The Steamtug Blog

This week I have steamed up the street in a traction engine, then cruised down the river in my new dinghy, all in an exciting week as the atmosphere in old Geelong town peaks before the mighty cats meet Collingwood’s magpies in the greatest footy game of the year, the Grand Final. But firstly, here is this weeks rant!

Weekly Rant

I have just been out in the shed wrestling with a piece of cheap Chinese junk I have recently purchased. Of course you cannot help buying such rubbish because it’s half the price of what you expect to pay, and who can pass up such a bargain? For example… a generator for my boat was $4,000 but I found a Chinese one that does the same job for only $500!! Now that takes some beating, but the damn thing is so hard to start that I fart around with it for 20 minutes to make it go, all the time mumbling under my breathe “$3500…. $3500…. Damn $3500!!!” then eventually it starts and the lights in the boat glow brightly as I sip my beer laughing that I saved $3500.  (Who really got the last laugh?)

But our government should be working on policies that make sense to ordinary people like me instead of concentrating on global financial matters, boat people and carbon taxes. They should pass a law that if you buy something that doesn’t do what it’s supposed to do 1 month after you brought it, you can take it back for a full refund. Because the rubbish I am messing about with in my garage almost works, but just misses the mark by a margin that renders it useless! So why did I buy it? Because it was half the price of a real one. So why do they sell it half price? Because some Chinaman who is leaning out the window of his Mercedes, is telling someone “If we sell it half price, no problem… because next month they come back and buy another one!!! Ha ha ha… Why? Because it’s half the price and stupid Australian cannot resist Chinese bargain!”

Sovereign Hill Steam Day

Do you remember my post from last year about the steam day at Sovereign Hill? Well I went again this year as Tom was helping Clive get his traction engine around the streets of Sovereign hill, and I went along for the ride sitting in the wood box on the back. It’s a 1903 Burrel 6nhp traction engine and Tom drove it across from Clive’s house on the roads to Sovereign Hill.

Of course my mate Warren, or “Rabbit” as most people know him, was there working in the boilerhouse keeping those ancient cornish boilers filled with wood and the pressure gauge needle humming around the red line.

The old “Steam” book

And do you remember the old “Steam” book? It was the bible for engine drivers way back when I was studying to become a fully fledged engine driver. It took me 4 years to accomplish what modern day people get in 1 week of quick instruction around a boilerhouse. This is because the authorities figure you don’t actually need to know anything about a boiler now in the modern computer age, because everything is documented in procedures for start up, shutdown, and emergencies. (Imagine hiding under your desk with your finger reaching up to the keyboard of your computer repeatedly pressing the “print” button desperately trying to get the procedure on what to do when the boiler blows up!) But back in my day, we had to know every nut, bolt, rivet and stay associated with the common varieties of boilers.

The author of the old steam book, was Mr. Eddie Reid, who was the instructor at RMIT for 34 years before becoming an official government examiner. When I fronted up for my first class oral exam, I was nervous to learn the old guru of steam himself was going to be the examiner.

While sitting in the mess room at the back of the sovereign hill boilerhouse, I noticed the large collection of steam books on the table. “It’s because Eddie Reid is here today, and is coming to sign the books” the boys all told me. Well I could not believe my eyes when he walked through the door, larger than life, 91 years of age and still sharp as a tack! I shook his hand and recalled to him the story of my first class “recip” examination, and how I answered every question perfectly except for the section on engine indicators. He read my answer back to me and said “It appears you have no clue as to the purpose or working of engine indicators” I had to admit it was true. So he commenced a 20 minute lecture on the topic complete with diagrams and drawings. He then took the examiners check sheet, where he had ticked “excellent” to all the previous answers, then downgraded this topic to a mere “good” telling me I had passed my exams and was now a fully fledged engine driver 1st class. (My grandfather was most impressed as he always wanted to reach this level but did not.) Did I mention that I too became a government examiner for steam boiler, turbines and steam engines?

Zaloopa takes to the rivers

The old dinghy used as a tender for Adaqua finally fell apart, and with the purchase of a new larger one, I decided that we should register this one as a boat in it’s own right, rather than have to be restricted to the regulations of a tender boat only (only 300 metres away from the mother ship)

So after giving her a nice name, and equiping her with flares, anchor fire extinguisher etc and getting her official registration certificate, I decided we needed to give her a run on some of the inland waterways. So we booked into a hotel on the shore of lake Nagambie in central victoria, then launched Zaloopa into the lake and cruised upstream all the way to Kirwan’s bridge. Next day we crossed the border into New South Wales at Tocumwal and cruised upstream on the great Murray River, Australia’s largest river. She made a mere 3.5 knots upstream, then raced at 6 knots all the way back! She’s no speed boat, but the scenery was nice and the fresh air was relaxing.

Stay Tuned!

There is lots coming up soon, so check back here soon. This week is the footy grand final where we will see if Geelong really is the “greatest team of all” (from their theme song). And the following week is Bathurst for the V8 supercars. We are leaving next Wednesday to see how much beer we can drink before the race starts the following Sunday. And while I was away over the past week, I found a great device in a farm supply shop. A new beer distribution system for around the campfire at Bathurst!!! Seeeeeeeeeeeeeeeya!