Entries by Roger Kramer

Here is a little progress report on our job to completely restore the 2612 to operation.  Our crew has expanded their efforts and I now see the possibility of getting all window frames and window sills painted before Thomas! Yes, the entire interior might be completely repainted by the time Thomas rolls up to our gate!   Its a great job everyone has been doing.  It's a lot of repetitive work. You would be surprised how long some tasks take. Eventually if you keep at it, the work does get completed.    These four people are the nucleus of our work team on the RI 2612.   Thanks again to Howard,  Loraine, Dan and Austin.   Without them the car would not be ready for this years Thomas Event!. 

       Here are more pictures of the Mt. Harvard when I was last working on the car in June 17,18 and 19.   This time my biggest project was to remove the old propane furnace located in the women's bathroom.  This was one of the biggest obstacles in returning the car to its Pullman ancestry.  Not only did I remove the furace and ductwork but also threw away a small commode which was located under one of the two sinks.  And of course, just my luck, it had some liquid "stuff" in it.   Moving it out of the washroom and into the hallway was no easy task.  Luckily, nothing spilled onto the floor. An accident could have made it a real "stinky" mess.  I, then, sled it to the vestibule and "airmailed" it off the platform unto the blast.   I was certainly happy when that was done with.I next removed the furnace and the duct work by systematically cutting it apart with a small electric saw I had recently purchased.   It was no easy task.  Between the noise of the blade cutting into the thin vibrating  steel and the sound from the saw really made it quite noisy.   With a little bit of luck I removed, first, the duct work then struggled with the furnace itself.  I  slowly dragged the heavy furnace from the women's wash room to the vestibule and again pushed it off the "cliff" and onto the ground.   Luckily, the next day one of the guys came around and helped with dumping it into the steel recycling bin.  A number of members have wondered if we can use the Mt Harvard as a  tail car.  The answer is Yes.  There is a back up whistle as well as device for operating the brakes when making a back-up movement.  You need not open the door because there is a handle inside that operates the brake valve.  Pullman thought of everything.  When operating in cold weather all that had to be done was to activate the valve inside the warm car.  The operator and his customers need not worry about getting a blast of cold air from an open door.  What modern conveniences!    I had some extra time on Saturday so I helped Skip  Litcher move his tender inside the steam shop and then to attach it to the body of the No. 2 steam engine .         Again, I would like to remind all the readers about the 1:1 matching grant offer from the Milwaukee Road Historical Association.    Here is your opportunity to make the most of your donation dollars.   For every one dollar given by you, the donor, to the  Mt. Harvard the MRHA will match it.  The total match  by MRHA will be  to a total of $10,000.00.    But don't wait to long . This offer expires August 31, 2015.   What a great offer!   Thanks again to MRHA for making this offer.      Roger   

      Just a rather short report concerning the various projects plus, a mention about a new one now underway. The ATSF 2544 combine project has finally begun.   We are painting the wooden floor in preparation for the installation of walkover seats!  Our intentions are to install the 14 seat frames that were painted about three years ago and fasten them to the wall and floor.  The next step will be to find enough seat cushions and backs to complete each frame and make the combine operable.    After that inspect the brake system and  repair any problems.   Hopefully, by this weekend  the entire floor will be painted and some walkover seat frames installed. As I have mentioned before, we are also upgrading the interior of the RI 2555.  The paint was in bad shape and needed an upgrade. Not to be outdone we are still continuing our final restoration on the 2612. We are also continuing the exterior upgrade. Howard has been leading that endeavor. Again, Bob is working on the ceiling on the 2612Yes, this year we are going to sandblast a car.  We will ,of course, keep you updated on that progress.  Well, I guess this is not one of those short reports after all.   The coach dept team is always busy.  Want to join us?  Wednesdays and Saturdays are the best for getting things done.   If you can, stop by for a visit.   Please, remember the Mt. Harvard Match!   Any amount of money sent into the fund will be matched 1:1 by the Milwaukee Road Historcial Assocition.   You can't lose!  Getting the biggest BANG for your donation on 4th of July Weekend....    Roger