Foreword :

A desired ethos of the Steam in Action initiative is regular and detailed communication with the members
of Steam in Action, concerning our projects and undertakings.  This is especially true for those who have sponsored locomotive, stock or infrastructure repairs or upgrades, or those that are otherwise supporting
South African Steam in a positive way. 

This is a long article – but the humbling fact for me is that I could have summarized the basic essence of this
trip in two dry paragraphs.  But this is ‘Steam in ACTION’, and I’ve tried to capture the many tasks undertaken
to prepare the locomotives for this trip, a bit about the special people involved, and a bit of the action itself. 
I was rostered as ‘Technical Support Assistant \ Locomotive Minder’ but officially, my role was that of photographer and chronologer.  I took over 680 photos during the course of the two days!

I trust that you enjoy reading this article as much as I enjoyed
participating in this adventure and compiling this article.

The Project Background :

This was an operational and logistic challenge … moving 345 tons of locomotives, 90 tons of tender and about 160 tons of coaches (A 600 ton train) over a rail distance of about 460km.  This isn’t your backyard shunt…  There was much preparation to be done on the engines by both Reefsteamers and the Sandstone Heritage Trust and paperwork to be done with the national railway.

The basic objective of this trans-provincial trip was to transfer three privately owned locomotives, being two steamers and one vintage diesel locomotive, as well as four coaches from the Sandstone Heritage Trust coach shed at Ficksburg (South Eastern Free State) to the Germiston Steam Locomotive Depot near Johannesburg. 

This equipment has been safely stored at Ficksburg, by the Sandstone Heritage Trust, but basically out of use. 
In the spirit of Steam in Action, the locomotives have been assigned to the SIA cause – to be transferred to Germiston so they can be put to regular productive use, enjoy the use of sheltered and protected facilities
and a decent workshop.  They can also be used by our buds in steam ‘Friends of the Rail’, who are based
in Capital Park, Pretoria – but the locomotives will remain based in Germiston.

We’d rather see these great steam-machines in their full glory, racking up the shiny-topped rail miles
and doing the job for which they were designed, hauling main line lengthed trains at prototypical speeds.

The Sandstone Estates private railway is a 2 foot gauge line.  However, the horizon of the vision of the Sandstone Heritage Trust extends to the preservation of the 3ft6in gauge locomotives of the South African railways, and those of neighbouring countries – even though these cannot be directly used on their own 2ft gauge line.  This vision has prompted the purchase and recovery of many of these engines, and the safe, covered storage thereof, all at Sandstone’s cost.  Some of the anecdotal stories of the recce and the recovery work of the foreign engines are worthy of an adventure novel.  It due to the foresight of the Sandstone Heritage Trust that these machines are now available for renovation and restoration into active and regular use.

A look at the SIA manifesto will show that Steam in Action is supportive of the preservation of vintage diesel and electric traction as these machines become available.  It is hoped to restore and operate the Class DE2 Diesel in the near future.  This engine is a bit big for shunting – but will certainly be more convenient than firing up a steam locomotive for the job.  The main advantage, though, is the ability to run revenue earning trains during the dry winter months that Transnet ban the use of Steam Locomotives due to the risk of veldt fires. 
And there’s no pesky 3 year boiler certificates required….

Here’s a little bit of information and links for the three locomotives that were moved to their new home :

The Class 15F No.3052 ‘Avril’ is a privately owned locomotive (Dave Shepherd) that has been put on loan and
in the custodianship of Sandstone Heritage Trust.  It was originally hoped to use this engine on the Bethlehem to Ficksburg line, but this proved to be impractical and consequently, this engine has seen little use.  Click here to read about the history of this engine.  The engine received much work, as her boiler had to be tested and certified.  The Sandstone boys did a great job and our driver, Piet Steenkamp, was amazed at her steaming capabilities. 

The Class 25(NC) No.3488 ‘Enchantress’ was once a condensing locomotive.  This locomotive is
owned by the Sandstone Heritage Trust and is in the basic condition in which it was purchased
from a private individual.  (Richard Niven)  Click here to read about the history of this engine.

The English Electric Class DE2 Diesel No.1207 is one of only two survivors and hails all the way from Zimbabwe.  This vintage Diesel is basically intact and the engine already vetted as being in good shape.  It requires much cosmetic work, brake repairs and replacement of missing electrical components.  Click here to read about the history of this engine.

A tremendous amount of work was done to prepare these engines for the coming trip. 
I supply links to articles already posted on the Sandstone Heritage Trust web site, which
explain the preparation work in detail with many interesting and some unusual photographs.

Article No.1  - ‘The return of the Giants – Part 1’

Article No.2 -  ‘The return of the Giants – Part 2’

Article No.3 -  ‘The Giants are returning!’

Article No.4 -  ‘Steaming the Giants.’

The Outbound Journey :

The weekend’s SIA work started with a gathering of the Reefsteamers from the four far-flung quarters of the Witwatersrand, all converging to meet at the old Germiston Steam locomotive Depot at 5am in the morning. 
We had originally planned to move the team to Ficksburg on Thursday night, leaving the Germiston Steam Locomotive Depot at about 6pm.  But, the evening traffic on the local highways is dreadful, and many team members found it difficult to get the afternoon off to beat the snail-hour.  Thus, we chose to have an early
start on Friday morning instead, hoping to get to Ficksburg by noon and get all the standard steam locomotive
fire lighting and service work done on Class 15F No.3052 ‘Avril’ (Who was to haul the transfer train) as well
as any last minute preparation work on the other two locomotives and the four coaches by the end of the day. 

We were successful in terms of the time – the transfer train all serviced, prepared, shunted
and staged at Ficksburg for the night by Friday 6pm, with time to chill out by the goods platform.

We had a slight delay in heading out in the morning because a certain person arrived 30 minutes late.  And this was the certain person who challenged us with leaving sharp at 5am.  The day of our Steam in Action locomotive transfer project had dawned dull and very misty.  (Pic J01)  This necessitated careful driving.  Fortunately, the mist burnt off with the sun and the weather in general at Ficksburg was fine and clear, and the rails nice and dry. 

We took two vehicles with us, 7 team members by road (1 extra team member to arrive on Friday night)
and a large bakkie (pick-up) load of oils, tools, spare parts and a generator set.  (And crossed fingers) 
Paul Hloben offered the use of his SUV vehicle, instead of Andrew King’s Renault Megane as planned
– so we had extra space for luggage as well as the film equipment.  Yes, our club videographer,
Paul Hloben was everywhere with his camera – documenting the live action for Steam in Action.

The sunrise journey to the Free State was enlivened by a rapid front wheel puncture on Paul’s car about 30 minutes in.  (Pic J02)  Inconvenient as it was, we were grateful that it wasn’t a blow out, especially on the right front wheel while driving at highway speeds.  We drive on the left in South Africa, so something nasty on the right side can drag the vehicle into oncoming traffic.  The hydraulic bottle jack in the car’s tool kit turned out to be too small so the vehicle had to be jacked up in two stages for the tire change. 

How many Reefsteamers does it take to change a tire?  Two to do the work, four to watch, passing
fatuous comments and one to take photos.  Apart from this unplanned stop and later a stop for a quick
bite for breakfast, caffeine and a whizz (Pic J03), we made it to sunny Ficksburg by about 11:15am.

Firing up the 15F :

We didn’t waste time upon arrival.  When we bailed out of the cars at 11:15am, we were faced with the sight
of a scattered pile of rotten planks for fire lighting wood, quite a few 25kg bags of coal and our wonderful old
ladies at repose under the side awning of the Sandstone coach storage shed.  The Sandstone Staff had done
quite well as the Class 15F No.3052 ‘Avril’ was fully coaled and watered, as well as the tender of the
Class 25(NC) being full of wet stuff as well.  And here we had bags of coal and firewood laid on.  (Pic F01) 

The 15F has a larger tender retrofitted from a scrapped Class 23 – and it was up to the brim with coal. 
And there were some issues the previous day in trying to fill the tenders up with water in between water
cutoffs by the municipality as they were fitting fire hydrants at the local Cherry Festival grounds. 

While some of the guys were getting into their working clothes, and looking quite comical as they were trying to avoid the thorns and gravel in their bare feet, driver Piet Steenkamp warmed up his muscles by putting on the first layer of coal on the waiting grate of the Class 15F No.3052.  Meanwhile, some of the Sandstone staff were busy cleaning up the Class 25(NC) No.3488 with paraffin soaked waste (F02) – so she’d look good for the haul.

The Class 15F No.3052 ‘Avril’ already had a warm tummy from the shunting, watering and coaling work that had been done by Sandstone Heritage Trust staff the previous day.  So, we were confident we’d get steam up within a few hours of lighting the fire (Pic F03) – and, in fact, got a healthy sounding test-toot on the whistle within 1 ½ hours.  An eager locomotive indeed!  We initially helped Driver Piet Steenkamp as much as we could, unloading oils, and passing him the fire lighting timbers.  Unusually, we put the timber on in two loads – using the existing burning wood fire to digest the long planks in the belly of the beast.  The scrap wood caught fire very quickly
and it wasn’t long at all before Piet was feeding the 14 wheeled beast with the first over-head scoops of coal.

The fire was already burning merrily by mid day, and an intriguing coil of brown smoke clumsily trying to escape the awning.  (Pic F06)  An unexpected snag was the lack of compressed air services to supply a blower ring to draw on the fire – and Shaun hadn’t brought one anyway although we could have borrowed one from Sandstone,
I suppose.  No.3052 ‘Avril’, with her freshly cleaned and serviced boiler, fired up well enough without any induced draft.  That’s good news for the prospect of free steaming the next day shed.  It was dark too, working in the shadow of the giants.

Piet Steenkamp was duty driver for the day and Dawie Viljoen officially rostered on for fire lighting.  But the grand old loco behaved so well, and had been so well pre-prepared by a combination of Sandstone and Reefsteamers people that once the fire was going, apart from the coaling, there was little for Piet to do beyond his regular pre-run inspection and preparations.  (Pic F05)  So, Dawie was let loose on the other locomotives, along with Shaun Ackerman, Andrew King and Mike Thiel.  Paul Hloben was already out collecting soot spots on his camera
lenses and yours truly was clambering around these machines and taking snap shots. 

While a contented Piet Steenkamp got on with his routine oiling work (Pic F07) the other guys moved with alacrity.  It was partially to get on with the work and partially to get away from Paul Hloben who was looming ominously with his camera and looking for impromptu interviews.  (Pic F08)  Shaun and I got snagged, the other guys got away with it, Andrew King conveniently out of sight between the traction bogies of the DE2 Diesel with just one foot showing.  (Pic F09)  Shaun Ackerman ends up in a lot of photos because of his technical skills and his involvement and he doesn’t really like it.  He looked like somebody had poured the contents of a cold can of baked beans down the back of his shorts during the impromptu interview with him sitting on the fireman’s seat.

Piet gave the whistle a toot to test it and startled us all.  And the dynamo was already running by 13:30 – the steam man’s sign of confidence in the steam raising process.  (As it consumes steam to run.)  Piet took the opportunity to perform gentle, prolonged blow down of Avril’s boiler.  She hasn’t had a good long run for a while and we need those vulnerable water spaces clear of any loose stuff that may be remaining from the recent boiler washout. So, we managed to break in the new blow down scuttle fitted by the Sandstone boys and we’re very pleased to report that it didn’t drop off.  :o)

While some action and comedy was going on halfway along the storage line (Concerning setting the Class 25(NC) in reverse gear), Piet Steenkamp had a healthy fire going and was busy loading his tools and lubes into the tender‘s tool compartments.  How pleasant for the locomotive ... a final confirmation that, today, I really am
going to be off.  The cab interior was grimy from the unavoidable dust from previous day’s coal loading, so Piet
set to with a rag and paraffin, and even cleaned the windows.  (Pic F11)  That’s normally the fireman’s job.  But Piet, as an old experienced railway man, instead of getting a bit of attitude about doing the lower ranking jobs, set to cheerfully and cleaned up while urging the fire along.  Mike Thiel removed the ‘Avril’ name plate (Pic F12) and was sitting contentedly in the shade on the crumbling edge of the retaining walls, applying elbow grease and Brasso in equal quantities on the brass letters.

Project – Tender Transfer Hose :

The Sandstone boys had made a small modification to both the tenders.  A 2 ½ inch pipe stub was welded
to the back plate of each tender and fitted with a brass gate valve.  The idea wasn’t so much as to provide a
filling point, or even a drain, although the new valves can be used to drain the tenders.  The valves are to be
used for a transfer pipe between the tender concerned and either another tender or a water tanker.

In Shaun’s bag of tricks, aka, a bakkie, he’d brought two of our standard bell couplings.  Through the day,
these had their threads cleaned (as they weren’t new) and they were screwed into those shiny new valves
with a Stilson wrench and liberal helpings of ‘Stag’ pipe sealant.  The transfer hose was actually too long
for the two tenders, being normally used between a Reefsteamers tender and the hoses of a tanker. 
After the dismantling of the hose was ruefully complemtated, it ended up twisted in a 360 degree
trombone type arrangement but it worked well enough for our trip home.

This water arrangement is the reason why the Class 25 was hauled backwards so ignominiously.  Remember we pitched up by car and Sandstone wouldn’t have a 3ft6in gauge auxiliary water tanker to lend us for the journey back.  (And how do we return it?)  With the tenders back-to-back we’d be able to transfer water and make it all the way home without having to top up.  Thus, we used the 25’s ‘Worshond’ tender as a very large auxiliary water tanker. 

Project - Inspection of Running Gear :

The Class 25(NC) (ex condenser) No.3488 and her long ‘Worshond’ tender, as well as the Class DE2 diesel, were both given the final ‘once over’ (Pic i02), after a previous weekend’s worth of attention by both teams and several weekdays work by Sandstone staff.  Little was found to be wrong.  Outstanding preparation work on the
Class 25(NC) included the fabrication and insertion of new oil wicks in the oil cups of the rear Bissell Truck. 
(Pic i03)  These had been pre-fabricated at the Reefsteamers Shed and brought on site in a cocoa can – so it was just a matter of giving a final twirl to the wicks, dipping them in oil and feeding them through the draw holes.

We started oiling up the many pivots and bearing points on the towed locomotives, with an oil can, until the reciprocating pump was hauled off the bakkie and put into use.  (Pic i01)  With the large-fire extinguisher sized pump and the flexible wand, Shaun Ackerman and Dawie Viljoen looked like a pair of insect exterminators, meticulously poking the dispenser wand into the deep-set oil cups and crannies of this engine.  It saved a lot of time in filling up oil cans.  What was interesting to note was that there was little difference in the greases and hand tools required to service the two locomotives of very different technologies but of roughly the same vintage.

The Class DE2 diesel required some surprise small jobs to prepare the machine for the run.  Andrew King was already underneath, with just one foot showing, and topping up the old fashioned wick oil pots fitted to the traction motor bearings.  Meanwhile, split pins were being scavenged and measured up – and tapped into several rods and links of the diesel’s braking system.  (Pic i04)  Dawie Viljoen, meanwhile, removed the LHS quarter light glass from the trailing cab – as it was loose in the frame and would probably fall out in transit. 

Andrew got a surprise when checking the dipstick on the crankcase for the Class 15F mechanical stoker. 
The engine was in need of a longer dipstick.  ( Pic i06)   Andrew had to scramble a bit for the oil but we had brought some.  These stokers run with plain old engine oil.  But as they rely almost entirely on splash
lubrication in their crank case, including the big ends and the valve eccentrics, the oil level is mission critical. 

Piet ‘Buffels’ Steenkamp prepared his grease gun the old fashioned way – scooping the grease out the grease pot with his fingers and packing it in squelchily by hand – it prevents airlocks.  (Pic i07)  That doesn’t sound major – but a big air bubble in a railway grease gun will put it out of action and might delay the train when the driver takes the opportunity of a quick stop to do a round of greasing.  The team actually used a grease pump with a ball jointed wand to grease up the Class 25(NC).  We had problems doing this though, as foreign matter had gotten into the oil reservoir and blocked the pump. 

The Class 25(NC) locomotive played up a bit when preparing the valve motion for the journey.  The cylinder blanking plugs were opened and a careful amount of oil poured into the valve chambers – to provide some lubrication for the piston rings.  The Walshearts valve motion had to be put into reverse as this locomotive was going to be towed backwards.  The cataract valve was disconnected and the guys attempted to jimmy the radius rod.  It wouldn’t move – the air trapped in the actuating cylinder acting as a backstop.  The reverser wheel was then applied to re-align the valves – and the reverser motion itself found to be extremely stiff.  Turning the characteristic reverser wheel (instead of the quadrant as found on most SAR locomotives) was a two handed, white knuckle grunt job.  The boiler-length actuating rod actually buckled upwards when we tried to put the engine in reverse gear. 

With a combination of repeated movements at the reverser wheel by Lee, Andrew standing on and jarring the actuating rod, Shaun persuading the valve and Dawie doing the jimmy work – we got the locomotive into the correct gear. 

Being thrifty souls, we loaded up the 25kg ‘sugar bags’.  (Pic i08)  We had, two fellows lying belly down on the tender and catching the coal bags by the necks, as two fellows held them up at arm’s length against the tender.  Locomotive weight lifting.  So here we had this big lump of a main line locomotive with narrow gauge style coal bags arrayed behind the rear coaling lip.  Oh well – it wasn’t like we had to look authentic for any line side photographers– and SAR probably never saw anything like this train’s consist anyway.  It was during this undignified male-bonding exercise that the Sandstone boys arrived – and mucked right in getting those bags loaded.  We were ready to move by 14:30 – starting an afternoon of some rather unusual shunting. 

Shunting the Transfer Train :

The first exercise was to get the dozing diesel and the Class 25(NC) out into the Ficksburg station, to clear the storage siding alongside Sandstone’s coach shed, and to have the two locos ready to couple onto once the train’s consist was made up.  To add to the load, the 1953 vintage dairy car was on the front of the engine and on the wrong end of the train.  (Pic S01)  We were already attracting attention by this time and the schools had just closed for Friday.  There were kids watching, which made us nervous.  (Pic S03) 

With the juvenile audience and the heavy concentrated weight of two dead-in-tow locomotives (Pic S02), the shunting was done carefully, with Piet manfully resisting the temptation to crack the jack and charge up a siding.  It was a strange sounding train though.  We had the Class 25(NC) No.3488 rumbling and sniffing to herself at regular intervals, and a gentle whine emitting from the bogies of the 1-Co-Co-1 DE2, from the siren effect of the de-energized traction motor armatures spinning.

With the two towed locomotives safely out the way with handbrakes on at the main goods platform of Ficksburg Station – a mismatched set in faded custard yellow and semi-gloss black (Pic S05), work commenced on cleaning out the storage track alongside the Sandstone coach shed.  The crew reached right in and pulled out the six wheel 204HP Hunslet shunter.  (Pic S06)  With the dairy produce van in front and the Hunslet shunter behind, they then proceeded to move a arch-bar bogied flat bed, a stripped out swing-door coach and another flat bed from in front of the Sandstone coach shed’s doors.  All this was done with the 1953 dairy produce van idling along the 15F’s nose.  The van had been prepared to be hauled to Kommando Nek on the following day and would be the tail end of our transfer train.  The siding leading to the grain elevator proved to be a handy yard lead for this short and very unusual train.

Meanwhile, the Sandstone boys came literally galloping past through the storage track gate, with a heavy battery slung between them, to fire up the little 9 ton Bessinger diesel that was snoozing just inside the coach shed doors. 
The diesel was in front of two old bogies and the four coaches which we were to pull out and take to Germiston with us.  With the steam locomotive resting in dignified fashion on the Grain Elevator siding, the fellows inside were battling to get the diesel to start.  The little locomotive would fire up and die – looking ominously like having a governor fault.  The actual fault turned out to be absurdly simple – the tank was out of juice.

After filling the diesel up through the tank filler right in front of the cab, and battling to start before the diesel pump and injector pipes primed-up, the little chain driven ‘brat’ fired up and idled.  I was impressed that the battery had the energy capacity.  The diesel was used to haul out that pair of bar-frame bogies, tied to the front coupler with a wire rope.  (Pic S08)  

It had sure been our day for strange looking trains, but this one probably won the brass ring.  Meanwhile, the Class 15F’s crew had successfully shaken the clinging dairy produce van off their nose and left it standing incourigiously on a crossover track.  They had waited for the little 9 ton diesel to get busy, but with the delay in getting the engine started, the steam boys took the gap to get their shunting done.

The 15F No.3052 ‘Avril’ was used to haul the coaches out of their slumber in the surprisingly light and pleasant coach storage shed.  (Pic S09)  The coaches were immediately split in pairs and the two pairs swapped over,
so the single sleeper coach in the consist would be at the end of the train.  This sleeper would be the Reefsteamers’ home for the next few days and would also serve as a combination dormitory, tool
wagon and a guards van  The coaches comprise of two day sitters, a bar \ restaurant car and a sleeper. 

Externally, the coaches are in excellent cosmetic condition, albeit plain dark gulf red without the characteristic SAR Quaker-grey window stripe.  And the roofs are metallic silver instead of grey.  Internally the condition is as expected, although much original equipment and accessories still remain, such as communal drinking cups on a chain, and wheel chocks chained to the bogies.  The weakest area in the coaches is the worn and delaminated flooring, and the fact that most of the toilet doors have been blanked off with full height galvanized steel ducting panels.  What restoration horrors lie behind those panels? 

The coaches will need work to have their water systems upgraded (one of them has the entire tank missing) and they need to be re-wired to 220V to fit in with the rest of the Reefsteamers coaching fleet and their power car.

The four coaches were bunted into the second road of the Ficksburg station – which was inconveniently occupied by a rake of Transnet Containers.  (Which had been modified to transport grain.)  The train was coupled up, checked, and then Class 15F No.3052 ‘Avril’ pushed the train clear with consummate ease – on a curve too! 
Then the two towed locomotives were hauled out and ready to be put back onto the head of the transfer train. 
In the meantime, the little Bessinger diesel was puttering along the storage shed, pushing the dairy car towards the station to be included on the back of the train.  It was quite a contrast – one of the penultimate classes of single frame SAR steam locomotives and a cute little chain drive diesel, hardly bigger than a bread box, working side-by-side.  Such is the variety of railway preservation.

Interlude :

We Reefsteamers and the Sandstone boys had the Transfer train set up and ready to roll, parked next to the refrigerated warehouse in Ficksburg.  We had already slung ourselves down on the platform and even the
hard concrete felt good after a full active day spent on our feet.  We had achieved our target by the day’s end.

The team biorhythms were dropping in concert with the Free State sun and we were lazily swapping stories and discussing plans for the evening.  There was some great camaraderie between the two crews.  Lee and Paul were dispatched to the bustling metropolic business district of Ficksburg to get some braai meats and supplies, as well as charcoal.  Grills and cooking implements could be taken as said, for these South African cooking tools are as much a accompanying part of Shaun Ackerman’s bakkie as the spare wheel is. 

A word of advice for future steam tourists, gricers, bashers, ferro-equinoligists and other assorted train
nuts.  Ficksburg Spar is a great place to get meat – large chops and good wors at very decent prices. 

The evening wound down with a braai on the ballast in the shelter of the goods platform and the dairy produce van, proudly sporting its red end-of-train marker.  Andre van Dyk, as the duty fireman for the Saturday run, had finally arrived with his brother.  (Andre wasn’t able to take the day off work).  He quite happily took over the fire minding duties and eventually the cooking, while we were invited to Gert’s house for a shower.  So, off we went in a rollicking convoy – Lee doing some nose-down bopper-stops instinctively looking for a non existent clutch pedal in Paul’s automatic gearboxed car.  We were all looking forward to our shower as we poodled along the long dirt road to Sandstone Estates, rolling alongside the 2ft line, with the crystal clear skies and a liberal dusting of diamond chip stars twinkling cheerfully down at us. 

What could be better to follow a productive day of steam train work than an country-side
evening with good company, eating good food, in beautiful, peaceful surroundings?

I did think Gert was rather brave to volunteer his bathrooms to 7 rather mucky Reefsteamers.  What made the exercise even more interesting was that the shower in the master bedroom had a blown globe – so some of us did our ablutions in the dark.  I hate to think what the bathtub and floor must have looked like in the light of the following morning!

We drove back in high spirits, feeling much more human, wrapped in clean skin, and looking forward to an outdoor railway style supper.  The cops were out and Paul’s car was stopped with Lee driving (and handling the auto box much better in front of the policeman.)  It turned out to be a benign license check.  The policeman was quite surprised when Lee casually asked to borrow his torch – the necessary driver’s license being buried in a sports bag on the back seat.  Lucky we had the luggage with us….

Most of the guys stayed up too late – and regretted it for yet another early start the following morning. 

Homeward Bound :        Ficksburg -> Bethlehem = 92km

The loco crew was on duty at 3am and most of the team at 4am – checking the engine and the train for the last time before embarking on our trans-provincial journey.  We also took the opportunity to top off the tenders from
a fire hydrant as well.  (Pic D01)  Water is a precious commodity on the post-steam rail network of South Africa.

We were greeted by a clear mellow golden dawn, pleasantly cool but with the long shadows of the refrigerated warehouse and surroundings spoiling the photo opportunities a bit.  The train left with little fanfare – just a wave from Paul Hloben and Shaun Ackerman as they prepared to do a line-side chase all the way home, and the Sandstone mob debating whether they could fit in a bit of steam train chasing with their own duties back at Sandstone Estates.

‘Buffels’ Piet Steenkamp leant on the whistle a bit, and as the tones echoed around the yard approach, I wondered if anyone in the sleeping town of Ficksburg was awoken by that lingering whistle and remembered the days when steam ran on the line 20 years ago.  Or perhaps thinking that the haunting tones were part of a fading dream.  With Steam in Action going strong, it is hoped that the sound of a steam locomotive’s whistle will be heard at many places from where they’ve long been absent, and awaken memories and appreciation for these magnificent machines.

We had a great run to the Bethlehem shed with minimal wheel slip – the eager whining of the DE2’s spinning traction motors even more pronounced from the first of the four coaches.  The scenery looked splendid in the dawn.  (Pic D02)  Could the revival of steam be used to promote tourism for this little advertised area? 
Could steam engines be used to bring some measure of prosperity to rural areas such as these?

The inevitable train chasers, like flies buzzing around the pelvic end of a cow, were as amusing as always. 
Driver Piet kept his speed conservative but sure – and the train handled well.  It so happened that Andrew
King and Lee Gates were the only occupants of the four coaches and as both of them are not talkative people – they just sat in companionable silence and watched the scenery go by.  Mike Thiel grabbed a ride in the cab
of the backwards hauled Class 25(NC) and was to be seen hanging out the window, holding onto his baseball cap in the blustery slipstream and taking shots with his video cam. 

Kommando Nek is a favourite spot for stops – not the least because of the wagon sidings used for storage
by Sandstone Estates.  The curved tracks ands the backdrop of trees always makes for pleasant photos. 
Here the venerable old dairy produce van was dropped off the tail of the train, being shunted into the storage sidings.  (Pic D04)  The crew took the opportunity to shake up the fire a little bit and to grease up the motion bearings.  (Pic D05)

The stations were empty as we chuntered through in the morning, most people still in their beds at this hour.  We did have to make a pit stop at Fouriesburg as a brake rod had come loose in the trailing bogie of the Class DE2.  (Pic D06)  What was ironic about this little incident was that the rod had lock nuts at one end and no positive fasteners at the other.  The lock nutted end had worked loose and the ‘loose’ end was still at home in its bore.

The Long Journey home          Bethlehem to Kroonstad – 145km

We were picking our way slowly through the approach lines of Bethlehem just before noon – with Transnet staff doing a double take at this very unusual train.  We got into the diesel depot with only a little delay and swung out to one side to drop off the staff and eventually, the diesel. 

An unpleasant sight awaited us – the chopped up remains of nearly a dozen assorted Class 25’s and 15’s were scattered around the dead lines.  (Pic B01)  The easily transportable stuff had already been removed – being the cabs, boiler tubes, rods, motions and boiler plates.  The remains of cylinders and steam chests lay right where the locomotives once stood, amongst a spread out array of curt up parts, frames, back plates and wheels.  Some of the Reefsteamers reacted with anger and frustration at the waste, some of them were just heart sore and the rest with a stunned fascination that a majestic locomotive can be cut up into bite sized pieces.

We realize that these locomotives were Transnet’s to do with as they wish … but … what a waste!

As we were examining the butcher’s slab behind the sheds, the loco crew dropped off the DE2 out of the way of the triangle lead – appropriately under the shade of a spreading tree.  It reminded me of a semi tropical North African location.  Our two locomotives turned around with minimal flange squeal but much rubbing and groaning from the 25.  I wasn’t fast enough to get a photo of these two survivors pistoning past the spread-out gored remains of their sisters.  But that symbolizes the plight of the steam fan – seeing something worth admiring and preserving in a machine that many would cast aside with little thought or care.  But once these machines are gone … they are gone forever.

The Class DE2 was picked up and the steam loco fires serviced in front of the Bethlehem diesel depot. 
A heavy duty cable was hooked through the 25(NC) safety chain links and those of the DE2.  (Pic B03) 
It wasn’t a mandatory requirement but we could see that the couplers weren’t quite matching. 

Michael Thiel suckered Lee Gates into riding the 25(NC) cab the rest of the way.  The morning crew was to carry on through to Kroonstad – Piet Steenkamp as driver, Andre van Dyk as Fireman and Dawie Viljoen as third man \ trainee fireman.  We settled in for the second last stage of our journey and the last stage to be hauled by steam.

That 25(NC) cab was a rough ride!  Piet kept a remarkably consistent speed of about 40mph, as evidenced by the functioning speedometer of the 25.  but it felt more like 70!  On square wheels!  The DE2, with no restriction on the movement of its traction motors, was butting into and backing off from the Class 25(NC) No.3488 – herself tending to rock with the piston strokes of the mighty 15F strutting her stuff up front.  The result was a cranium-bashing rockabilly ride all the way to Kroonstad.  Lee soon gave up on the idea of a quiet snooze in the cab, a brain bouncing camera jarring ride, with the wind blustering past the empty drumming tender and the cinders and soot whirling through the cab. 

But, it was an experience and ultimately, a good one. 

Going uphill towards Johannesburg was better – the train stretching out and keeping a consistent speed through the green flat lands.  We had a few minor hold ups at permissive red signals, and another hold up past a large track gang (with some very interesting machinery) (Pic B05)   but otherwise we had a smooth ride though to Kroonstad.  Lunch was a donkey sausage and slap chips, and Lee made the mistake of leaving a bottle of Sprite on the jolting cab floor – boy, did that stuff foam!

The original plan was for Transnet to make two diesel locomotives available to haul us from Kroonstad to our home depot – which would have been useful as our depot has no electric cantenerary.  However, the plan fell through.  Our friendly pilot made arrangements and the incident turned out to be an ill wind that would blow us Reefsteamers some good.  A Class 6E1 toaster would be made available to haul us home, this very afternoon.  So we wouldn’t have to doss down in the coaches overnight in the Kroonstad station after all.  Never has a bright orange Class 6E1 been so welcome as this unit backing up to our sizzling 15F.  And now we would have a train with all three types of motive power represented, one electric, two steam and one diesel. 

The Reefsteamers footplate crew were changed over at this point after shaking up and cleaning the fire.  Shaun Ackerman and Andrew King took over for the rest of the way, while a tired and rather grimy trio of Piet, Dawie and Andre made their way to the sanctuary and the sanity of the coaches.  Shaun and Andrew were to keep Class 15F No.3052 in light steam while under tow and keep the boiler ready for steam, traction work to get into our depot literally under our own steam. 

Lee was asked to drive Shawn’s bakkie home from the Kroonstad
station– so the chronologer and the train parted ways at this point. 

We’re home!          Kroonstad to Germiston – 225km.

Our train arrived at Germiston depot after 10:15pm after the toaster was cut off.  Lee had already arrived with the tool vehicle at 8:15pm after a 3 hour rubber-tyred drive.  The Reefsteamers Magaliesburg train had just arrived from a long day trip.  The Saturday Magaliesburg train crew were busy shunting some of the coaches to get ready for another trip on Sunday.  It’s been a busy weekend for the Germiston gang.  The Class 15CA on the shunt looked quite dignified at the end of a long rake of coaches. 

Our boys arrived quietly, backing in through the running sheds and with little fanfare apart from a cheerful victory toot as they passed by on the main to back in.  Most of the day-time Magaliesburg gang had waited around in the late night to see the end of the first Steam in Action venture – the successful moving of three large main line engines through the cooperation of two steam locomotive preservationists groups from far away from each other. 

When our boys arrived tired, but victorious, we had a quiet Reefsteamers celebration involving
some of Johann ‘Bloubul’ van Vuuren’s juicy worsies, liberal beers and a bottle of Champaign.  (V01)

Conclusion :

So, what did we achieve, really? 

Two intact steam engines that were basically out of use are now going to be put to work, earning their keep
and kept in decent running condition.  They are to be shared as a nationally available resource.  A plinthed locomotive, or a dusty, long stored locomotive is impressive enough – but a live, well maintained steam locomotive in full cry is a sight to behold.  There are many people for whom real working steam is but a fading memory, and a growing number of younger people who have never witnessed working steam in action. 

This is what it is about – setting tasks, goals and achieving them.  It’s about coordinating dedicated groups of enthusiasts to work together to preserve what is left of South Africa’s Steam heritage.  It’s about exposing people, those who remember steam and those who have yet to experience steam, to the culture and drive of these magnificent machines.  It’s about preparing to sharing the joys, sights and the challenge of running steam with friends and like minded people from overseas.

The rewards are great – a real working perpetual heritage that supports itself.  To market South African Steam as an international resource of note, especially in today’s globally connected world – ensuring the preservation of our Steam Machines by facilitating their viability.

By taking positive steps of action, we will certainly get a positive result. 

By Lee Gates – (Reefsteamers)
for Steam in Action – Nov 2007

Primarily driven by three entities, Steam in Action aims to
stabilize and further develop steam and rail tourism in South Africa.

Steam in Action Links :

Visit the Steam in Action Internet Home Page :            http://www.steam-in-action.com/

Download Steam in Action manifesto in PDF Format : http://www.steam-in-action.com/manifesto.html

Register to join Steam in Action (On Line Form) :         http://www.steam-in-action.com/register.html

Contact Steam in Action by E-mailing                          joannewest@btinternet.com

Reefsteamers :

Friends of the Rail :

Sandstone Heritage Trust :

Home Page :
http://www.reefsteamers.co.za.

Email :
Elize@reefsteamers.co.za

Web Home Page :

http://www.friendsoftherail.com/

Email :

trainman@friendsoftherail.co.za

Or  chrisj@spiderconnect.co.za

Home Page :
http://www.sandstone-estates.com/index_sht.html

Email :
joannewest@btinternet.com