With the end of 2018, it is time to review what we accomplished and what our goals are for 2019. While progress has been slow (twenty years), things are picking up. Look for some major announcements in the near future.

In 2018 we completed the tender. It is 100% ready to go now that it is lettered. A few bits of hardware need to be attached, but that is it. In the meantime, we have set the goal to fund raise, pay for and complete all four drivers and axles, which is a major piece of work and will cost twice what we currently have in the account. They need to be turned. Some of them need bearings replaced, and at least one set may need to be requartered after repairs, but it’s nothing that hasn’t been done before!

Thank you to everyone that has supported us!

Previous Project Work

Boiler Evaluation

John Rimmasch from Wasatch Railroad Contractors (WRC)
stated that we have 3 choices: Rebuilt the existing boiler preserving as much of the original as possible, Build a new boiler using the original riveting process; Build a new boiler using modern welding techniques. The expense ranges from a million dollars for the rebuild or build with riveting to 500 thousand for the new welded boiler.

An interesting question was presented. Is our objective to preserve the artifact, or preserve the history of the artifact. We have already answered that question partially by rebuilding the tender with largely new materials using original riveting and incorporating some original hardware and trucks. We are preserving the history of the tender, not restore the original.

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July 15, 2017 – Frame Lift & Driver Wheels

The day finally arrived where we could raise the frame using our new gantries and roll the 4 driver wheels out from under and put aside for later shipping to a machine shop for refurbishing.

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2017 – 223 Presentation

A presentation was recently made to present to local community groups to promote our project.

April 15, 2017 – Second Gantry & Union Pacific 844 Preparation

We needed to use a rented forklift to construct our second gantry. And we tested the water column in case the Union Pacific 844 needs it on their visit on April 25th.

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January 2017 – New Gantry

Our first gantry arrived and we assembled it inside the shop with a great deal of huff and puff.

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October 16, 2016 – Bent Drive Rods & Frame Work

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August 20, 2016 – Help From Colorado

A banner day for the 223 restoration project. John Braun and Larry Hereig of the Mammoth Locomotive Works in Palisade Colorado, volunteered a day of most useful service at our shop. We were floundering with the running gear. John and Larry, having taken apart and rebuilt locomotives for years, knew just what to do. With simple tools such as metal wedges and hammers to a pneumatic jack, they pounded, heated, pried and were finally able to remove the drive rods from both sides. John gave us a lot of counseling as to what we needed to do going forward and also provided us with an ultra sound device so we can go ahead, make a grid on the boiler and do our own testing for thickness. Steve Jones and Slim Jolly provided BBQ beef, potato salad, and deviled eggs for a much needed lunch break. Steve Jones presented John and Larry with our official 223 caps besides providing room and board at a local hotel. A bargain for what was accomplished, that’s for sure.

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October 18, 2016 – Sand Dome Removal

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September 2016 – Steam Dome Shroud Removal

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Painting the 223 Cab

Maynard assigned Lee Witten the task of painting the 223 cab. Some felt it a shame to cover up the nice woodwork but historical accuracy dictated it. Lee painted the outside with a flat finish black then applied a coat of satin polyurethane to give it a semi gloss. Lee chose a light green for the interior but Maynard found a wooden structure from the original cab which shows a much darker green. A local Ogden paint store, Weber Paint and Glass, was able to match the original green very closely. Lee grew to know the interior of the cab well having painted it three times….primer, erroneous light green, correct dark green.

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April – June, 2013

In order to have the boiler work done, we needed to remove the bolts and sway bars. Using an improvised pulling tool, we got the sway bars off. However, the bolts on the smoke box are another matter. Extreme rust has frozen them to the inside smokebox wall so efforts are being made to break them loose.

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April 28, 2012 – Tender Work

Work on the tender is nearing completion to the point that we will be ready to have the inside of the tank coated. Today’s work involved riveting the drain pipe plates to the deck. Also Andy Anderson is preparing the new cab flooring steel plates using the remains of the original rusted floor as a template.

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May 12, 2012 – Tender Rollout

The restoration crew rolled out the 223 tender to check for any difficulties that may arise when we need to bring it out for painting and coating the inside of the water tank.

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January – March, 2012

This past winter we worked on removing tubes and flooring from the locomotive.

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2011 – 2012

Restoration crew members Bob Wachs and Richard Carroll fashioning a couple lift bar for the rear of the 223 tender based on photos of the original equipment when in service. It was missing from the old tender when it was acquired by the museum.

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As the saying goes, the third time’s the charm. The 223 restoration crew successfully fabricated the water inlet piece with their third attempt. It has now been installed on the tender tank deck.

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January 30, 2011 – Water Inlet

On Saturday January 30, 2011 the 223 crew began the shaping of the 223 tender water inlet piece. Maynard Morris created a mold for this operation.

Creation of the Tender Tank

The tender tank drawing replicates the old existing tank and took over four years to generate. Building the tank is taking even longer. Negotiations were concluded with a local steel fabricator to build the water tank but after two years with no progress, the project with them was terminated. Thus, we decided to build the tank ourselves. Computer drawing, Statement of Work (SOW) and a Request for Bid (RFQ) for the steel parts were sent to over a dozen steel fabricators in the western part of the United States. After a year of no success, it was decided to hand drill the estimated 9000 holes ourselves. The first steel plate for the tender tank bottom and angle iron for the corner joints was delivered to our shops by Bowman & Kemp in June 2007. Although we have progressed a long way in developing our fabrication capabilities, building a new water tank really stretches our capabilities because of the size and weight of the individual pieces. The tank is being built on the tender frame, which eliminates the problem of lifting a completed steel tank. Bob Immergluck of the Western Railway Museum provided us with a much needed package of information on riveting.

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223 Tender Build

Work started with obtaining the bottom plate and the fabrication of all the various pieces of angle iron. The long straight pieces were cut to length and drilled for the rivet holes. There is a rivet hole every 1.2 inches with a 0.6 inch offset between the two flanges of the angle iron. We use 3/8 inch diameter size rivets which then require a slightly larger hole than 3/8 inch. We use a “W” size drill to get the necessary clearance. Instead of using cutting oil, we use Dawn liquid detergent for cooling and lubrication. It seems to work well. Since angle iron can not be curved to the radius’s we needed for the front and rear of the tank, we had to fabricate these special pieces.

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We cut the necessary 2 inch curved bottom pieces out of plate steel. Then we bent some 2 inch bar stock for the upright pieces. These two pieces then had their rivet holes drilled. Lining them up carefully, the two pieces were tacked welded together. Then they were given a full weld being careful not to warp the pieces. Once done with this, all the various pieces of angle iron were laid out on the tank bottom and fitted at their final position. Everything was clamped down and the bottom steel plate was then match drilled using the angle iron pieces as a guide. A magnetic based drill was used for all the drilling. Next we had to position the two water outlet holes in the front of the tank and drill two three-inch holes in the steel bottom plate. The position of the outlet holes had to be just right since there was minimum clearance for the pipe fixtures below the tank.

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Next the baffle plates were fabricated and the bottom angle iron supports riveted to the bottom. To minimize leaking we are using a thin layer of high temperature RTV between the angle iron and the steel plates. Next was the installation of the two overflow pipes. These go from the top of the tank by the water fill opening, through the tank and out the bottom.

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The curved steel side pieces arrived on 20 November 2008 from Petersen’s and we are now installing them starting with the piece that makes up the back of the coal bunker. As with the bottom piece, the side pieces have to be matched to their respective angle iron pieces and then match drilled for the rivets. The two main side pieces will be a bit of a challenge because of their size and weight (189 inches by 43.5 inches and 430 pounds). The assembly process is drill one piece, clamp to another piece, match drill, bolt everything together and then one by one replace the bolts with rivets. A slow process, one would think we work for the government.

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We still need to get the internal bracing bars that are 2 inch boiler tubes bent flat at the ends and the water inlet assembly. But as you can tell from the pictures, there is some notable progress. Once all the bottom fitting is done and the bottom angle iron riveted to the tank bottom, we will need to remove the temporary rollers we have between the tank bottom and the tender frame. This should be fun. More to come as the build accelerates.

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On 12 December we finished a milestone on the 223 project.  All riveting on the tank bottom was finished. After we do a little more drilling of holes for drains, it will be time to remove the steel bottom from the construction casters and then position the tank on the wooden frame. Then it will be time to start riveting again.  All the side pieces have had their holes drilled and they have all been assembled at least once on the tank using bolts
to verify fit. The horseshoe forge we purchased seems to be working out after we made a few modifications to better hold the rivets.

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Richard Carroll, Sr. & Jr. heating up a bracket to straighten it out. These will be used to secure the tank to the tender frame on all four corners.

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January 30, 2010 – The tank is resting on the frame and L brackets are waiting to be attached to the tank then bolted to the frame when the tank has settled into the wooden frame beams.

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Probably the most complex part of the tender that needs refabrication is the water portal. Maynard has drafted a plan to form a new portal using a specially constructed jig. Here are some photos of the old portal, jig plans and new steel piece waiting to be bent into shape.

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November 20, 2010 – The final riveting inside the coal bin. Joshua and Jacob Bernhard on set hammer and backer, Slim Jolley slinging hot steel from the oven, Dave Wagstaff controlling the furnace door and Lee Secrist on air hammer make up the 5 man crew today.

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April 2, 2011

March 10, 2011 – Bracket Riveting

We are reaching the final phases of riveting. The vertical sides are nearly done. We are fastening a couple of sections of the deck holding back some so that the painters can get inside, sand blast and put on a waterproof coating. The photos below show the riveting crew working on one of the deck pieces.

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The 223 Restoration Crew needed two sections of rail that will be used to roll the tender outside the shop for painting in a few months. Innovation won the day with a couple of dollies and a pick up.

July 17, 2011 – After the first bending operation that didn’t result in a satisfactory shape, a second try was made on July 16th.

The 223 Pilot – In 2000, the pilot was removed from the locomotive. When we removed the locomotive pilot the wood beam broke in half. Thanks to a donation from Melvin Matlock, who had a relative that owned a saw mill in Tennessee, we obtained a piece of oak large enough to make a new pilot beam. A new oak beam was cut and drilled and cracks in the beam filled with epoxy filler. The metal parts of the pilot were sandblasted, repainted and mounted to the beam. The flag holders had to be repaired since the mounting bolts were badly rusted. New mounting bolts were fabricated and then welded into the flag holder casting. This was a difficult weld and was done by a welder from L3 Communications. To finish the pilot, a new coupler pin was machined to hold the coupler in the coupler pocket. The pilot assembly, minus coupler, was finished in 2002. The coupler was installed in September 2007.

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Tender Frame – When wood for the tender was donated, we stopped work on the locomotive and began working on the tender. Using jacks and cribbing the tender tank was raised from the tender frame and the frame rolled out. At that time, we had to begin a reverse engineering project. As the tender was disassembled, engineering computer drawings were made of each part. These drawing then became the standard for the new parts. After much work, the frame was assembled. The trucks were rebuilt with new custom babbit bearings and Stapax lubricators for each journal. The trucks were moved back underneath the frame and the brake rigging hung. Airlines and accessories are installed. The triple valve has been rebuilt and a new small tender air tank has been built. A final set of engineering drawings for the tender tank were completed on 19 March 1998.

For over five years we were looking for a coupler for the tender and locomotive. We had a loaner knuckle coupler from the Colorado Railroad Museum to check for fit and to help us to better visualize the couplers we needed for the restoration project. Originally we thought that if we could not find another pair of couplers, we would use the loaner to build patterns and cast our own couplers. This idea was put on hold when we learned that patterns alone would cost approximately $10,000. In the early part of 2007 we arranged a trade of some diesel parts for a set of couplers from the Cumbres & Toltec railroad. In August of 2007 we picked up the couplers from the railroad at Antonito, Colorado.

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Locomotive Cab – In 1999 the cab was removed from the locomotive. Drawings were made for building the new cab and as each new piece is built, the drawings are refined to reflect the as-built state. We spent considerable time trying to decide on the type of wood to use for the cab. White ash was one choice under consideration but getting it in the sizes we needed was a problem. After much thought, we decided to use the same type of wood that was in the previous cab, Poplar. The price of wood has gone up and the several of the initial quotations for the wood were around $3000. On top of this, one needs to add another $500 for bolts, sheet metal, etc.

Like the rest of the locomotive, the building of the cab has turned out to be a joint effort of many individuals and groups. Ogden Union Station started off the rebuilding effort by having the cab tie down anchors built from the drawings we provided. The Hostler’s Model Railroad Club provided a $300 grant to help defray part of the wood costs. A local wood supply house, National Wood Products Inc., gave us a good price on the 2-inch raw stock we needed for the cab frame. Rocky Mountain Frames provided a 20-inch planer to mill the raw stock down to the 1-¾ inch thick boards for the frame. Earnie Davenport of R&E Woodworks then cut the large boards down to the approximate size for each of the individual cab frame members. With this wood, Richard Carroll, Dale Newley, Jerry Krause, Lee Witten & Maynard Morris proceeded to do the final cuts and assemble the cab frame. When we need a special 24-inch reamer, Bryce Draper built us one. Dale Silverton built the doors. Earnie Davenport also assisted in the fabrication of the cab windows. United Team Mechanical built the rain gutters that go over the engineer and fireman’s windows. These turned out to be a rather complex assembly. As usual, the Nut & Bolt Supply House has provided us good prices on the various bolts we used in the cab. When we went to do the roof we learned that the tongue and grove wood (vertical gain fir) is both expensive and difficult to find in the lengths we need. However, the Ottley Floor Company was able to provide us the wood at a very reasonable price. The front of the cab has some metal sheathing and thanks to a donation from Metal West these pieces were cut and attached. We still have two wind deflectors to build and to cover the cab roof with a water proof covering. However, the main part of the cab is finished.

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Appliances – Concurrent with the major restoration efforts we have also been working on the appliances such that they will be ready when the main part of the locomotive is done. So far the dynamo and one air compressor have been rebuilt. The second air compressor is now being rebuilt by Bernie Watts of Backshop Enterprise. The sheet metal of the head light has been repaired and the glass reflector has had a new silver coating applied. Both injectors have also been rebuilt. The engine air tank was hydrostatically tested to 180 psi for 15 minutes with no signs of leaks. The engine air tank is the original tank.

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Tender Trucks – Mid August 2007 we received a frantic call from a member of the 315 restoration group. They needed to borrow our tender trucks for the 9th Annual Railfest in Durango, Colorado. They had finished the restoration of the locomotive and had just learned that their tender trucks could not be used. We jacked up our tender frame and they set a trailer to pick up the trucks. When our trucks arrived in Durango, the Durango & Silverton (D&S) Railroad shops inspected our trucks and did some minor repair. We also learned that one of the wheel flanges was slightly under specification for width so the D&S installed a new wheel set. On our way down to pick up the couplers we were able to talk with several of the maintenance people at the D&S railroad. They were very helpful and freely gave of their time. We expect the trucks to be returned to us in October 2007. Since we are building the tender tank on the frame, jacking up the frame and the removal of the trucks has curtailed our restoration effort in this area.

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Saturday, Nov. 10 the president of the Durango RR Historical Society, George Niederauer and an associate brought the two sets of tender trucks back. Some refurbishment was done by the shops in Durango. Most of the Golden Spike Chapter crew were there to assist in getting the trucks back under the tender.

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