Road trip

[wpowokal]

My brother and I recently set out for a sheep station in the Murchison area of Western Australia, nearest town Cue, a 690 Klm (430 miles) trip each way to collect an old Lister 6Hp engine and a damaged Southern Cross. Sheep in this area is no longer viable as wild dogs (dingo/dog cross) kill too many sheep and all the other reasons farming is no longer viable in Australia. It was a bit of a challenge to safely remove the engine from it's probably 50-60 year resting place but the pics tell the story, we camped, in style, O/n in an old shearers hut. It was a bit of a nostalgic journey for me I had last been to Cue 37 years earlier when I worked on a gold mine one town south at Mount Magnet, that was the first power station I operated.

Hopefully if I have it right the comments should be above the pics and in order.

Western Australia's inland highway to the mining north west, highway 94 looking north.

We arrived after 11.25 hours and this was our accommodation for the night, an old Metters #2 stove for warmth and a bed, we took mattresses and blankets beds were there. .

Before cooking dinner a few nibbles and heart starters, cooking on electric frying pan off the generator.

Beginning to remove the Lister, disconnecting the cooling tank.

We needed to ensure the engine did not fall off the plank so two chains were set up and an endless chain to maintain control should it fall as it's too heavy to try to arrest any fall manually.

Now off the mounting block and on the plank, successfully moved onto the shearing shed floor, we then slid it onto a trolley jack and  onto the truck.

All secured on the truck for the journey home

Normally we pray for rain but up at this station we were praying for no rain as access is via 30 Klm of potentially muddy salty dirt road

That is not water, just a mirage but some of the salt lakes we had to cross

I took quite a few pics at sun rise and I believe this is the most appropriate, the shed was the generator shed for the 32V lighting plant and the remaining wires head to the shearers accommodation, from this shed we salvaged the damaged Southern Cross 6hp engine, the generator had gone but the control board was in tact, so I scored that as it's the best example I have of a control panel.


Allan

I hope I put the photos in your post properly
Kurt

[wpowokal]

the photos below are the photo's in the post above just a weird sort of work around for fixing missing photos in a post.
Kurt

[ruddycrazy]

Mate why didn't ya say you were onto those ol' listers  I would of been over there in a shot if a spare one was around or even come over for the drive to see a few ol' mates that live up there. Trying to find ol' listers here in SA is a waste of time as there aint any left as the secondhand merchants have gone thru and it all went to china.....

Cheers Bryan

[wpowokal]

Any particular model Bryan, we looked at some old girls a couple of weeks ago.

[wpowokal]

Thanks Kurt can you wipe out my second post so I don't look so stupid?
allan

This is a clone of the Lister we salvaged, never been used always stored in  a shed, and the faeries dance at the bottom of the garden.


allan

[TomW]

Thanks Kurt can you wipe out my second post so I don't look so stupid?
allan
allan

Sorry, Alan, he removed it but sadly you still look uh a touch stoopad!

Looked like a nice trip. Fairies in the garden too!

Tom

[wpowokal]

 Modified to remove tripplel posts

[TomW]

Err I don't see the other 9 pics anymore!

Allan;

Try your other glasses, sparky.

They show in the first post now but didn't before.

Tray shift & reload in your browser.

Tom

[wpowokal]

Well get rid of this and the last post because shift and reload is what I do after I have shot something, and on this bl###y computer that does not make sense.

I don't understand how I went wrong on the first post, but now I hit insert after each pic then hit "insert more' seems to work.

Wow hit the trifector three groups of pics!

[kurt]

aw crud allans right dammit with a real dam!! i tryed a real fancy manuver to remove allans second post but preserve the photos in the first post but it did not work if you refresh so the photos are out of your catch then they are gone from the first post lemme see if i can fix it.

[TomW]

guess I need the glasses. reload nuked them  

I did ride the short bus...

Might just merge the old story in but I see the photos in a later post by Allan.

One reason I use externally hosted pictures.

Tom

[kurt]

OK Allan i think that is the best its gonna get.

[JW]

Once any photo is uploaded to the forum, and the forum generates a url for it, it will display as if its externally hosted using the insert image button. It looks like you have done that succesfully above Kurt.

JW

[JW]

Something also to consider when it comes to displaying pictures.

In theory you(anyone) could make a diary entry titled my photos, upload them to the forum, then use them anyplace on the board. Kind of like the old "my photo uploads" on the old forum.

All you have to do once there uploaded, is click on the green paper clip icon under it, copy the url for the new window, then paste it using the insert image icon.

We could make a special catagory just for photo uploads if you guys would like.

JW

[willib]

Ya the pics look fine to me.
Nice trip Allen
gee i wish there was a lister  here just laying about like that.

JW i would much rather see the the old mechanical section restored : insert tung in cheek smiley here..
i hope if you do make the new photo upload section , make sure it doesn't conflict with the old photo uploads as i still use them for reference

[wpowokal]

Pics take two this is the sun rise over Lakeside station in the mid west of Western Australia(WA).

At the shearers quarters was this butchers shed on left

We wondered how they loaded the trucks to three wool bails high, and here is the answer but not on that truck.

This was the home of the Southern Cross 6 hp that run the 32V lighting plant, we scored that engine and the control board

Old wind mill head

This is the old well about 15' deep that went salty

Water heater for shearers quarters

Stock water

Solar panels powering light on highway to mine haul road intersection, iron ore is carted 200 klm to just west of this intersection from the mine, two round trips per driver per day, one three trailer truck every 20 min. from there to Geraldton port three trailer truck every 20 min using 1800 liters of diesel and 1800 liters of LPG per trip one round trip per day per driver


Amazingly the station homestead still used 32V in house. Stations in WA are owned by the state but leased on a 99 year lease, this one and others have been purchased back by the state to be returned to natural bush so all buildings and improvements will be bulldozed, a bit sad realy this station was taken up in 1914, the last owner was on this station for 26 years until it became uneconomic.

allan

[JW]

Willib,

JW i would much rather see the the old mechanical section restored : insert tung in cheek smiley here..
i hope if you do make the new photo upload section , make sure it doesn't conflict with the old photo uploads as i still use them for reference

"JW i would much rather see the the old mechanical section restored"

There's been some talk about this, unfortunitly at this time, there appears to be no way to restore the old Mechanical section. The only option we have at this point, is to make a new section, title it Mechanical and go from there.

"i hope if you do make the new photo upload section , make sure it doesn't conflict with the old photo uploads as i still use them for reference"

When we installed the insert inline images mod, there was a conflict that made all attached images that used to show under the post to not display, the images are still able to be viewed but you have to click paperclip to see them in that case. Or one could take it a step further by adding the pictures using the [img] html tag on edit. You can not see the insert images button on edit, you have to make a note of what the html is by clicking the insert images button on a first time posting, then once you see the tag, and add it, it will work upon edit. (i know its confusing)

As of now, there are three ways to insert images, if a photo upload catagory was made, it would not affect anything "as it is now" so what you are seeing display now, would display after that catagory were made. We need a little more feedback from members on this and I dont want to hijack this thread. If you would like, you or anyone can lobby for that section by making a new thread so others can express there feelings on that.

Also, the way the images are being displayed now on this page of this thread, is a good working example of using inline attachments that are hosted by the board.

JW

[ruddycrazy]

G'day Allan,
                Any of those ol' lister clones would be handy here on my farm so if you can source an ol' girl for me just let me know and we'll go from there.

Cheers Bryan

[wpowokal]

Update on the Listers age it has a date stamp that is probably the year of sale 1944 so that makes it 66 years young, so that's why it started first try and ran sweet.

allan

[willib]

I wonder if there is any Lithium salts in that salt?
could be pro$perou$ to see.

[Bruce S]

Allan;
 NICE pics!!
I am curious about the cooling tank?
Did you bring it back as well?
Once everything is checked over will there be any chance of making use of the cooling fluid for water pre-heating ?

Looks to be a 122L metal tank.

Bruce S

[wpowokal]

Bruce the cooling tank is simply a 44 gallon galvanized drum, I say in gallons because they were then or now 200 liters but I have never seen a new galvanized one though. Yes we did bring it back, anything left at the station bar the homestead workshop, water tank and wind mill (water pumper) will be bulldozed.

It would be possible to to utilize the hot cooling water via a coil in that tank, in the era of these engines they heated water in a 44gallon drum as illustrated in my second group of pics. At this stage my brother will cleaning the engine up bolting it down to something heavy and watching it run, he has quite a collection of old engines both petrol and diesel.

allan

[Bruce S]

Bruce the cooling tank is simply a 44 gallon galvanized drum, I say in gallons because they were then or now 200 liters but I have never seen a new galvanized one though. Yes we did bring it back, anything left at the station bar the homestead workshop, water tank and wind mill (water pumper) will be bulldozed.

It would be possible to to utilize the hot cooling water via a coil in that tank, in the era of these engines they heated water in a 44gallon drum as illustrated in my second group of pics. At this stage my brother will cleaning the engine up bolting it down to something heavy and watching it run, he has quite a collection of old engines both petrol and diesel.

allan

Thanks for the info. It is a little sad that ALL the history will be bulldozed. BUT onward and upward right

Cheers;
Bruce S

[wpowokal]

Bruce it is disappointing to see history disappear but as this station has been purchased back by the appropriate government department they can not leave any infrastructure (I did not see but assume the workshop I mentioned is well able to be locked up) or some clown will go onto the unattended land,130,000 hectares and injure themselves.   

Allan

[BruceDownunder]

What a fantastic Post, Thanks Alan...

That will be a terrific hobby to restore that ,

I really would like to come back and see you one day ,,who knows?

Bruce