Work Session Status Week Ending 08/31/2013

August 3, 2013

Another busy week at the site this week. Preparations have already begun for the open house to be held on the 28th of September.

Volunteers are busy locating various pipes in storage then cleaning and painting those not previously done. They are then installed using disassembly photos and work sheets.

The piping for two of the blow down valves have been installed. One had to be cut during removal. It was re-welded last week.

Cab bracket fabrication continues. Two of the three stolen brackets are finished. The outer cab bracket on the engineer’s side will be the most difficult one to replicate.

Plans to temporarily install the cab on the locomotive are underway. Steel lifting bars were fabricated Saturday. We will be having a special work session to install it onto the locomotive.

The Rust Bullet Paint Co. donated enough paint to cover most of the unpainted surfaces on the boiler which have been previously needle-scaled and cleaned of crud. Rust Bullet is unique in that it chemically bonds with surface rust. The locomotive will look quite spiffy for the open house.

We had a fairly good response to our request for welding funds. Although the contributions are well short of what we need to complete the restoration, we have selected a local boiler service company to begin work September 14th. They have indicated they can also install the tubes and flues when the time comes. Details will be included in the next newsletter.

Hope to see you all at the site this week, and as always . . .

Keep on Steamin’,
Rick Kirby, CMO
NMSL&RHS