Firewood posted:There was an appeal a few years ago for about $500,000 to give 6218 her first face-lift in years. I think that's all you're going to see in the restoration direction.
http://www.trha.ca/2010/03/for...toration-of-cnr.html
http://fess.dsbn.org/docs/guid...rochure.pdf?sfvrsn=0
I feel the overall climate for steam locomotives in North America is becoming slowly un-friendly. As the knowledge base slowly shrinks, and the corporate boardroom friendliness evaporates, the steamers will slowly be parked. There are bright lights, and we all know them, but in general mainline railroad steam will become a too-expensive, too-bureaucratic, insurance-nightmarish morass.
The possibility of static displays being restored to low pressure steam operation is possible, but there might be an alternative. I think for our future generations to see the BIG steam locomotive experience up close, the Disney / movie effects / engineering interpretation approach is an option. Mechanical restoration and hydraulic operation of key components in animated displays has been done. The Cruquius steam pump museum in the Netherlands is a wonderful example of old steam technology preservation. The engine/pump is fully operational through custom-designed modern hydraulics. The option of full steam restoration wasn't an option, so no operating boilers. I think that's the key to future museum locomotives. No mainline operation, and no live boiler to horrify the insurance executives - but make it alive somehow, and capture the viewer's imagination. Just my $0.02's worth or less.
I hope you are wrong about that. It would be a sad day indeed if steam locomotives were no longer running.
