Becky, Tom & Gabe Morgan posted:Disclaimer: we're life members at ARMM and we live too far away to volunteer.
When the new museum opened, we wondered how they were going to maintain it. Grants to open a museum aren't easy, but they're easier than getting maintenance money. The building is beautiful and about four times as big as the museum actually needed. The gift shop alone is as big as a lot of storefrontsIt was obvious even to us that using the building was going to cost a bundle.
As for the collection, Rich is right about the "historical fabric" people and the lack of understanding about boiler rules and regulations. They're not bad people. They truly don't understand machinery that was meant to be renewed as needed, rather than a fancy chair whose original upholstery is the item's value. They also think that all she needs is put back together so they can steam her up and run around the yard. The idea of undoing some of the ill-advised repairs from the long debacle horrifies them, and they don't see why she should have to have all those Form 4 calculations and so on.
They have a bunch of nice well-meaning volunteers who have "old fuddy-duddies" in the way-- you know, people who want to make sure the locomotive is safe to be fired up at all. They don't know the safety regulations or they assume they'll get an automatic pass on them. They don't have any good cost estimates; they tend to look blankly and say "But we already have all those parts." Yes, and some are worn out, and the huge boiler patch was mutilated before it could be inspected, so odds are the whole boiler course would need replaced, if not the whole thing. I have always thought a new boiler with the old one used as a display would be the best idea from an insurance standpoint.
As far as where to run 1361 besides the yards, they don't know. The Everett Railroad would be the reasonable choice, but it's not the Curve and nothing else will do. Meanwhile, there are all sorts of political reasons for this, that and the other (as there are in any town,) and knowing how to navigate those will be crucial to the museum's survival as well as any restoration of 1361.
The fuddy duddy comment had nothing to do about any repairs not being done correctly! There just happens to be negativity on this forum when it comes to restorations of locomotives! Especially when it doesn't involve certain individuals. I have seen some progress that they have made on pieces of this locomotive. Like the ash pan that was completely rebuilt. However not one post or picture of it on here. I say Good for them that's one less piece laying around. Those people need to be supported and not chastised for waisting their time. I will say this, there is plenty of small projects that can be finished on this locomotive while they gather funds to work on the boiler. It's probably much easier to get funding for a boiler if all the other parts for the engine are restored and ready to go!
