The former owner of Wilmington and Western RR's 1907 Baldwin 0-6-0 #58 had her in storage for many years both indoors and outdoors. When we surveyed #58 to decide if she was going to run we found that he took great care of her all of those years and that made for a speedy and lower cost restoration. From what I can see and from talking with the former owner here is some of what he did.
First the boiler was drained and kept dry. Second the fire side was cleaned to remove all soot and ash. I mean all, nada, none, not a speck, this made for very little corrosion in the boiler.
Next the exhaust nozzle and stact were capped so as to be watertight. Don't just cover the stack, use heaping amounts of duct tape and heavy plastic to seal the exhaust nozzle.
The cylinders were cleaned and flushed out with some kind of cleaner and then large amounts of oil were applied on a regular schedule. All bearings were kept greased and oiled.
The locomotive's exterior was kept painted and sealed from the weather. The cab was boarded up and locked and all the stuff sticky finger collectors would take was removed and stored away in a safe place.
The locomotive saw little service after her last overhaul and the ultrasound reading we took showed that there was little or no wastage of the boiler. The the care not been take to clean her out so well this would not have been the case.
My hat goes off to the former owner for the care he had gove this gem of an engine for 25 years or so. To own such a great machine and not have it running for so long and still go through all of the trouble that he did shows a great dedication.
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