Entries by Chris C

Sorry for the extended radio silence: things have been busy in the real world and in the steam shop.

As I’d imagine everyone knows by now, for the first time in many years IRM has two operable steam  engines!  Shay 5 entered service over Memorial Day weekend.  





But there is more good news.  It is not enough to preserve the machines; we also have  to preserve and teach the skills needed to run them.  To that end, I am excited to report that already this year we have qualified two new steam locomotive firemen and one new steam locomotive engineer.  Congratulations to Ken, Don, and Eric.  







But today, I am not here to talk to you about locomotives, I am here to talk to you about holes.  Pits, to be specific.  The IRM steam department has long been hampered by the lack of  an inspection pit, which makes a lot of work underneath  the locomotive very inconvenient to perform (especially for those of us who are not as skinny as we once were).

Last year plans for an inspection pit were drawn up, and work began this summer almost as soon as the Shay and 1630 were out of the shop.  















Stay tuned!

The absence of posts is a clear sign of progress, or so I will keep telling myself.

It has been a busy month in the shop.  Work has primarily focused on the beginning of the end of 1630’s annual inspection.  













Our concerted efforts over the past month paid off, and I am excited to report that last weekend 1630 passed its federal hydrotest, which is the first of three major steps towards entering service each year (those being the hydrotest, an internal inspection, and a steam test).  

It is not enough to have a working locomotive, however.  You need to have people who know how to run it.  A few weekends back, the steam department held a training class on locomotive firing  and train handling  for all of our operating crew members.  Steam Department  Assistant Curator Jason Maxwell and experienced steam locomotive operator Ken  Ristow lectured on locomotive firing, while Ray Weart and Phil Hehn  addressed air brake and train handling.   







Although many of our efforts recently have focused on 1630, work on other projects has also continued.









Other exciting projects have also been in the works, so stay tuned for an update about everyone’s favorite Union Pacific consolidation.  

Work has continued to progress on 1630’s annual inspection.  Over the past few weeks, a number of tasks necessary to having a water-tight boiler have occurred, including the installation of washout plugs.

We also reinstalled the arch tube caps.  The arch tube caps must be removed every year so that the interior of the arch tubes can be cleaned.  

A few weeks ago, I showed a picture of Don repairing a defective patch on the front of the auxiliary tender.  That patch had been installed to seal two holes in the tender tank.  Last week, Don and Sam cut out the bad section of tank from the interior and patched it to prevent further deterioration.  

During preparations to recoat the interior of 1630’s tender a minor hole was also discovered.  Further investigation revealed a small section of bad metal which Don and Sam cut out and repaired.  

In the past few weeks, work has also continued on 428’s spring and brake rigging.  

Finally, for the past two weekends the track department has been conducting its annual track inspections.  Several steam department volunteers joined them to assist in this important task and to gain familiarity with our railroad.

Steam Department Mid-Winter Update

Despite the Polar Vortex, work in the steam shop has continued unabated.  

Our shop crews have been hard at work on 1630’s annual inspection.  













Work on our auxiliary tender, which we are hoping to place in service this spring, has also continued.











Surface preparation on the tender is almost complete, and we are hoping to be able to begin painting in the coming weeks.  

Our machinists and welders, meanwhile, have stayed busy working on projects to support Union Pacific 428’s eventual return to steam.  







Although I do not have any pictures to prove it, work has also continued on the Shay.  Following the successful steam test this fall, we are continuing to make minor improvements and we look forward to public operations this summer (dates will be announced on the IRM website once finalized).  

As a reminder, you can also follow the steam shop on facebook at facebook.com/irmsteam.