It is great to see that Mr. King is able to have Audrey restored to operation. Since these projects scream, "FEED ME!", I was wondering how this is being financed. Is Mr. King paying for this on his own or did he put together a consortium of like-minded preservationists? Not to pry, and if the answer is, "mind your own business", I'm fine with that. The funding challenge is universal and so my inquiry is more geared towards illuminating any innovative approach that Mr. King may be taking with this.

It appears that the smoke box may have been extended at some point. If so, why? If there was a drafting issue, is there any plan to modify the front end arrangement during the rebuild? Maybe a multiple-nozzle exhaust of some type similar to what was installed a couple of years ago in Essex Terminal #9, the 1923 0-6-0 at the Waterloo Central Railway?

Ai yi yi.....

My extended smokebox joke was abut the perfectly normal smokebox being cut off when the boiler was removed. Sammy knows about my warped sense of humor. Tank engines don't usually need to worry much about drafting as they spend a lot of time sitting still or moving short distances, unlike road engines (speaking for most common US practice here - the standard freight engine in the UK was an 0-6-0T for decades.) If Sammy wants to use her hauling trains in a museum setting he'd want to work on the drafting a bit.

Thanks, Dave.

Yes, I know about typical operation. My thinking in my question about improving the drafting was that the loco may have to earn her keep somewhere and that would be more likely in a tourist hauling scenario than as a switching loco. That said, I have long been a proponent of museums having a regularly operating yard switching demonstration if they have the facility and equipment. So, if Audrey is put into service someplace that has a yard, she could see more typical operation and not require any modifications.

Answering several questions here.

The rear frame is in terrible shape. We are putting several heads together to make the best and most cost-effective repair. I suspect the poor engine may have been hit from the rear.

Sammy is in charge of the funding and I am not at liberty to talk about the finances of the project. Maybe Sammy will comment at some point.

JC McHugh of McHugh Locomotive, Sammy, and I are all in regular contact. We are all committed to doing good quality work. The McHugh staff is very skilled and talented and we also have some very experienced individuals available to help when needed.

I look forward to continue to share photos and news as this project moves from teardown to repairs and restoration.

Sometimes progress is very slow when doing this sort of work. The bolts through the frame that hold the pedestal binders were removed with great difficulty and replaced with temporary hardware until new bolts can be machined.

Tom Gears

Greetings:

With all due respect, those bolts through the frame which hold the pedestal binders are usually "fitted bolts", that is they are tapered (1/16" in 12") and driven into place with a sledge hammer, which is why they are difficult to remove and why a commercial bolt will not serve the purpose.

Each bolt in the frame must be individually made to fit to it's hole, on a lathe with a taper attachment (or CNC), which has been reamed with a tapered reamer (1/16" in 12"), leaving a gap of about 3/8" between the head of the bolt and the frame. Then it is driven with a sledge hammer into the frame so it will be tight in it's hole.

Commercial bolts aren't tapered, they have a straight body and even if they don't rattle in the hole, they won't hold up in service, they will become loose and whatever they are supposed to hold together will become loose too...

At TangShan Locomotive Works, there was a small machine shop at the end of the erecting hall where they had a line of lathes with taper attachments. All the women who ran the lathes did all day was to make tapered bolts. A fellow with a small wheel barrow brought bolts out to the folks on the erecting floor, they'd try them out, sometimes they would ream a hole they were working on a bit larger to fit the bolt, other times they would send it back to be turned down a bit or set it aside to use in a hole which had yet to be reamed. Interestingly, the taper that they were using was a metric size, but the taper converted exactly to 1/16th to the foot.

One of the major changes that I specified in the construction of "YORK 17" built for Steam Into History, was that all of the frame bolts were to be tapered, fitted, driven bolts.

Good luck!

J.David

Yes, this is a good point. I should have included more info. The hardware in place is there temporarily so as not to leave the binders off for any length of time. McHugh Locomotive has the machine tools/machinist to replace the bolts with the proper taper and to handle any work required on the driving boxes. This will be happening in the coming weeks.

Work is progressing on the little engine that wouldn't die. Today we found a nice little surprise when we took apart the eccentrics. Finding H K Porter beneath all of the grease and dirt made me happy. A lot is going on and I will post a more detailed update later in the week.

Once again Tom, thanks so much for the updates.

I first saw Audrey on the day that Sammy purchased her in 2015 and once again in 2018
in CO while passing through. Sure is heartwarming to see real progress on her rebuild.
Keep up the good work.

You said it, Tom !!! It sure IS nice to see the wonderful progress being made by JC Mc Hugh, with the most capable assistance of Tommy Gears.

I should also mention that Vintage Rail Restorations likewise is taking fine care of us, as well as the heavy haulers at Daily Express.

The part that got left out is that Boilersmith, of Seaforth, Ontario is making an all new, welded, ASME code, 180 psi, replacement boiler which will be supplied with a completed FRA Form 4.

Backshop Enterprises is doing our appliances, although we may have to go with at least some used ones if the budget gets too thin. Right now it looks like that won't be a problem. (Famous last words.) That is because it is most cost effective to hire pros if you can. These guys are all able to get to the point in a hurry, so I can afford to pay everybody a decent living wage.

To answer some questions: Where will she run ? It's all talk until she has a blue card in the cab. When that time comes, I'll consider all offers/inquiries/proposals.

The cab will be painted Hunter's Green. In general, I'm going for a restoration to her in service appearance, but I'm not trying to hide some of the modifications or improvements that we will be making. Audrey is an INDUSTRIAL LOCOMOTIVE. She is being fixed up the way an industry would fix up a steam locomotive if they wanted to keep using her. She will not look like Liberace on wheels when we are done.

I know that the frame was originally a cobbled together extension, added on at the phosphate pit when she was converted to a back truck type, by the addition of a trailing truck kit from Southern Iron & Equipment. I also know that she was rear ended by a cut of loaded mill gondolas "switched in error" during an incident which I shall not describe any further, except to deny any personal involvement.

I think the estimate of how many times she has been loaded on a truck and moved should be at least double what was suggested, if you count all the short distance local moves. We are trying to establish a complete history of Audrey's life, and at some point we should have an answer to this question. It looks to me like Tommy will have something published about this someday, and if he doesn't, I will even if only by the vanity press....

How am I paying for everything ??? CASH. I did not use any of the usual methods of fund raising that were suggested, but I will say that the rapid progress of this project is happening because I spent five and a half years setting it up, after fifty five years of previous failures. In 25 words or less, I HAVE OUTLIVED MY ENEMIES.

If anybody would like more details about this, or has any reason to contact me, my phone (NOT a cell phone or other obnoxious electronic gadget) number is: (303) 822-8802. In another week or so, I will again have working email at home: FVGfogonero@netecin.net

Thanks once again to everybody who has helped, is helping, or will ever help to keep The Audrey Phenomenon alive !!! Everybody Take Care & WORK SAFE.

Sammy -

Thanks for the missive! Great to hear from you. HOWEVER, your statement that Audrey "will not look like Liberace on wheels" may bring about the reaction from some younger readers; "Liberace....what does he mean by that"!?

Looking forward to the continued progress being made on Porter number 6!!!


Les

Oh yea. In my infinite wisdom, I think she'll draft just fine, without any modifications to her front end design, regardless of service conditions. You can be sure that I WILL be keeping a close eye on how she is handled and cared for. Any problems with drafting will be handled by modification of the fireman's technique, NOT by modifying a perfectly good HK Porter locomotive.

And you may rest assured that if by some chance she doesn't, Dave and I will assist with the situation, gratis.

Finding casting numerals and other hidden data is one of the best parts of restoring a steam loco. Thanks Tom and especially Sammy! Love those little Porters!

There are so many jobs that take time and effort when you restore a steam locomotive. Here is one small example from the floor of the McHugh Locomotive shop.

The metal ring that holds the studs for the smokebox front was badly wasted and needed much work. The holes must line up and have the right amount wiggle room. It's not critical but we don't want it to be an issue each time the front is removed/installed.

For every job that gets the big attention such as turning a driving wheel or fitting up bearings, there are dozens of jobs like the smokebox ring that are not critical but also not easy and require resources. Here is the finished job. Sorry there is not a better photo of the ring itself but I think most will understand this particular job.

It is nice that components are being finished and set aside for assembly.

Tom Gears
Wilmington, DE