With a new season starting this month I thought it was time to post a quick update.
Over the winter we have arranged to have new wood cab windows made which will be installed later this year. We decided to go with thicker single sheet lexan rather than glass or armored glass due to the nature of where the locomotive sits. We test fit the new windows last week and they look great.

I understand the vital equipment within the cab is safely stored. At some point, I'd like to see the condition of the cab interior.
How is 6167 coming this season?

Richard,

The crew had their first work session with 6167 just a few days ago.

There was some minor reassembly work on the agenda, installing some small steam lines (to the dynamo and the sensing line to the continuous blowdown valve), as well as the air line to the bell. They also polished the bell and it is in its natural state for the first time in many decades. One of the volunteers hopes to connect a compressor to the bell at some point, but the clapper has been found to be seized up.

As well, over the winter, another of our volunteers was busy in the cab rehabilitating many of the electrical fittings (they look amazing by the way) and polishing the gauge cases (the actual gauges themselves are all in terrible shape, due to vandalism and exposure to the elements).

I'll post a proper update eventually.

Dont fret Richard, the cabs ok... It is going to get some remedial work this spring on both doors floor and possibly the seats as well...

I only fret my banjo and ukulele.
Pictures of the cab interiors would be nice to review.

Gentlemen,
Nice to see both locomotives getting attention.
Growing up next to the CNR Dundas Subdivision (main southern Ontario line), 6069 was a familar number, seen most every day in passenger service. Also, I recall standing in the rain awaiting the passage of 6167 and recently shopped 6218 on their famous runs in the fall of '64, the last for 6167. I do recall the old girl had a fair amount of clank in her rods as she was probably in a desperate need of shopping. It seemed that 6218 was doing most of the work at that time.
It has been my understanding that 6069 was retired to Sarnia in very good condition having been recently shopped at Stratford with no significant service afterwards. Just wondering if there is any truth to this?

According to the one record I do I have, as of November 1959 (THE END of steam on the CNR) 6069 was listed as being Removed From Service (as opposed to being Stored Serviceable), meaning she was finished by then.

The record further states that 6069 had already received two 1-year extensions on her boiler tube time, and had accumulated 365385 miles since her last retubing. Finally it tells us that 6069's tires were getting a bit thin (2 7/16"), while also having a groove worn into them (3/16").

Thus:

http://www.trainweb.org/j.dimech/roster/5071159sod.html

I suspect the only shopping done at that time was mainly in the form of a sprucing up. Perhaps Peter can comment on that.

joe6167,
Thank you for sharing the information. Those are very interesting documents. As mentioned, 6069 was probably the most familiar number seen in those last days so they certainly got all they could out of her last shopping! This was in passenger service with some fairly heavy trains and respectable main line speeds. The shopping situation that was rumoured was perhaps then a run through Stratford shops for cosmetic purposes prior to her last trip to Sarnia?

The condition of the wheels provided by Joe should be a huge clue- if they still match that report, then she quite simply didn't receive any significant work after that.

Stratford was pumping out rebuilt steam right to the bitter end. It would be interesting to see a list of locomotives that were rebuilt, but never turned a wheel in revenue service again and were cut up. As well, I wonder if any were pulled out of the erecting floor, in mid- overhaul, to be scrapped.

But enough of those thoughts- they're far too depressing!

:-)

Steve Hunter

Hi Guys,
we had been told that she was shopped before coming to Sarnia.. I dont beleive so other than external repair repaint as she still had coal in her stoker and ask in her smokebox. She would have had all this removed if she had been overhauled no??

A couple of pictures inside when work was getting underway... alot of cleaning....!

PR

Would be nice to know what they took... We do have her bell and someone got her whistle..

Cab appears to be in remarkable shape!

CNR really needs to change their historic preservation priorities!

Richard,
these were taken shortly after initial cleanup efforts.. There was a homeless joe living in the firebox at one point and one can imagine the state of the interior... The cab was my mini project for awhile but I keep getting pulled off onto exterior repairs. Hoping to get the seats redone this spring in time for our kidsfest open day and tour in June.

Regarding CNR staff jumping the fence at Sarnia, there are a couple of possibilities of what parts they may have "borrowed". When 6060 first re-entered service, I am not sure if they had the exhaust steam injector working? But certainly by the time of the scheduled service to Niagara Falls in the mid-70s, the es injector was disconnected and they were using regular injectors. So that might be one area to look on 6069 re missing or swapped parts?
On an earlier trip out of Toronto, the bell actually fell off the engine but was recovered! It, or the bracket may have been damaged though. Again, it might be worth checking the numbers on 6069.
6060 performed quite well in excursion service and they often ran her at high speeds, or alternatively, on lighter branchlines where she would never have ran in regular service - so there were bound to be some issues. Early on, she was apart in Spadina for repairs to the piston rings at which time the superheater units were out and serviced. Also, when first out of Point St. Charles in the early 70s, overheating was noted on the rear driving axle and the locomotive was operated with the axle jacked so as to reduce the axle loading. The engine was later serviced at Canadian Pacific John Street Roundhouse in Toronto on their drop pit and the axle problem corrected. I am going from memory so I hope these are facts!
In later years, 6060 was in Montréal for a couple of charters. Problems were found with the engine truck and her truck was swapped out with the one from 6153 at the Delson/St. Constant Museum. This was done in a hurry to be able to protect the excursion which was sold out. The excursion was to Ottawa and stops were made on route, at Coteau Jct., for instance, to check the "new" truck for bearing condition. It is assumed that the trucks were left as was on the respective locomotives after the swap.