 43 & 44).
ILS member Bob Gill, owner of Astroblast, Inc. in Franklin Park, IL (not far from O’Hare Airport), offered to sandblast the bridge to remove any surface rust, scale, welding slag, etc. Good metal preparation is paramount for a good paint finish. On Saturday, Jan 10th, Carl Baskin and Jason Gill returned to Franklin Park to start the bridge “decorating”. Bob Gill assisted with the primer application. After 2.5 hours, all bridge surfaces had been rolled or brushed with industrial grade primer. A bridge crane in the painting bay was used to lift the bridge to allow easy access to the underside of the bridge. A lunch break provided nourishment and enough time for the primer to dry. After lunch, it was time to lift the bridge again and start the painting process. This took another 2.5 hours to complete. Using industrial grade silver-tone paint, it was sometimes difficult to see where the primer ended and the paint started. One paint coat down…one to go. With ice storms threatening, Dick Parker and Dan Spiner returned to Astroblast, Inc. on Friday, Jan. 16th to pick up the bridge for final transport to the club property (refer photos 45, 46 & 47).
The bridge was off-loaded alongside the pine trees near the West tunnel portal. Several days later, Chris and Carl moved the bridge using Spiners’ super-duper 4-wheeled cart, to the East side of the property where the bridge would be “out-of-sight” of people driving by the front gate. This project could not have been possible without the efforts of several key members. So, first of all, it is only fair to thank Chris Kamin for his design work, the use of his shop and his ability to move large steel objects with almost minimal effort. Next, thanks are in order to Dick Parker for providing bridge transportation services. Thanks are also due for Bob Gill and his Astroblast, Inc. for providing sandblasting services. Lastly, thanks are again owed to Bob and Jason Gill for their help with the priming and painting. Our clothes are proof of the time spent rolling and spattering. THANKS GUYS! This pretty much concludes the bridge construction phase of this project. Now, we’ll have to wait for the weather to warm a little (okay…a lot) and wait for the ground to thaw to begin excavation for the concrete bridge footings, support and retaining walls. So, there’s still more work to do before the bridge is ready for service. Members will be notified in advance when the inside mainline is closed for trestle removal and bridge installation. Flags, cones, etc. will be posted. Stay tuned for more info. |
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