319 Report

Today was a beautiful day out in the country, and a good opportunity to work in pleasant conditions.  The 319 needed to be turned around, so here it is out on the tail track.  And notice that it now has its whistles!  Gerry helped me by watching the new grid box to make sure it wasn't arcing or sparking, and all was well.  Later, on the way back into the barn, the pole dewired, and I found myself unable to pull it out of retrieve by myself.  That's rather annoying.  Luckily, Frank Kehoe was willing to help yank on the rope, and the car finally got back into the barn.  Thanks!

New screws arrived, so I was able to attach all of the lift tabs.  When we got the 319, these were missing for some reason, and we had no spares on hand.  In order to get the car into service in 2010, I removed all of the lifts from the 36 and installed them in the 319.  They were put back on the 36 at the end of 2013, when the 319's roof job started and the 36 was ready for service.  These are new brass castings which I spent the last few months filing, sanding, and buffing at home.  They look pretty nice.  So the 319 should be ready for inspection.

The next thing on the 319 will be new upholstery for many of the seats.  They're not all this bad, but while I can do the cushions at home, the backs will require professional work.  When we did the backs for the 308 about ten years ago, it cost $150 apiece, and I can only think the price will be higher now.  So I may have to start blegging for money.

And I worked on preparing the 150 for mounting the sign box, and started cleaning up the 36.  Over the summer, I'd like to repaint the exterior, starting with the roof, and it needs to have the interior cleaned up first.

Let's see what's happening on the 24.  Frank K. has made these nice window tracks.

Tim is working on the interior, and here the new ceiling for the smaller motorman's compartment is being glued in place.

And the main compartment is being prepped.  Don't spend too much time thinking about the wiring system, it's the same one used in lots of other wood cars, such as the CA&E Jewetts.   What could possibly go wrong?

Lots of other people were out working today also, such as the signal crew.   And I had a chance to talk to our old friend Dennis Daugherty, who stopped by on his way to the auction at North Freedom.  So that was interesting.   On Saturday, I'll finish painting the tack molding on the 319, and go from there.