With the talk of UP returning a Big Boy to steam, I have had a question floating in my head and I thought someone here might be able to answer it. If NS did decide to pull 611 out of mothballs, where could she go to be brought back on line? Could TVRM handle such a large engine? Would NS have to create a new shop for her in Roanoke? Would they send her else where?

Well these guys seem to be restoring a respectable size locomotive with little more than a siding and some 40ft containers;
http://www.nmslrhs.org

So I guess if all you really need is a siding and lots of ambition and dreams than we likely have tens of thousands of possible steam restoration shops scattered through out the country! :) If you use a 40ft container as your metric for a steam restoration shop than probably several million possible steam shops I am sure the number fluctuates!

All kidding aside it does go to show what you can accomplish if you dream big enough.

Excuse me...would you mind pointing me in the direction of where I could find my answer then?

There is a rather robust search feature to the forum, located at the top right, between "Members" and "FAQ"

That reminds me a Heisler rebuild project that I assisted the late Jack Anderson on. We used a backhoe to remove a couple ties and install a "pit" that was about 3 feet deep (and water cooled much of year), got some planks, blue tarps, jacked up the tender, pulled the rear truck and rebuilt it.

Later that year I had a railfan pretty much plead for a tour of our restoration shops. "Is there any way I can possibly get a tour of your shop facilty? I'd really like to see them!" "Well, uh, yeah, sure... In fact, you're standing in the shop right now." (Insert puzzled look here). Not sure he believed me, but I explained to him that the siding he was standing next to was the maintenance shop.

The original rebuilds were done in a truck shop in Tacoma, using log loaders for cranes. Too bad reality TV hadn't been invented yet, since picking a climax up off the trucks using two giant log stackers working in unison would have made for great TV! Not sure I'd have wanted OSHA to tune in though....

There have been several high-profile steam restorations that were done out of doors, without any specialized shop facilities. NKP 765's initial restoration, L&N 152 and the CNJ locomotive come to mind as examples.

I guess if you want to get fancy, any exisiting shop facility with an overhead crane and a drop table of suitable dimensions and capacity would suffice.

Mineral Shop must have been luxurious.....even though when the air compressor went on the arc you were welding with died.

I miss Jack - he could figure out how to do anything with nothing.

dave

Yes, it certainly was! Working outdoors in Washington winters was not a lot of fun. Sure, we don't get a huge amount of snow, but it's still dang cold and wet.

Having a roof over our head and a (marginally) heated shop were a great improvement, as well as having a real pit, power, compressed air, that sort of thing.

Yes, Jack was indeed a wizard and could do an amazing amount of stuff. We relocated the shop from near Morton, cutting it up into pieces and hauling them via the log roads. Jack put it all back together with a crew of about 3 or 4 of us. Jack had been a carpenter, but the rest of us sure weren't. We got it done though, poured the foundation, dug the pit, the whole deal.

Jack also had the plan for the shops all those years ago. For a long while many people asked me why the shop track ran so far out from the shop before it veered over to the left. Jack had me lay out what we'd need to put in ladder tracks to the other buildings and build it to fit that length. The plan had always been to allow for the additional shop and storage tracks that are in place now, though it took many long years to get there.

I too miss Jack, he was taken from us far too early.

1522's restoration was done out of doors and it was a good while before we got her under a roof and a couple of 40' reefers for tools, etc. Still outdoors though.
You can have the greatest shop in the country but if all you have is a bunch of goobers then you're no better off.
We had a great crew.

SP2926 is being rebuilt outdoors in Albuquerque. Take a look at http://www.nmslrhs.org/

Just to prove the measure of my evil... I give you all, the photo link, just make shure you have a week or so to look at them......

http://www.nmslrhs.org/pages/photos.php

The latest group of photos are flexible stay bolt covers, lots and lots of them. Only about 900 or so left to do.

Regards,
Kevin

The restoration facilities on the Tacoma tideflats, where the Climax and here, the #91 Heisler were restored. Jack Anderson is in the middle. I don't remember the names of the other two.

He and I were involved from the beginning at Camp 6 (RIP) and repainting 1364 at Pt. Defiance Park. We bummed around the PNW chasing steam and doing photography for years. I miss him a great deal. I have most of his RR negative collection, many of the shots we took side by side.



Steve

We're only doing it that way because we have to; if we have our way (and can get the funds for it!), though, that won't be the case for too much longer...

Yes, one can completely restore a locomotive outside, but that's only if you've got really good weather (like we do here). However, that's not a good idea if you have to worry about metal thieves (we've already had some parts stolen and have taken steps to combat that problem; still, being inside a locked building would be better) and if you are getting ready to insulate the boiler, piping, and assorted appliances that require it (yes, we do have good weather most of the time, but Mr. Murphy does have a penchant for making it go south on us when we don't want it to...), not to mention keeping other folks from taking "souvenirs" after we've finished the restoration.

Yes, we've managed rather well, but that doesn't mean we're not willing to trade our current facilities for something better and much more secure...

I won't deny the virtues of a locked building, but stuff can disappear from those too. Unfortunately the folks at Brooklyn Roundhouse (RIP) found that out a few years ago.

I don't know what the chances of using it would be but the recently constructed age of steam roundhouse facility seems like a good place for heavy steam restoration!