Hear, Hear, those are big steps completed!

If you zoom in real close on Sammy's face, Les, you can see the stars in his eyes. ;)

NVPete -

I'm looking......I'm looking. HEY, you might be right!

Audrey FOREVER!

Les

Of course, Audrey was born under a lucky star, may it's light shine on all of us who care for her.

Please forgive my taking up yet another minute on the soapbox, but I've been trying to restore one steam engine or another for the last 60 years, and up until now somebody has always managed to screw it up for me somehow. To the many good folks who are going through the same thing that I did, please don't give up. I just want you to know this one little thing:

LIVING WELL IS THE BEST REVENGE.

I had my #6 hat on today, Sammy, and this is what happened... LOL

After a good two and a half years of being stuck on dead center, I am pleased to report that we are rolling again !!! We are expecting the new boiler to be ready in the first quarter of next year, and we're aiming for steam trials by Thanksgiving. OF COURSE, Audrey is a steam locomotive, it is very possible that we won't make our target dates, just as so many similar projects have missed theirs. (We should have been done two years ago, for that matter.)

Audrey also has a job for 2025, but I'm not going to say any more about it until the contract has been signed. Thanks once more to the many loyal supporters of The Saddletanker of my Dreams, who haven't forgotten that...

Audrey Lives !!!!

Sammy,
Great news. Congratulations.

Awesome news - can’t wait!!!

FANTASTIC news Sammy!,
VIVA Audrey!!!!!!
May you have all high greens from here on out..............mld

Thanks a Million, Rick and Jim, and Pete --- may all the switches magically line themselves for your #1385 !!!!

Sammy,
Just did a quick look back through this thread. Am I correct to assume that all the mechanical work is done and the assembly can begin immediately on receipt of the boiler? If so, fantastic! Please record the assembly process for this thread if you don't mind.
Boilersmith does great work. One of our area boiler inspectors used to work for the company. Boilersmith still makes traction engine boilers, and a friend was in their recently and said there were two locomotive boilers under way. I guess we know who is getting the one! :) Not sure about the other?
There was talk about paint earlier in the thread. Oliver green is a nice dark colour. However, in earlier years, certainly in farm equipment, a deep, rich green was used that we used to call, simply, "Commercial Green." It was still available at our Canadian Tire stores, but I doubt it is now. Everything I used to know about paint flew the coop with all the changes in paints, but automotive suppliers used to have commercial sections in their paint sample books. The commercial paints tended to have some of the older, richer colours like oxblood red, for example. Trucking companies sometimes used the older colours. Steam traction engines were often combinations of the older reds and greens.
Life is good, isn't it!

No, Rick, we're expecting the mechanical work to be done in another year !!! In particular, we have three areas which we will have to re-engineer: First, the crude, home brewed, back truck assembly needs to be reworked to conform to HK Porter drawings --- not only that, but when Audrey got to JC McHugh, a bar had been welded sideways underneath her cab, which prevented the back truck from moving side to side.

Second, the flash pan and draft arrangements need to be reworked so that we can have access to the firebox interior without taking everything below the mud ring apart, and so that we can add adjustable dampers if it turns out that they are needed.

Third, Audrey's original throttle had a stuffing box, quadrant, and latching handle located dead center on the firebox wrapper, as is common on many Porter locomotives of the period. Boilersmith discovered that the bell crank under the stuffing box was striking one of the crown stays and had eaten away half of it. This had been repaired at least once, as evidenced by a strategically located patch and four crudely welded staybolts in the crown sheet. Although I was originally determined to keep the throttle linkage original, it became obvious that we are going to have to change it to a backhead type throttle handle, with a reach rod passing directly between the rows of crown stays to connect to the typical Porter spool type throttle valve.

We will post pictures here as this and other stages of assembly are completed.

The second boiler is most likely going to a privately owned 3 foot gauge passenger hauling line in California.

Oliver Green from good ole Tractor Supply not only is the standard shade used by the McHugh company on locomotives, but to my eye it looks like the Gator Green color used on the cab, as seen in a very few, very old photos --- this decision made itself.

And yes, Brother Rick, life is good...

Sammy,
Thank you for that synopsis. You seem to have chosen your repair facilities well. Audrey will be a genuine sweetheart in steam again.
Thank you for continuing this thread. This, and the Alaska thread have been very interesting. It is a pleasure to share in the process as these locomotives are returned to service. RyPN at its best!
Adios.

Thank you once more, Rick. I also share your admiration for both the ARR #557 restoration and the great descriptions of that effort seen on this forum. This is a stellar example of what we hope to accomplish mechanically, just as the Gramlings have set the bar for graciousness and treating folks right.

There is such a wonderful variety of fascinating restorations happening around the country these days that it is very difficult to choose my favorites, but I especially hope in the future that we will be hearing more from Maine Central #470, Indiana Northern #4, and Texas & New Orleans #982. Katy #311 is on my list now, too. (No disrespect intended towards anybody else, or their locomotives.) Everybody will have their own favorites, for their own good reasons, and I continue to be amazed that anybody even notices us fixing up little Audrey.

McHugh's green looks more like DuPont 5316, Sammy, which is the later Oliver green...

https://www.mchughlocomotive.com/locomo ... h-baldwin/

Here's a pic of both postwar Oliver greens together, the earlier DuPont 1317 Green in the front and 5316 Green in the rear. The equivalent of DuPont 5316 is the more common Oliver green found in the paint aisle of the local ag store and is often called "Meadow Green"...