It should have went to Horicon.

At least the red isn't 3M reflective tape.. I hope.

Somebody consulting Tom Payne on locomotive decoration?

Les,

To be honest, I most definitely liked the way QJ 7040 looked on the day I drove her, followed by another QJ, 50 mixed loads and empties, and an occupied caboose. That's why I built a model of her that way, and play with it often.

Since I couldn't preserve the real engine exactly the way she was on that day forever, I'd say that this RJ Corman outfit not only probably saved her from scrap, but they paid for a first class rebuild and gave her a home where she can run. Looking at the picture, I can see that you still sit in the same place on the left side to drive, and that she looks to still have her foot pedals for the cylinder cocks, whistle, and evidently a bell instead of the air horn. In other words, she's still a majestic QJ. Not only that, but the paint is nice and shiny and the drive wheels are still painted red. BRAVO.

Seeing that this isn't exactly RR preservation per se, I guess he could paint the thing pink if he'd wanted to. I always find it funny how many "Monday morning quarterback" types come out of the woodwork, as if they have any say on what someone else should paint or equip their own personal property when it's historical, as if random members of the public really have any say in the matter. We've all read several people's laments about stopping their steam engine in some town to water up and have some foamer tell them that, "(insert RR here) didn't run with that kind of (insert part or color here)." You just know that 99% of the people who say stuff like that have never picked up a wrench or a paintbrush to assist anyone in any restoration in their lives, otherwise they wouldn't say that.
A quick personal example is that I own a WW2 Jeep and have it in parades and displays at various shows. Many locals into such things know it's history, having been a Navy Jeep in WW2, but I don't have it painted that way now (Hey, I was an Army officer in real life, no WAY is it going to painted in Navy colors!), and I've had people demand that I paint it in USN paint. I tell them they can buy their own Jeep and paint it any bleeping color they want and to go choke themselves if they have an issue with that.
Think of Doyle's PA in Portland right now. I've heard him tell people that if they don't like the NKP paint to go find their own PA to restore. I just feel bad that people can't thank him for working on that hulk instead of giving him grief for not painting it the way THEY want!

^+1

For immediate release at the request of RJC:

R. J. Corman Railroad Group, LLC., Nicholasville, Kentucky announces its recently acquired and refurbished steam locomotive “Old Smokey” will make its maiden voyage on Saturday, May 24th, 2008. The steam locomotive and its tinder car will be hauling approximately 6 new gondola cars filled with sand from Louisville to Lexington. These are very special gondola cars in that they were built specifically for R. J. Corman Company. Each loaded gondola car weights 304,000 lbs and will haul approximately 119 tons of sand.

Old Smokey was in operation as recently as 2005 in the Chinese province of Liaoning, where it was used to haul coal and passengers. It is a QJ Class 2-10-2 locomotive, built in 1986 and it weighs 140 tons, with a tinder [sic] car that weighs 40 tons. The steam locomotive produces the equivalence of 2,000 horsepower.

R. J. Corman Railroad Group arranged to buy the locomotive through a Pittsburgh shortline railroad company, which owns two. After three months of refurbishment, the locomotive was loaded onto a ship in the largest port in Northeast China - the Dalian Port. It arrived in New Orleans three weeks later. Old Smokey was carefully loaded onto railcars and made it’s way via Norfolk Southern to Kentucky. It finally arrived in Lexington at the R. J. Corman Company Central Kentucky Lines on January 14th, where J. Corman Derailment Services crew used their specialized equipment to unload and re-rail Old Smokey.

Since then, R. J. Corman crews have been busy removing approximately 10 years of paint and bondo material from Old Smokey’s years of service in China as well as fabricating a red steel skirt that runs the length of the boiler. Old [sic] inaugural run will be a meshing of old and new equipment, which will help emphasize not only the advances but the importance of the railroad industry in the United States. This run will be the first of very infrequent or “special occasion” kinds of trips.

The sand move by railcars from Louisville’s Nugent Sand Company to Lexington was recognized two weeks ago by the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) during its Annual Conference in San Antonio. R. J. Corman Company’s Central Kentucky Lines was one of three winners nationally for the Association’s Marketing Award. J. Corman expects to move 650,000 tons of sand by rail this year which will eliminate approximately 29,500 truck trips on Kentucky highways thus reducing carbon emissions in the state by 2,701 tons.

A limited number of media will be on board the caboose to record this moment in time, while the R. J. Corman motor coach will be available to take the additional media and special guests along the route. The public is welcome to observe, from a safe distance, Old Smokey as it travels to J. Corman Railroad Company’s Central Kentucky Yard on Buchanan Street.

The train will depart Nugent Sand Company on 1833 River Road, Louisville Kentucky at approximately 9:00 am and proceed through St. Matthews, Anchorage, Eastwood, Simpsonville, Shelbyville and Frankfort. While in Frankfort the train will make a 30 minute stop to fill the tender with water. It will be available for public viewing at the Frankfort Passenger Station/History Museum downtown from 11:00 am - 11:30 am. At approximately noon, the train will stop in historic Midway for lunch, before continuing to R. J. Corman’s

Thank you for this news update on RJ Corman's "Old Smokey", and I again congratulate and wish them all the best of luck with her on their railroad.

If I may pick a couple of nits now, please excuse me, and thanks for listening ???

FIRST --- QJ 7040 operated up through December 2005 on the JiTong Tielu, located in INNER MONGOLIA PROVINCE, not Liaoning, and she hauled all kinds of freight as well as coal and passengers. The news release sounds to me as if they are describing the Tiefa Coal Group, which had no connection with Old Smokey in her Chinese service life. The information I have on QJ 7040 indicates that she was assigned to the China Rail Lanzhou Bureau, where she worked before being sold to the JiTong.

SECOND --- While I respect their right to renumber, repaint, and name her whatever they wish, I'd like to point out that "Old Smokey" is not a real good fit. I say this because the 7040 and her sisters did a maximum of work while making a minimum of smoke on the worst coal I've ever seen. I suspect that her new owner is feeding her good coal, in which case she should operate very cleanly indeed unless the production of dirty thick choking black smoke is deliberate, such as many photographers, tourists, railfans, and moviemakers have come to expect from steam locomotives and their crews.

It depends on who you talk to, but I'd also have to say that 2,000 horsepower is a very conservative rating for Old Smokey. My seat of the pants feeling is that a QJ is about equivalent to an SD-40, although she obviously doesn't have the adhesion that the diesel does, and can't go as fast, either. She's still a majestic machine with a showroom fresh world class overhaul, smoke or no smoke, wherever she may run, however many horses she developes, whatever she's called, and however she's painted. Can't wait to see the pictures.

Sammy -

The "nit" I picked in all this was "OLD Smokey". She was built in 1986, and that sure don't make her old!

Les

All very true, but this press release is marketing. And they are marketing to an audience who can't tell a thoroughly modern QJ from a tea-kettle 4-4-0. As long as it makes a lot of chuffing sounds and goes "toot", they're happy :)