just a few notes after a couple of weeks

first, congratulations/condolences/cheers/sympathy to the newest members of the IRM BOD.
As always, there is a lot of work to do ahead.

On the “inbound” front, we hope to have info soon on both Olympus and CBQ 1309 transport in to us.
No immediate news, other than to report that we continue to pester folks to get it done.

On the Silver Pony front, there is no real news. I have not been out there much as my time is being consumed by Barn 3 and the streamliner display. As soon as i get the set open, I will try to get back to work on our newest “friend”

Next, a few new pictures in the gallery.

BLE 25 combine and Inglehome came out into the sun a bit over the weekend to get their brakes checked.

Both passed, but Inglehome had a broken buffer frame, on the rear.
We dont know when or how it broke, but it had to involve impact/maybe during switching.
Not saying anyone did anything wrong, because hundred year old metal sometimes fails after many many impacts.
Only means that when Inglehome comes out to play, it has to be on the end, as there is now no  buffer to mate any other cars.

The latest pictures were all taken in natural light without flash, and I find it interesting how the section upholstery shows up so blue.

http://www.irm.org/gallery/Inglehome?page=1

http://www.irm.org/gallery/BLE25?page=1

The Barn 3 displays are up and running.

DMIR 84 floor repair is moving along.
Wayne and Shelly have gotten the subfloor done, and hope to get it sealed and prepped next weekend.
With a bit of luck, Chuck will have time to get over and replace the windows he has done over the winter.
No new pictures, hope to get more next week, after they get it done.

http://www.irm.org/gallery/DMIR84

In Yard 5 , some progress.

The first window is in the RDC, its kind of neat to be able to see out from inside the car.
Of course, as usual, nothing was easy. The reason I chose this particular window to change was the snowdrift inside this past winter. The 30 or so screws supposedly holding the window in were in reality only two.
Then i kept my promise to myself and cleared all the paint aroud the window frame to minimize the risk of getting the icky chemicals on the new glass.
THEN  all new gasket on the opening, and last but not least, getting all the screw holes to work again.
Once the glass was in place, it took another day to get all the trim and cover plates to fit properly.

BUT ITS DONE!. one down 21 to go.

http://www.irm.org/gallery/CNW9933?page=1

CNW fans take note!
$350 each to get them replaced, donations to the RDC itself
R9934  is the fund number (remember the identity confusion?)

I have started to get the displays up and the car cleaned, so I hope to open at least the RDC this weekend.

Silver Ridge is next, and has a ways to go.
Several window ledges to install, one set of window trim in a roomette to replace, and the corridor carpet to put down.
Another new wrinkle is that Marc (YAY) found the missing ceiling vents for the roomettes, so I want to put them up as well. I have not spent enough time with this car recently, with all the other distractions, and I rpomised it that I would “make her shine” for this season. 
I really want to open this weekat least a bit to get ready for the IT convention on April 30, but the time is getting late, and i really hesitate to open the set until its reasonably safe for visitors and their small children.

Birmingham is plugging along, one new wrinkle is I FINALLY got mad enough and tore out that hot water heater in the freezer unit in tyhe kitchen. Now I can think about replacing the door someday, another small step away from restauant and  back toward railroad.

Pacific Peak and Loch Sloy are both ready for final prep,. but need vacuuming and a wipe down, then beds made and displays set up.
Soooo, once I get Ridge settled and safe, I should be able to get the set open.
Of course if anyone wants to pitch in, I am more than happy to provide the windex, vacuum cleaners and bed linens. 

As always folks, donations remain a constant need. i anticipate about $1000 in hardware purchases this summer to use for Pony on display, AC unit and generator for power backup.

passenger car donations listed in the web store

http://www3.irm.org/store/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=1_7

for those that wish to contribute to any other piece, donations can be made by phone or by mail

Thanks for everyones support, and we hope to make more progress soon.

ok folks due to circumstances we will be restoring this blog site for the Passenger Dept. I know its been a while, and i dont pretend that I have become Chatty Cathy, but I hope to provide information to our friends , visitors and long range guests.

Winter progress is taking a lot of time and energy, including the repairs needed following the Terror event in 2010, but things are moving along nicely.

The shop trucks for our new acquisition are nearly done, thanks to Mike , Ray and their group of cold weather fans.

The Lackawanna coach in the barn is getting its interior ceiling scraped and painted.

The seats for the ATSF combine are being repaired and prepped for installation.

Several windows in DMIR coach are being repaired/rebuilt, thanks to Chucks efforts over the winter.

Loch Sloy needed seven roomette doors repaired from the Terror event, all but one are done, and we await parts from our illustrious Executive Director on his westward winter jaunt. The damage to one door prompted the backdating of one wall section, and of course the NP robins egg blue was there under the carpet and glue.

Silver Ridge needs several roomette doors repaired, and these too await parts

In addition, the exhaust blower for the ventilation system went bad over the summer, and this is the time I have to replace it. The old one is out and I hope to have the new one in this weekend. It will be a 110vac motor, to bring it current, and that takes even more load off the 32vdc transformer in the car.

Pacific Peak also had one roomette door jammed into the wall, and the design of this car forced us to literally remove the wall in the corridor to access the track mechanism. This one also caused backdating of the wall section, and the colors are visible  here as well.

 Its interesting to see the progression of design from late 40s/early 50s to late 50s with the addition of access panels and changes in parts to strengthen the design.

for the folks that are just tuning in, yes we now have a DOME! a Cal Zephyr dome to boot.

http://www.irm.org/gallery/CZ-Silver-Pony

Silver Pony arrived via flat car about three weeks ago, and will be a little while before its on wheels. But you know us, no moss gathering here…..

The car is cleaned out a lot, and the reading light circuits are up and running, so its not a bad view already. When I have the time, I will fire up the 110vac circuits and turn on the ceiling lights as well.

The car is open for tours “by appointment” as i am not in the car every day. Its current location is an all or nothing spot, so if i am working on Ridge, I cannot be near Pony, that kind of thing.

We will all be out Sunday, so if folks want to come see the new car, please let me know so I can make time to go out and unlock it.

I am going to have to re learn how to use this site, so links and pictures and stuff may not show up right now, but soon, I hope, soo…. especially with the guiding hand of our web goddess.

I think comments are allowed here, again, have to relearn. If not feel free to give a shout on the IRMlist and I will do my best to respond.

In the meantime, please everyone remember that donations are needed to move the work forward, even during this “quiet ” time of the year.

The new acquisitons now all have donation sites on the store location, so it is possible from home. All are fully deductible.

http://www3.irm.org/store/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=1_7

Thanks to everyone that is supporting our work.