IRMPassengerCars.com

Update October 2008

yes I know its been far too long and info doesnt get shared unless its written. So here we go

We face the issue of preparation and operation from early August until November, Vintage transport, then Thomas, then Showcase, then Halloween, so we face a period of time when we sometimes get a bit behind. Its hard sometimes because we have to concentrate our efforts on operations and active displays for a big chunk of time, and so much of the restoration work grinds to a halt for three months of the year. Lets try to catch up a bit

On the heavyweight front,

i reported last month that the Dover has now been painted and lettered on both sides, Bob has made great progress on both vestibules, and progress is being made inside on the corridor.  There remains a bit of a problem involving the electrical feed for the car, and i hope to get it resolved completely this off season. Mike and Ray also are working on the hand brake, non functional for ?? maybe years.  It might be able to go for a ride next season. even as an exterior show it will be great to show it off. Bob Hunter deserves all the kudos for moving forward all the time.

http://www.irm.org/gallery/DoverStrait

Roger has been plugging along on the bathrooms of the John McGlothan as well, and I dont want to forget to give credit where its due, even though i am sorry i dont have any new photos to include just yet. Perhaps one of the projects this off season will be a new set of pics for the photo gallery.

The Boston and Maine cafe keeps going as well. Jack made it into this months Rail and Wire.

http://www.irm.org/gallery/BM3288

With the season slowing down after this weekend, Mike hopes to get the DLW coach vestibule repairs completed this winter, as well as a couple of coach ceilings that need repairs. There a some new pics of the work in the car folder, for the structural fans.

http://www.irm.org/gallery/DLW556

A slightly different item involves road trips to Monee Il, where there are several privately held pieces being scrapped. Steam team has begun to acquire two unique locos from there, and while there are a coupkle of heavyweitght passenger cars on the property, the reality is that we do not have the funds to transport them , store them, or restore them. The decision then was made to make trips and remove parts we can use. We did acquire a set of seats for the ATSF 2544 to allow us to install authentic seating in the coach area, and remove the streamliner seats that are there.

After Halloween, the streamliner sleepers will come home and, while it will take a couple of weeks to winterize them, we have made some more progress as well.

Two of the three power poles in Yard 5 are in place and operating, so we are almost completely connected. Max had a bit of delay with some pressing personal issues, but he has been out a bit more lately, and we hope to be ready when the cars come back next week. This will give us solid electrical connections for all cars, plus decent power supply for the baggage/shop car at the end, which will make the winter much more functional. I cant wait to have them in, winterized and lit for the holidays this year.

RDC 9934 now has all the interior lights working, and I want to get the classification lights working soon, but of course getting the set “buttoned up” and settled in for the winter takes precedence.

The one passenger window that was leaking has been repaired, as we discovered that it was installed upside down, with only 3 screws holding it in instead of the designed 26. New gasket material around the exterior and a solid mount and we think we have most if not all of the water leaks in RDC solved for now.

The one cab window that is missing has been located, (at least we think so ) in the Diesel locomotive storage, and as soon as someone gets a chance they will pull it out for us and we can get that issue resolved too.

http://www.irm.org/gallery/CNW9934

Plans include progress in all three sleepers, plus some more kitchen work in Birmingham. We will have to see just how much we can get accomplished in the 4-5 months of the off season. Spring comes quick, and we feel responsible to have the display open by May, so as always, help would be neat if anyone is interested, and donations are welcome all season.

The cost of the electrical system in Yard 5 has seriously depleted our restoration funds, and there are a few pieces of interior that i would love to restore in Silver Ridge, but do not have the funding for.

We hope to get back in the habit of regular updates, and hope to see many visitors by spring.

Hope everyone has a fun autumn and a happy winter season, see you soon!