Thank you!

And I'm not sure if the bearings are supposed to be sealed and it's an age thing or if this is just how it is but almost everyone has basically just said "grease is cheap, bearings are not". So I just top them off every so often.

quote:

Originally posted by Captain Morgan:
Not sure if it was answered but are the tracks abandoned?
How do you schedule an excursion like that on working tracks?

So this is as far as I know the only place in the country where there are tracks that you can just drop your speeder onto it at any time and go for a ride. The tracks are "abandoned" and owned by the State of New Hampshire and integrated as part of the trail that's there.

For excursions on working railroads, the national organization NARCOA has members that work with host railroads to get them to allow members to run at certain times throughout the year.

Here's a quick video with the bell and a little bit of horn

And a couple pictures from the same trip

This message has been edited. Last edited by: ryan81986,

Sure looks like fun.

quote:

Originally posted by ryan81986:
So this is as far as I know the only place in the country where there are tracks that you can just drop your speeder onto it at any time and go for a ride. The tracks are "abandoned" and owned by the State of New Hampshire and integrated as part of the trail that's there.

For excursions on working railroads, the national organization NARCOA has members that work with host railroads to get them to allow members to run at certain times throughout the year.

Where exactly are these abandoned railroad tracks in the Granite State? And what do they call this rail trail you speak of?

Is it the Cotton Valley Rail Trail from Wolfeboro to Wakefield? Nevermind...Just reviewed the entire thread and confirmed that's the case based on the videos & pics posted on page 3, though you also ran the Conway Branch (don't think that's abandoned) and the Milton & Bennington RR too!

My grandfather was a wheel with the Apalachicola Northern railway and he had one of these along with a hirail station wagon and hirail truck in which he kept at a small terminal close to his house.

I remember riding in one of those way back.

Neat!

quote:

Originally posted by nhracecraft:

quote:

Originally posted by ryan81986:
So this is as far as I know the only place in the country where there are tracks that you can just drop your speeder onto it at any time and go for a ride. The tracks are "abandoned" and owned by the State of New Hampshire and integrated as part of the trail that's there.

For excursions on working railroads, the national organization NARCOA has members that work with host railroads to get them to allow members to run at certain times throughout the year.

Where exactly are these abandoned railroad tracks in the Granite State? And what do they call this rail trail you speak of?

Is it the Cotton Valley Rail Trail from Wolfeboro to Wakefield? Nevermind...Just reviewed the entire thread and confirmed that's the case based on the videos & pics posted on page 3, though you also ran the Conway Branch (don't think that's abandoned) and the Milton & Bennington RR too!

You got it! The Conway branch is abandoned as well as it's severed from the NHN at NH Route 28 and from Conway Scenic's trackage at NH16.

Ryan - It seems like you're up here quite regularly. If you don't mind, I'd love to check out your Speeder in person before the real cold and snow sets in up here. Please contact me via email (in Profile) to see if our schedules might line up on one of your trips to the Granite State. Thanks.

Assuming the paint I put on it today dries in time, I'll be up there tomorrow. I'll shoot you an email.

EXCELLENT!

Went up a couple weeks ago with a friend of mine, here we are stopped at a restaurant by the tracks. Quite convenient.

Happy Spring!

I've got it out of the garage after doing a little bit of work. I've added a set of David Clark headsets which will make it 100x easier to talk to the passenger without having to yell at them. Going up to the rail trail tomorrow for some spring cleanup. I've also got a mobile radio that I'll at to it at some point and also tie into the DC headsets so I can transmit on and listen to the radio directly through the headset.

And the newest addition. Well, soonish to be, a bronze EMD pneumatic bell. Soonish because it's missing the pneumatics. That should be an easy addition though, just trying to find the most cost effective one. I'm in the process of trying to polish it up now.

What a cool project.

quote:

Originally posted by ryan81986:
Went up a couple weeks ago with a friend of mine, here we are stopped at a restaurant by the tracks. Quite convenient.

I like this. To be able to stop and get out in a town. I'm not sure how parking works but that's pretty cool.

When I was hired on the BN in '78 these were still in use, It was pretty fun learning how to run one in either direction and start without injury.
You are lucky to have abandon tracks to run on, they all got torn up for the scrap $ around here.
Enjoy!

quote:

I'm not sure how parking works but that's pretty cool.

It looks like they have a siding to go around, if there is still switches, those 2 seaters were made for 1 big brute to set off at a crossing by himself.
Unless it has a 80 lb bell on it

quote:

Originally posted by MoosehornMan:
Unless it has a 80 lb bell on it

Eh it's not that bad

Little bit of a different update. I picked up this LED tri-light signal from a friend of mine. If the State of NH approves, we're going to try and install it next to the tracks at the rail trail club. My plan is to have a signal box next to it, with a solar panel trickle charging some batteries. On the outside of the box will be a switch that will change it between green yellow and red. It will normally be green, if someone takes a speeder out they can change it to yellow or if the line needs to be closed it can be changed to red.

Took it out to a car show yesterday, got lots of questions and curious people. And nothing but positive feedback: