Asia Ricemills Preserved Locos

[qualtrough]

Does anyone know:

1. If the two steam locos are still at Asia Rice Mill?

and;

2. Is the management amenable to visits to see those locos if arrangements can be made?

I live pretty close to ARM but have never been up there to check it out. Plan to do so soon, but want to know if they are still there and learn about anybody else's experience first.

John

[ncr]

Where's that rice mill, and which two steam locos do they have? :confused:

(Could be that it is mentioned somewhere in the depths of the railroad forum, but I cannot remember anything....)

[Wisarut]

Asia Ricemill, it is at Lam Look Ka (not far from Sema Fahkram Village or Greenspot Soft Drink factory) ;)

[qualtrough]

NCR,

From what I have heard over the years from several reliable sources, there are a pair of Japanese locos from the 1930s (I can't recall wheel arrangement) that were installed there for power at some point. I imagine they are still there otherwise Khun Wisarut would have mentioned the fact that they were not. The mill is only about 10 minutes from my house-don't know why I haven't checked that out yet. I intended to about 5 years ago and never go around to it. Must do before they are scapped or sold!

[Wisarut]

Khun qualtrough,

This must be Mikado from the year BE2479 (1936-1937) .... 351-358. :D

The Boiler of steamlock will be used for storing steam for driving the machines in the rice mill

[qualtrough]

Khun Wisarut, do you have any more details on the exact location of Asia Rice Mills? I found an address for the mill as 70/1 Klong 2 Lumlukka. Yesterday I drove up and down the length of Klong 2 road without success. I even stopped at the Greenspot factory twice and spoke to a guard. He directed me to an old mill that actually was on Klong 1. This mill was pretty small and had no name on the outside. I spoke to one of the workers and he said told me its name in Thai, which I can't recall, but he did not recognize Asia Rice Mill and I saw no signs that it was. I also drove around the Fa Khram area but saw no signs of a mill there either. Seems like a well hidden mill! John

[Wisarut]

Asia Rice Mill? I afraid that those loco must be stored at the old ricemill of Asia Rice Mill at Klogn 10 whcihis very far away from the Oficeat Kong 2 and the old ricemil at Klong 1 ...

For the case of Asia Rice mill Office, it is in between km4 and km5 of Rangsit - Nakhon Nayok Road,
Klong 2 Commune, Thayaburi distirct .. with telephon number at : (02) 577-1618, (02) 577-1247, (02)533-0153

[qualtrough]

Khun Wisarut,

Ah, Klong 10, that accounts for it. Thanks much for the additional info.

John

[R. Zimmermann]

Qualtrough, greetings. Just flipping through forum "backcopies".
Nos. 351, 353. Did you find them, are they still there? Saw them first 23.10.92
when at least of one them seemed to had been put out of work fairly recently.
Easy to photograph. Later visit(don't have the date at hand) found them entombed in a newbuilding. No way to ever escape unless structure being demolished.

[qualtrough]

Hello,

Thanks for asking. I was never able to get an address other than the street location, and despite spending the better part of the day and enquiring all over the place I was never able to locate the mill. Do you have more details or an address that you could PM to me? I am eager to check it out, I just need to find it. I live in Lumlukka so you wouldn't think it is that hard, but Lumlukka is a pretty big area.

John

[R. Zimmermann]

Found my notes of 1992. They by-and-large match what Khun Wisarut advised:
about 6 km along road to Nakhon Nayok, 70/1 Rangsit/Nakhon Nayok Road,
Tambon Prachatipat, Amphoe Thanburi, Pathum Tani, Tel 5330-0152-4 (as of
10/1992). I remember the location as having been on the right hand side of the road, across a bridge over the parallel klong. Now, I really wonder...

[qualtrough]

Thanks much for digging up your old notes. Now I am really confused! I visited the area you described (I think) and found an old rice mill at that location. Rather small and unmarked as well. Inside the machinery was your typical wood structure, powered by electricity. Nobody seemed to know anything, but I believe I was talking to the wrong people and I suspect they were not even Thai as well. I couldn't raise the owners so I left. That location was around Klong 1, which is where Khun Wisarut mentions there is an old rice mill.

I then tried Klong 2, near the location of the Greenspot plant, and again no luck at all. I asked around and nobody had any clue, including the Greenspot guards who were very helpful.

Khun Wisarut then said Klong 10. I spent about two hours traversing that area back and forth without success. Nobody had ever heard of Asia Rice Mill and we saw no large mills in the area either. Eventually though we did find what must be one of the last steam-worked rice mills in the Bangkok area so that wasn't a totally wasted trip. I can't recall the name of that mill at the moment, but it was definately not the mill in question as I had a long chat with the owner and it was located off of Lumlukka road anyway.

BTW, the first time I heard about this was from a German or Dutch (?) gentleman whom I met on the Dec. 5th steam train a few years back. He was working in HK in the shipping business I believe. That wouldn't have been you would it??

[von Hirschhorn]

Both, German and Dutch. We went there together twice if I am not mistaken, I do have pictures, unfortunate I cannot recall any direction, we came by car.
As Reiner Zimmermann said; during the last visit the enigines were fully entombed. Well, since you'r in the neighbourhood keep on searching, it's always good to know if things last.

[qualtrough]

I think I will start by trying the rice mill on Klong 2 again. If that is not it I will have to wait for further leads as the other locations are further out and cover a pretty big territory. This all could have been avoided if I had tried this about five years ago. At that time I still worked for a company that did rice inspections and Asia Rice Mills was well known to them. I worked with a Belgian fellow who had been doing that for almost 50 years, and he obtained complete details for the mill. Unfortunately I was not able to follow up at that time and the info has now disappeared--and my Belgian co-worker passed away two years ago!

[R. Zimmermann]

Steam, German, HK and Shipping - that all fits.
I you can manage to contact me directly, please do so.
That (new) mill building when we saw it was a solid concrete structure.
Unless it was demolished and the locomotives scrapped - they should still be around.

[qualtrough]

Herr Zimmermann,

Must have been you. I believe it was 1998/99 or so and the Dec. 5th train. We had a brief chat when the train stopped somewhere, probably Ayudhaya. Everything fits, nationality, occupation, location, age, and interest! I see you are in Thailand now? I was not able to contact you through this forum, but you can write me.

John

[qualtrough]

I finally located them, so they still exist. Rob Dickinson came with me on my second visit and has created a Web page with photos here:

http://www.zh62.dial.pipex.com/trains/thai03.htm

[ncr]

Nice find....... Unbelievable in what good condition they are!

[qualtrough]

Ultimately credit is due to Mr. Zimmermann who first told me the story when I met him briefly on the King's birthday train to Ayuthaya something like 7 years ago. I was slow in following up, and then had trouble finding it due to incorrect directions, etc. Finally I spoke with the son of a nearby rice mill owner and he happened to know where it was, even drew me a map! They are indeed in very nice shape, and should stay put for a while as they a surrounded on all sides, and on top, by buildings!

[Wisarut]

Ther is not so good new about 2 Mikado inside that Asian Rice Mill.

The creditors have seized that rice mill since the owner failed to pay the debts ... Therfore, it is up to the mercy of of the cretors whether they would allow railfans to purchase thsoe Mikado - with or without string attached .... :(