BR&P, Your not the only one who about drove off I-71 when seeing that mini 4 wheel tender coupled to N&W 917 there at the Bellville Ohio exit.Yes it's 100% better seeing the #917 there than getting cut up at the Va. scrapyard.But for some reason and maybe i'm not the only one? If you can afford the expense of moving a engine that far by highway wich from what i undersand was a pretty expensive move,and then plan on making a RR theme restaurant at that new location,why not spend a little more money and try and make things look a bit more realistic! The baggage car coupled to the new train set used to sit across the West side of I-71 there behind a business and never had trucks under it and sat up on concrete supports.I had once heard it was a ex NYC car.When it was moved to it's new display track regular freight car trucks were put under it.I'm not sure where the steel Northeastern design caboose came from or it's origin,it's deffinately not a LV cab,maybe a Reading or WM,i don't know? There used to be a old wood B&O caboose next door by the motel up on the hillside that sat there for ages but that disappeared several years ago and i heard it was moved up near the Cleveland area.
Anyhow i'm really curious as to what will transpire there with the RR theme restaurant? I'm not trying to knock or be to critical of the new owner as maybe he doesn't know much about RR equipment? Surely it wouldn't take much to make a somewhat more accurate size tender model for the #917 by using some old freight car trucks and sheet steel than instead of using pushcart wheels on the current mini 4 wheel version.Have you seen the close up pictures of the #917? Check out the bell,its one of those wide bottomed schoolhouse/farm type bells painted gold.Even a cast steel diesel bell painted gold would look better! I guess one can do what they like when they own something, but some changes could sure do wonders! I recently heard that NS may be cutting up two old cars at their Lorain Fairlane yard.Both i think are of PRR origin.I know one is a baggage car and the other may be a coach,or maybe both are baggage cars? It's been years since i've seen them and there not in the best shape.They both have friction bearing wheelsets and can't be moved by rail.They've been shoved back in the yard out of sight for years.There was also a old 40ft.NYC box car there that was cut up for scrap a few months back.To bad this guy at Bellville can't get these old cars and truck them there for his restaurant.With scrap prices way down they probably wouldn't cost much.He could scrap the worst one there,keep the trucks off it for his baggage car at Bellville that has those incorrect freight car trucks and use those for making a more scale tender for the #917,then move the other car from Lorain to Bellville for display wich isn't near as far as Va.to Ohio!