At Toronto, June 17, 1960:

http://abpr.railfan.net/abprphoto.cgi?f ... cn6167.jpg

Unfortunately she has been stuffed and mounted outdoors since 1967 and is really starting to look sad. Tufts of asbestos are seen here and there on her, while moss grows on some of it. Her jacket is now devoid of paint, but the red lead primer coat is still intact, so her appearance is rather ratty. All of her gauges were intact but smashed last time I was in the cab (about 1985), and vagrants had been living in the cab and throwing their garbage into the firebox. She deserves better. Thankfully 6213 has been receiving loving care and attention, and last I saw her, looked like she only needed some warm water to make her go.
http://abpr.railfan.net/abprphoto.cgi?/ ... 7-74jt.jpg

Want to see deterioration>?
http://www.trainweb.org/j.dimech/6167/j ... visit.html

While its condition is sad, it is not much different than many other display locomotives. What's good here is that a group of enthusiasts have made the effort to do something about it, and have gotten $250,000 for cosmetic restoration. If every engine had such a dedicated group, they could be a source of community pride, rather than an embarassment.

http://www.trainweb.org/j.dimech/

I finding it amazing how slowly the wheels turn on these projects. It seems a committee was formed back in 2003 and funding for the project was only approved in January 2007. I was up there last month and there wasn't any sign of an impending restoration. It looks like all the time and money is been spent on committees and analysis rather than what really needs to be done. I hope she's still intact when they finally get around to working on her!

Lack of activity after formation does seem to be a problem in some groups. Many of the tasks that are most important, like polishing and greasing journals, cleaning the smokebox, firebox, ashpan and tender, cost little or nothing. A group planning to restore a 4-6-2 in Oklahoma has had similar inactivity for several years, and no doubt there are others. Sometimes it just takes a good starter person to get others off their cans.

It shouldn't be a problem to get rust retardant paint donated, as well as grease and oil. Shoveling the accumulated rust, coal dust, cinders, and trash, from the tender should not be difficult either. Removing ballast, tin cans, and garbage from the journals is also an investment of mere time. Trimming the grass, weeds, and shrubs around a locomotive is a good idea, as well as getting some ornamentals to place around the site. Have the newspapers document these work sessions. Juxtaposing an image of the old girl pulling a fan trip versus her current condition will raise alot of eyebrows. Contact the local VFW, Elks, high school "Key Clubs" or similar groups for small donations of cash are good places to start.

It's difficult to imagine 6167 was placed on display in "running condition", and allowed, even encouraged, to deteriorate to her current state. The fact that a group has taken her current condition to heart is an indication of a brighter future, but for the interim, elbow grease will be her best friend.

It is my understanding that part of the hold up with 6167 is the asbestos. The city, who own the engine, won't let anybody touch it until the asbestos is removed. Part of the plan is to remove the asbestos, but I do not know what's holding that up.

If that is the case, then the group should make it plain to city officials that the engine could be seriously damaged by unknowing contractors, who will likely use the acetylene wrench to remove parts that are in their way of removing the lagging. After removal of appliances, etc., by the volunteers, these contractors should not have to remove anything but the jacket banding. Also, it must be made plain that the jacket sheets must be retained for reuse or as patterns for cutting new ones. With so many hack jobs having been done in the past, it should not be too difficult to get photos of a couple of them to present to city officials. Also, a statement to this effect from a professional locomotive restorer might help their cause.

Hi Folks,

Here's what's happening. In January, the city of Guelph approved the Restoration Committee's request for $250,000. Of course for the next few months after that, due to the harsh weather, we couldn't really get contractors down to look at the locomotive for quotes. When I went down to the locomotive at the end of March, it was agreed that we ( the committee members and volunteers) would start working on the locomotive in May. We wanted to get the engine ready for the contractor, ie clean out the stoker in its entierty, get rid of the death trap roof over the coal bunker, some basic dissambly etc. We planned to start working in May, but the city insisted that we go to "asbestos camp" so that we not die from asbestos exposure.

We originally scheduled the class for the end of May, but it wound up getting postponed and it seems we've been in limbo since.

The asbestos abatement is going to be a very expensive job which will consume almost half our budget. Highlights of the work we intend to do is:

Removal of the old jacket and asbestos
Fabrication of a new jacket
Rewire the locomotive
Constructions of a roof over the locomotive
Etc.

Another item, is that the lcoomotive may have to be relocated as the City plans to improve the bus terminal (and actually wants to build a road right where the locomotive sits right now!).

In the meantime, progress on the restoration can be tracked at my website:

http://www.trainweb.org/j.dimech/

The official Restoration Committee's Website is here (it doesn't get updated much though)

http://guelpharts.ca/steamlocomotive6167/

Also, I'm looking for various parts and manuals, any photos of the engine and her classmates and mechanical drawings. See my site for a more in depth explanation.

Lastly, if you would like to contribute to the restoration, visit

http://guelpharts.ca/steamlocomotive616 ... hp?sid=311

and

http://www.trainweb.org/j.dimech/6167/fundr.html

Cheers,

joe6167

Good to hear from someone involved in the project. These things move slowly, but it sounds like the work is underway. Good luck.