Thursday, August 5, 2010

Poor Old 321

I spent another two hours or so trimming and fastening the tarp on the 321. It is holding up so far but I will be surprised if it lasts another year. At least it has stopped shifting and doesn't inflate nearly as much as it did before. I also went inside the car to check on its condition; it's hot, of course, but not as bad as I feared. I can only hope the next barn is constructed soon. We plan to have a more detailed message about barn financing soon.

I also worked on various parts of the 319's air system. I had to install the correct sort of drain cock on one of the tanks, and the cut-in handle at one end was missing. After some searching, I was able to locate the correct part and installed it with some difficulty. The triple valve leaks slowly in release, but I found that there was a larger leak in the magnet valve for the field tap control next to it. Since we have no use for this device, I shall plug the pipe leading to it to stop the leak. Nothing worth taking a picture of, I'm afraid.

However, in other news:

Bob Heinlein was helping Tim with troubleshooting the 1268 today. One of the main journals was running hot, but this was fixed, and the car was run for some test trips, then revenue service as seen here. I guess Tim just had to get his bearings.




And people are busy setting up tents all over the place for some reason. I don't know what it could be, they never tell me anything. But it looks like it might be both exciting and profitable!

3 comments:

lee wells said...

The tents look like the merchandising tents used to sell Thomas the Train stuff.

Anonymous said...

The 321 was not only the last of the Jewett cars, it was the last of the woods! I fear for its future. I strongly urge the powers that be at IRM not to let it go the way of the 318. Already major parts are being stripped from it for use elsewhere. Yes, I am aware that there are structural problems, but it still deserves to be preserved! Long live the 321!

Edward J. Maurath
edwj@hotmail.com

Ted Miles said...

Randy,
Is the #321 going to be de-moted a parts car for the rest of the C,A & E fleet?

I see she is still listed in the ner IRM Roster that came out recently.

Ted Miles
IRM Member