@jhz563 posted:Congratulations on passing another milestone in your restoration effort! I hope to ride being this machine in the years to come.
Besides boiler work, are there other major evolutions that still need completed? I.e. cylinder inspections, driver tires, wiring, brake work, tender restoration etc? I am just trying to get a feel for how close you are to starting reassembly. It would be a blast to start a trip here in Eastern PA, maybe at Steam town, catch a ride at Strasburg, go to Reading and get onboard being R&N 425 or 2102, maybe one at WK&S if Steam is available, go way back in time at New Freedom PA, then swing down to Cumberland MD to check out that restored giant 1309 (hopefully running on better track than what's currently available), and then out to Ohio to catch the 2100 as a grand finale. That would be an amazing steam trip. Even better if the East Broad Top was back in service to catch one more ride on the return trip!
Thanks for the great question!
The boiler vessel is in the process of undergoing a full ultrasonic inspection to determine the thickness of the metal and ensure that we a proper factor of safety. Before long, we will lift the sand dome off of the locomotive so that we can take readings on that section of the boiler. The firebox interior got this treatment a few years ago and that is how we found the inner side sheets to be thin.
The running gear was recently inspected by a professional contractor. I do not know the specifics of the inspection but I will try my best to explain what I do know. In terms of the side rods, our contractor found that there is not as much work needed on them as we had anticipated. That being said, they are not perfect, and they will need work before reentering service. The driver tires and crankpins are good for service. The cylinders are ready for service, but the valves will need disassembled and inspected. The pilot truck will need to be removed from under the locomotive, as one of the roller bearings has some surface rust on it. We will have a Timken representative come up and inspect it to see if it is suitable for service as-is or if additional work is needed.
The projects on the tender and the rest of the coal conversion are coming along nicely. We are very fortunate that the coal-burning components of 2100 were saved after the oil conversion, but there is some work needed before they can go back in service. The oil bunker was drained of oil and removed from the tender in the summer of 2019, and the coal bunker is in very good shape. The oil bunker support brackets have been removed. Some new metal will need to be fabricated for the stoker and deckplate. The water space of the tender will need a thorough cleaning and the protective coating reapplied before it is ready. The stoker mechanism overall needs plenty of work yet. We removed the cab floor so that we can fabricate a new one that will properly accomodate the coal-burning components. The grates are ready for a coal fire. In the smokebox, we will need to fabricate some new screening in order for the locomotive to draft properly while on the road.
Mechanically, I believe that is all there is to do aside from the other firebox work that I already mentioned. Hope to see you out here when she's done!
