Motters

Hi All, Well this working day is almost over here is sunny South Australia!! So all that is left to do is to wish you all a very Happy and Healthy 2015. Will check in again soon... Motters

Hi All, Been a while since I've posted anything, so with Christmas in sight here goes. Once again I find myself alone in the kitchen after what has been the quietest day in the last two months. Tomorrow is quieter still and Wednesday we'll just not talk about, as I'm working both of them!! The last two months have been interesting, starting off with around 500 dinners a week and ending with nearly 2500 dinners a week... days off... what are those... oh wait on... are those the one I normally sleep through? Anyway it's all over now. Will be off for six days over Christmas, but will be back to work for the 31st. Why would anyone want to get married on NYE is beyond me... seems like one less party!!! Okay, that's all. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all of you. Motters

Got my own Apricot tree right outside the door... every year fresh straight from the tree... better than getting them from somewhere else!! Motters

Baz, Spot on that man... Just think that next time you visit (hint, hint)... we will be able to enjoy that most Australian of pasttimes... a cold one and a BBQ!! Don't forget to tell the missus and say hello from the both of us. Motters

Take a look now.... still not getting on with uploading photos

G'day All, Been a lovely day here... sunny and warm (16 degrees)... not bad for a mid-winter day. Anyway things are happening round here... took delivery of this little lot... so to quote from a recently imprisioned entertainer... "Can you see what it is yet?" Motters

Hi All, Be Just over a week since my birthday ride on the Steamranger railway at Mount Barker... Had a great time and the weather was perfect... a better birhtday you cannot have!! I am going to try to add a few photo's and some info about the loco for those of you that are interested. Motters So the top photo is the loco backing onto the coaches... the middle one proves that we even had 'Phil the Greek' travelling with us... and the last one is of the Baker valve gear. And now a few details of the loco for those interested... The 620 class The completion of the South Australian Railways (SAR) broad gauge route between Adelaide and Port Pirie created a need for a fast, light passenger locomotive to haul this service, as well as other traffic on the lightly laid 60-lb (29.8 kg/m) rail branch lines of the SAR. The specification included the ability to haul a 200-long-ton (200 t) train up a 1-in-45 (2.2%) grade at 25 miles per hour (40 km/h). Mr P.J. Shea, Chief Mechanical Engineer of the SAR designed a 140 ton Pacific type. A notable feature of the design, unique to South Australian Railways, was the use of Baker valve gear in lieu of the more common Walschaerts valve gear.[2] The first locomotive (620) was completed at the SAR workshops at the Islington Workshops in 1936, with the tenth and final locomotive of the class (629) completed in 1938. Class leader No. 620 was also notable for being Australia's first streamlined locomotive, the smokebox being covered with a chromed steel grille similar to those fitted to motor cars of the period, and painted Hawthorn green with yellow stripes.[1] The press of the time described 620's appearance as 'a bit of fluff'. The remainder of the class were unstreamlined. In service, the 620 class replaced the Q and S 4-4-0 types on branchline services, where they proved quite successful. With the introduction of the more powerful and modern 520 class from 1943, these locomotives were relegated to the Willunga, Bridgewater and Tailem Bend passenger services, as well as continued service on Mallee line services (the locomotives light axle loading providing good route ability plus the "get up and go" characteristics common to large wheeled Pacific type locomotives. The 620 class was phased out in favour of Bluebird Railcars, although a spate of railcar failures in 1954–55 saw the 620 class return to service on the Port Pirie line. In 1994, the 'Duke of Edinburgh' steam locomotive number 621 ran a one-off special steam hauled tour into Victoria just before the Melbourne to Adelaide mainline was converted from broad gauge rail line to a standard gauge track. This was the first ever time a South Australian Railways steam locomotive had ever worked east into Victoria and with the gauge conversion imminent the tour would also be the last. The train travelled as far east as Bacchus Marsh in Victoria, due to the locomotive being too wide for the stations situated along the Melbourne suburban railway system. The locomotive combined with Victorian Railways R Class Steam locomotive 761 for the majority of the tour from Wolseley in South Australia to Bacchus Marsh in Victoria. All but two of the locomotives were scrapped by 1969. One is preserved in working condition by SteamRanger (621) with the second (624) held in the National Railway Museum (Port Adelaide). Specifications Power type Steam Designer P. J. Shea Builder South Australian Railways, Islington Workshops Build date 1936–1938 Total produced 10 Configuration 4-6-2 UIC classification 2′C1′h Gauge 5 ft 3 in (1,600 mm) Driver diameter 5 ft 6 in (1.676 m) Length 69 ft 8 in (21.23 m) Axle load 15 tons 18 cwt (35,600 lb or 16.1 t) Locomotive weight 81 tons 10 cwt (182,600 lb or 82.8 t) Locomotive and tender combined weight 140 tons 15 cwt (315,300 lb or 143.0 t) Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity 9 tons 0 cwt (20,200 lb or 9.2 t) Water capacity 5,200 imp gal (24,000 l) Boiler pressure 200 psi (1.4 MPa) Firegrate area 33.4 sq ft (3.10 m2) Heating surface: – Tubes 1,560 sq ft (145 m2) – Firebox 175 sq ft (16.3 m2) Superheater area 421 sq ft (39.1 m2) Cylinders Two Cylinder size 18.5 in × 28 in (470 mm × 711 mm) Valve gear Baker Tractive effort 25,239 lbf (112.27 kN)

Morning all, My birthday is here... the day is clear blue skies and sunny with a max of 14 degrees... perfect for a train ride!! Will try to post some photo's tomorrow. Enjoy your day everyone... I know I will Motters

Hi Baz, Happy Birthday mate!!! Typical you... umpiring a game on your birthday... me... tomorrow on my birthday, me and the missus are going on an all-day steam hauled train ride... now that's a birthday!! Motters

Q. What do you call a man with two d!cks? A. A lucky b@stard Q. What do you call a man with 11 d!cks? A. Roy Hodgson

Evenin all, Strange day here today... after a stormy night a sunny start... but after that rain, sun, rain, sun... and so on. Not a nice day but got done what we had to and then stayed indoors with the heating on. More of the same forecast for the coming days.... will have to be careful driving to work tomorrow as it normally gets worse as I pass through the Adelaide Hills before reaching the city. Hope your days are better, Motters

G'day all, First the weather... it pi55ed it down for most of the night and a good chunk of this morning... it is stsarting to brighten up now but the forcast is for more of the wet stuff. Now moving on... When Baz was here a few months back we saw a Jowett Javelin on a trailer and Baz took some photos (not sure if he has shown them here and I aint going looking), and then today on another railway list there is a discussion started about Jowett's... if anyone is interested here's the link to 'The Jowett Car Club'... http://jowett.org/ As an aside to this link the original writer also mentioned... one of the Police Stations in Bradford is named "Javelin House" after the Jowett that was formerly manufacured on the site. Didn't know that. Motters

Sure can deliver... no promises of it will be with you in half an hour or even that the food will be still hot / cold... might come with a free green winter coat after its travels around the world!! But thinking it through as I type this... maybe not... haven't had dinner yet myself and it does look good...!!! Motters

HI all, further to baz's request.... one butter chicken and one coleslaw.... Motters

Hi all, Been a few weeks since I last checked in... would'nt you know it work and life just keep getting in the way!!! Anyways... after the last couple of very hectic weeks this week is the exact opposite... as I am typing this at work you can imagine that there is bu@@er all to do!!! Just got to wait here "in case" there is an order for someone in the wine bar (in case anyone missed it I did once mention that I am a chef by trade)... what a waste of time this week is. The only possible good side to this is at least I am getting paid for it!! Honestly... I hate doing nothing but this is taking it to the extreme... a normal week around here is about the 100k in business... this week is 11k... not sure if that pays the electricity bill or not but it wont cover much. Rant over. Winter has kicked in here, cold nights +/- 8 degrees... daytime +/- 15 degrees, mostly sunny but there could be a wet spell on the way... Just remember that there is no such thing as bad weather... there is just the wrong clothes!! Okay take care everyone. Motters