60163's boiler was delivered to the York Shops April 8, placed on the frame the same day, and performed steam tests to the satisfaction of inspectors and insurers one week later on Saturday the 16th. It is scheduled for trips starting the 26th May, and will no doubt be in top mechanical and aesthetic condition. Congratulations to the A1 Crew!

http://www.a1steam.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=1&Itemid=123

Wow! File that under "Not screwing around".

No kidding. Someone get those guys over here to show us how it's done.

It's simple, really:

Raise money for over a decade to buy a new, built-from-scratch boiler from a commercial builder.

Then, when something goes wrong, enforce the warranty. (Wait, you did put a warranty in the contract, didn't you?)

You don't seriously believe that even with a warranty things would get done that quickly here, do you? They'd still be in planning mode!

Steve

If my organization had shelled out the kind of money in question to a professional, for-profit corporation at commercial rates, I would expect a commercial-type response to a quality-control problem. That's what we seem to be looking at here. (Disclaimer: As I recall, the A1 Project scored a few discounts by allowing certain jobs to be done on an "as-available" basis, not a "right now" basis. I believe that the boiler company also did some of the work for PR and publicity benefit, and if there is a quality problem, it behooves them to correct any problem as soon as possible, if not sooner, lest their reputation be tarnished; thus the quick investigation as to whether the design or material was at fault.)

Remember also that this is a commercially constructed locomotive, not a "historic relic" where the "Pride of [Doncaster/Crewe/Swindon/EastleighAltoona/Roanoke/etc.]" has ostensibly to be protected or preserved for future generations. Got a bad boiler course or riveting job? Replace the damn things and get it back on the road, just like days of old.

If a similar flaw or problem had turned up on one of the replica or "Thomas" steamers Strasburg has built/converted, I would expect no less haste in correcting the problem from "Moedinger's minions." Ditto such a problem with the Grand Canyon's 4960 (were they still as committed to steam as they used to be), or the Mt. Washington's newer cog steamers.

So what kind of organization are you part of anyway?

Many, including two locomotive-owning organizations in the U.K. .......