MNGRR Steam Team Work Session Report 02/02/2008

Mechanical Department Work Session, February 2, 2008
By Mike Moulison

With blue skies and still water on Casco Bay, members of the Steam Team dragged Number 7 out of the engine house. The asbestos contractors did a fantastic abatement job on the boiler, allowing the crew to use wire brushes to clean up the metal for the upcoming ultrasound work.

In attendance on this mild winter day were Rick Knight (CMO), Gerry Bagley, Joe Monty, Jay Monty, Rich Currie, Mike Moulison, Hans Brandes, Trevor Hartford, Don Sanger, Shawn Foss, Bob Meckley, Larry Urbanski, and newcomer Larry McCarthy (Mac). It is always refreshing to see new faces come along to strengthen our efforts! Everyone has something to offer, and there is a lot of work that needs to be completed by MNGRR volunteers before the locomotive is trucked to Boothbay for boiler work and FRA Form 4 calculations.

The Steam Team worked as a collective, scraping rust and corrosion off of the exterior of the boiler shell so that the ultrasound machine will provide us with accurate thickness readings. The ultrasound must be conducted on the entire boiler shell and the firebox. This meant that someone had to volunteer for the filthy task of climbing into the firebox to clean out the leftover ash and any rust that may have accumulated during the locomotive's dormancy. This decision was made easy, because only one member of the steam team can fit through the diminutive firebox door: Jay Monty. A big thank you to Jay for accepting this very unpleasant task! While Jay was in the firebox, a fan was set up in the smokebox to keep as much air flowing through the firebox as possible. Also, Trevor Hartford spent much of his time working with Jay, and looking out for his safety.

Rick, Bob, Larry, Gerry, Mike, Mac, Hans, and Don worked collaboratively to remove a number of the heavier items on the locomotive, including the steam dome cover, sand dome ring, smokebox door, the dynamo, the smokestack and the bell. Mike and Larry used diesel Number 1 to push a flat car up to Number 7 to be used in moving these heavy parts to secure storage.

Hans also continued to carefully account for each part being removed, where it belongs, and where it will be stored while the boiler is being worked on at Boothbay Railway Village.

Also, Rich Currie spent a lot of time taking both video and still pictures so that this process of bringing Number 7 back to life is well documented. After all, a big part of promoting our museum's work includes making our mission easily accessible for public viewing.

Along the same line, Mike and Jay took some time out of the work day to talk with a few members of the public that had taken an interest in out work. After a brief cab ride on Number 1 and a talk with Jay, the father and son pair voiced their intention to make a donation to Number 7 through the website. We can never forget how important it is when in the tourist or museum railroad business, to take the time to engage interested visitors and answer their questions. This not only promotes the museum, but it should be a big reason why we volunteer our time to preserve this collection: for public education and enjoyment.

A wonderful lunch of sandwiches, macaroni and cheese, stewed tomatoes, and chips was provided by Sharon Barber and Sue Davis, thank you very much!

After lunch, Rick, Rich and Joe Monty went to work removing flexible staybolt caps on the wrapper sheet. These caps haven't been removed in some time, and required a lot of heat from the torch and a bit of muscle before they would budge.

Mike, Larry, Mac, and Shawn moved Number 1 and the loaded work flat to where the parts stripped off of Number 7 could be moved for safe keeping.

By the end of the day, a number of crew members had the chance to help remove flexible stay bolt caps. We removed 35 in all, but 9 still remain for the next work session. Also, Hans, Bob and Trevor had begun to grid the boiler with chalk lines, and started to measure out the spots were ultrasound reading will have to be taken. Almost half of the boiler has been gridded.

The next Steam Team work session will be on Saturday, March 1st. We plan to begin ultra sounding the boiler and drilling telltale holes into the stay bolts. Please come and help out or send along monetary contributions!