The July 2011 date is from the first information I heard last April, information which came from Mayor Moore's office. At that time, I believed that it was truly the case. As summer progressed, 3001 still sat there without being taken away. To clarify, when and if the restoration takes place, it will not be done 'in house.' We simply do not have the capability or technical expertise for any large-scale restorations - even our E8, 4085, is beyond that at this point. My faith in the original date set disappeared quickly - what I repeated here is nearly word-for-word what I was told. Whether or not that date can be kept (which I sincerely doubt) is another matter entirely.

As for this all being nonsense, it may very well be, but that is only if what I have been told all year has been nonsense. I cannot think of any reasons rumours of restoration might be falsified other than political posturing by the mayor's office, which seems out of character for him. The Museum does not gain anything from spreading nonsense, either on its own or through its staff. The only result would be a damaged reputation - which is exactly the opposite of what Mr. Troyer has been trying to achieve during his tenure.

Thanx, whomever may be working the restoration I hope they have the right skilled person on the lead. Is there any "celebratory" thing about july 2011?

All it takes in money. In the power plant industry where I have worked for many years a boiler being down could cost millions of dollars per day. If the money was there the 3001 could steam next week.

July 2011 has no special date as far as the museum is concerned, although I cannot say if it does for whomever may be doing the work. I have a feeling that we would sooner see our GG1 back in Loewy's pinstripes running excursions along the South Shore Line to Chicago than 3001 being in service next year (or even the year after). Just to be clear, that was sarcasm and there is no such plan for the GG1.

As for comments I have seen here and on some other forums that 3001 may be going to Minneapolis or Wisconsin, that is the result of some unfortunate comments that Mr. Troyer has told some visitors. The sources of those 'facts' were some members of the now-defunct Lakeshore Foundation being rumour-mongers. Unfortunately, Mr. Troyer has little knowledge of trains (although he is picking up some) because his background is business re-organisation. As a result, he took their words at face value and has mentioned them to some visitors, even after I mentioned that Sandberg's group purchased 261 and would have no need for a second locomotive.

Rumours only cause trouble, and I truly hope that what I have tried to explain will help end some of them.

Although Mr. Taylor may have gotten ahead of himself in representing a somewhat official spokesman role, after re-reading the posts, I don't believe he intended to do so or be misleading. Otherwise, he seems to be a good college student and volunteer who contributes in an archivist like role, so use of the title presumably for resume enhancement is understood and likely deserved.

On another note, our friend Rich is certainly right that 3001 running by summer of 2011 is almost certainly not possible. I could, however, envision a scenario that involves a lot of outsourcing that could see the project completed in 6-12 months after careful full evaluation, scope of work, project plan, and enough cubic $$$. Such a job would naturally involve a well coordinated contract effort with several contractors, shops, and organizations that have familiarity with steam.

Hmmm...
Boiler work by Bensman, appliances by Shop Services and Strasburg, running gear by SOC/TVRM, Wasatch for the tender, trucks to one of the many contract shops that do work on passenger cars, among others...

This last post seems a bit more reasonable to me. Given sufficient financial support, a labor force that included the specific expertise, and a heated locomotive shop, there could be live NYC steam before Spring.
If any of us have spare Christmas wishes to tap into, I'd say, go for it!

I'd drive a long, long ways to see this locomotive run, but the unrealistic expectations, lack of any obvious plan, lack of rolling stock to pull, and lack of a place to run seem to speak against the likelihood of success.

Let's consider, for a moment, the restoration of 261, some 17 years ago now. That restoration was accomplished in approximately 14 months, using more than $800,000 in cash and about 20,000 volunteer man hours. The work was done in a facility than had cranes, locomotive jacks and CNC machinery readily available. Contractors were liberally used (and appreciated). 14 months, almost a million dollars and many advantages it took. And 261 was in very good shape when the work was started.

Now fast forward to present day. 261 is undergoing its FRA mandated inspection, and this is going to cost $600,000 on a locomotive that was in regular service and very well maintained.

Whatever condition 3001 is in (and it isn't reported to be good), they're likely to spend several million and a couple of years to do a decent operating restoration. Projects like this start off with great enthusiasm (and a lot of hand waving). I am concerned what will happen when somebody starts to figure out what it will cost to own, operate and maintain this critter. I WANT to see it happen, but my skepticism is at a pretty high level at the moment.

I think we are dealing with several layers of discussion on this thread.

First, there was suspicion of OFT being who he said he was. That's the part I gave the benefit of the doubt. His posts seemed legit.

Next, there was the info about a July 2011 date. That was not represented as something the museum said, but rather something discussed between potential restorers and the city.

There's a lot of third hand info, but taken for what it is, there are some threads of consistency in the story.

Could a 3001 restoration really be planned and none of the railfan illuminati know about it? There are a handful of egos that would be bruised if something this big was happening and they were clueless.

Is this a bigger secret than anything in WikiLeaks?

There are some RYPN frequent contributors who have been quiet on this topic. Could they know something? Are they involved? What are they hiding?

Does this involve the California mystery man that "bought" #261 and, despite many people claiming to know the truth, has not yet been identified?

Is this a cover story to throw us off the trail of the B&A J2 in a quarry?

Has the long dreamed of "rich celebrity" finally come through to restore a steam locomotive, only to keep a low profile during negotiations?

Is it really headed to Alna, Maine?

I am calling gov Ventura, as his new TV show would be the perfect place to explore the truth behind #3001.

:-)

Rob

I love good conspiracy theorems. Michael Gross, where are you? Let's go now!

First I heard of a B&A J2. Isn't there a PRR B-6 in a quarry in PA? You can make out the top of the stack at low tide?

Well, for now 3001 restoration is being more a buzzword, but it was not overnite for 765 either. It took some preparation and dealing with the city and the railroads to get it moved from downtown, but when the moment happenned, it was big news all over the place not to be missed and plenty of spectators photographing and so on. I have my films but other people got their shots in too.

I can't take credit for finding the link but I can pass it along:

http://www.etruth.com/Know/News/Story.aspx?ID=530839

In response to the linked article:

The Mohawk as it sits now is not complete, has some serious neglect problems and does not represent what this locomotive would have looked like when in service. If it were leased out, at the end of fifteen years when it returns to Elkhart it will be complete and have the appearance of a locomotive in service. If the museum was smart they would bank that 75K and construct a suitable climate controlled building for it so that when it is returned it will remain looking like an operating loco.

The NNYCM should also demand a piece of the action when it comes to merchandise sales. The 261 folks had a gold mine in 261 specific merchandise sales, and Mohawk merchandise would sell like hot cakes. Either the museum could have full rights to offer official Mohawk merchandise or demand a cut of the profits if someone else does the merchandising.

It doesn't appear that the mayor has much negotiating experience. What was offered undoubtedly is a starting offer. Its now up to him to make a counter offer. Taking a hard line approach this soon in the process is certainly shortsighted on his part.

What is the alternative to leasing out the Mohawk? Leaving it to sit in the open, unprotected and rotting away ad infinitum?

QUOTE: "But Mayor Dick Moore isn't convinced the benefit is worth the cost of losing the rare piece of machinery for 15 years."

Does Mayor Moore really believe that the Mohawk is bringing in $5k per year as-is where-is? I'd like to see the accounting on that. Don't forget to subtract money spent on upkeep/repainting/etc., which it most certainly will need within that 15 years.

Some people strike me as unnecessarily shortsighted. What a great thing will have been if after 15 years Elkhart can put #3001, as has been suggested, in a climate-controlled display building surrounded by momentos of her 15-year excursion career. I'd go to Elkhart to see that if I never got to ride behind her, or even if I did.

Having followed this topic here and on other boards, I am seriously concerned that there is not going to be enough crow to go around. :-)

Rob