Be Your Own Analyst

A psychiatrist might diagnose this as attention-deficit disorder or some such thing: I have trouble finding just one task and sticking to it all day. Instead, it's much easier to do several things for an hour or two each. If you are afflicted with the same problem, maybe we should organize a support group. I'm sure I can find lots of little tasks to keep several people busy!

First, I wanted to check on the 321's tarps after the big storm passed through last night. Everything seemed OK. I recently acquired a couple of ratchet tie-downs and installed them over the tarp. This should help keep the tarp secure, and I plan on installing several more.

While I was out there, Rod and Gerry and several others were switching freight cars in 13 and 14.





You'll wonder where the yellow went....

For some reason, Gerry Brookins decided to have the various cut-out cocks on all his equipment painted yellow. This had irked me ever since the cars arrived, and today I took care of the 319. Fortunately, I discovered that the yellow was mostly painted over a layer of grease and dirt, so it came off more easily than expected. I cleaned the valves down to bare metal and later painted them with brown primer.

And then there was more paint stripping on the 36.

Finally, the most important project was the floor in the 319's main compartment. I was unable to put on a finish coat before it entered revenue service in May. The primer on the linoleum down the center aisle had gotten dirty, and in some places was worn through. So I cleaned it up with Soilax and put on a second coat, as seen here. The primer on the wood surfaces to either side seems to be fine. Next time, I will start painting the compartment with the finish brown.