Maine Central Steam Locomotive #470 Discussion

[MEC407]

Find us a restaurant that is willing to have us speak and help support NESCO...

Does that mean you've tried to find such a restaurant and have been unsuccessful, or have you not attempted that yet? I'm sure such a place must exist somewhere between Kittery and Brunswick but I can't think of a specific establishment at the moment. Bringing your message to the southern coast does seem like a worthwhile goal, even if only for economic reasons — disposable income tends to be higher in that part of the state.

One place that popped into my head is Run of the Mill, located in one of the historic mill buildings in Saco (near the railroad!). They have a very large space, divided into multiple rooms, so from a practical/logistic standpoint it would be easy to have a 470 Night there. I'm not affiliated with them and I don't know the owners; I'm only speaking as a customer. It might be worth checking out. They do seem open to hosting special events, per their Events web page: http://www.therunofthemill.net/Events/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[RGlueck]

Saco is pretty far south! We would be looking at something in the Portland area or further north. The point is to locate a place that believes in the project, can help support us by inviting in railroad hobbyists and isn't a three hour drive for our presenters. I'm sorry, but we need to recover more than we spend to get there!

[ThinkNarrow]

There's an interesting map in http://www.jtgfoundation.org/uploads/JT ... 202012.pdf entitled "Map 17. Median Family Income Quartiles." It shows that the income in Maine is south of Lewiston and especially from Portland south. While Saco may be fairly far south, the map suggests it's in the midst of the "money belt."

[RGlueck]

Find us a venue, guarantee reasonable attendance, and I will consider taking it on. All our traveling expenses come out of our personal pockets - not out of 470 donations. As far as the money belt goes, being retired, mine is tight enough.

[gokeefe]

Pat's Pizza in Portland. They even have a nice upstairs room you could use.

[bml54]

the 470 is going to be moved this summer and I think it would nice if also the gp7u version would be saved to.
when they move it sometime in july ill put it on my you tube channel and my friend maineraillfanner will put it on his here are the links
bml54's channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCikJaP ... 8euQ9HiLxA" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
mainerailfanners:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkkdPD ... vF_cR2dikg

[RGlueck]

New England Steam Corporation has posted updates with photos on both its Facebook page and website.

Purchase of the locomotive will go through in the coming weeks, with full cooperation from the city and its management personnel. Valve chest and right cylinder are smooth, clean, and free of corrosion.

https://sites.google.com/site/mainecentral470/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Regular updates and photos will be posted regularly in the coming weeks. If you are not yet a member, or if your membership has lapsed, please consider joining NESCO through the website.

New England Steam Corporation
P.O. Box 302
Winterport, Maine 04496

[MEC407]

I very much enjoyed reading the latest update, found here:

https://sites.google.com/site/mainecentral470/news" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It reminds me of what a human being goes through when they're in physical therapy after a long period of being immobile. Just the act of getting certain things to move again can be enormously difficult, but also enormously important and beneficial.

[gokeefe]

I very much enjoyed reading the latest update, found here:

https://sites.google.com/site/mainecentral470/news" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It reminds me of what a human being goes through when they're in physical therapy after a long period of being immobile. Just the act of getting certain things to move again can be enormously difficult, but also enormously important and beneficial.

That is "yet again" an update with so much good news as to be almost beyond belief. When the story of this engine is told again someday credit will be due to as of yet unnamed craftsmen of the Maine Central Waterville shops who put this locomotive away in near pristine condition and made damn sure it was going to last until it could be restored. You can't but help get the feeling that they knew this engine would run again someday as a museum piece and they did their part to ensure this could happen.

NESCO yet again is showing what a quality outfit they are not only through carefully planning and execution but also through excellent communications and stakeholder engagement. Great to see all around.

[bml54]

hey i was wondering what you guys were doing that day btw what did they drop off in those blue crates yesterday?

[bml54]

btw to seperate the tender you need to relive weight by picking up the front of the tender slieghtly and than pull out the pin the tender weighs enough that a good sized excurvator could do it or even a small crane.

[Mikejf]

There is a pin that holds the two together. Can be removed without picking up the tender.

[RGlueck]

Other work sessions will focus on relieving the strain between the locomotive and tender. The pin is not so much an issue as removing the wedge that takes up slack. All this is being addressed and more photos are coming. The removal of the pin does not require lifting the tender, unless you are talking H-O scale.

[RGlueck]

A second Sunday of work time on #470. Several visitors from distant places dropped in, and we thank you. Random pictures.


labels for tubes. These will all be replaced in the future, but for now, it's good to know what went where.


CMO Fernald heats pipe connections that have been too long together!


Mechanic Bob DeWachter helps loosen the problematic left cylinder cover from last week.


Left cylinder as it appeared on opening. THis is sixty years after last steaming. Rusty color made us wince at first.


Left cylinder after Bob took a brush to it and added oil. It's as smooth as the others!


Pilot temporarily removed to access the pony truck journals. Can you believe one journal box is missing? Probably left off after her final shopping.


Pony truck equalizer bar.


Board Treasurer, Bill Alexander removes a weld which holds valve gear linkage from moving.

The locomotive was heavily oiled again, and most of the early "grunt" work is behind us. Our heavy lift engineer took further measurements today as well. We intend to concentrate on removing the wedge that holds the tender and locomotive together, then roll back the tender. Hopefully this will occur withing the next week or two. Overall, huge progress being made. Please visit our website and Facebook page to see and read more.

Remember "470 Night" at Governor's in Bangor, on Broadway, this April 29th. If you are not a member of New England Steam Corporation, please join or renew your membership. We have shirts and the new baseball style caps available as well. Big news is coming in early summer; be a part of the steam revival.

[gokeefe]

I was one of the aforementioned visitors to drop in and visit with the NESCO crew and #470. I deeply appreciated the courtesy paid to me and my younger (and smaller) colleague.

I was struck by the sound of a generator as I exited the car. Combined with the clanking noises come from #470's mechanics working one could be forgiven for thinking they had just walked into an open air steam shop. It was startling in some ways to come upon #470 and not hear anything more than eerie silence from the black hulk of steel and iron sitting alongside the tracks at the Waterville Yard.

Instead I was greeted by the very active noise of the NESCO team and their "intervention" as it were in #470's life as a slowly deteriorating static display. The visi-vested team was working throughout the engine and tender, mostly in the under carriage and running gear preparing it for movement to Ellsworth this summer. The tools of the continuing lubrication and preventive maintenance program were in evidence. Yet another treasure left to posterity the Maine Central Waterville shops was being unwrapped on the fireman's side cylinder. I was given the rare privilege of an up close and personal look at the cylinder head, exposed to daylight for the first time in over 50 years. As noted by Dick after a quick cleaning it was found to be in excellent condition, like so much else on this engine.

I was shown a bearing on the on the running gears that had been exposed as well. Once cleaned of surface grime you could see the shine of beautiful solid brass free of pitting, gouges or any other obvious signs of wear and tear. There are parts like this all over the engine. And thankfully as NESCO continues to discover there are very very few pieces either missing or not otherwise in a condition that is amenable to restoration. That is not to say or imply that NESCO does not have a significant task ahead of it. There is plenty of work to be done but the story of #470 time and again continues to return to the generous treatment of the engine by the Maine Central Railroad prior to retirement and its subsequent mothballing.

I was shown in several places all over the engine where welds had been made on various bolts to ensure that covers, nuts and other fasteners were locked in place. There are literally dozens of these locations all over the engine, for a professional crew like NESCO these are a simple matter, but thankfully many a vandal, or curious visitor was prevented from damaging the engine over the years by the great care that was taken when this engine was shutdown for good on the plinth in Waterville.

Having seen all of this you realize that #470 was very much a "live" piece of equipment when it was placed on exhibit. This engine was not a derelict, forgotten and left to rust and decay for a few decades before being preserved. This engine was in full running order and treated with great care by the Maine Central Railroad. When looking at #470 from the exterior this is almost an impossible dream to imagine. There are plenty of places along the outside of the engine where the weather has taken its toll. And this combined with layers of caked on paint is enough to make one think "it cannot be". But as it turns out in the most important respects this damage is inconsequential to the engine's bright prospects for restoration.

The boiler, cylinders, running gear, wheels, trucks, journals, bearings and many many other smaller parts are in fact largely intact as is most if not all of the significant plumbing connections. In short the mechanical parts, which are the most expensive and difficult to repair are intact, repairable, restorable or replaceable. There is a great deal of cosmetic work related to the aesthetic condition of the engine and the tender in particular that will need to be done. Most of it sheet metal work. But the stunning fact remains that #470 is more or less free of rust, corrosion, wear or other defects in the most sensitive areas. I noticed a grid had already been laid out for an ultrasonic survey of the engine. The results thus far are positive with only some very minor areas of concern.

As someone who has always considered NESCO a "serious" entity even I was surprised by the extent to which this engine really is such an excellent case for restoration. When you look at it through their eyes, with their experience and obvious competence in working with this equipment you come to realize what a treasure #470 really is. In the hands of the masters it can, and will, run again under its own power. One of these days I will come around a corner probably somewhere in Ellsworth and see #470 under steam once again. I cannot even begin to imagine what a treat that is going to be. There is lots of work to be done until then but it can and it will happen with the support of donors and the hard work of the NESCO volunteers.

Thanks to Dick, Leverett and the entire NESCO team for the warm reception and the opportunity to learn more about the progress of #470's restoration.