Steam & Excursion > Nashville's 576 sees daylight and the move begins...

576 has emerged into daylight. By Monday it'll be on live rail again.

Move and relocation continues through the weekend:

http://www.nashvillesteam.org/2019/01/relocation-of-no-576-begins-trains-magazine-to-livestream-sundays-move/

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Why not remove the pistons and valves, or take down the oscillating machinery?

Or...

The NKP left the main rods in place, with cylinder heads ( stored) replaced by stout, oak boards over the lower half of the cylinders, with oil-soaked waste and a gallon or two of car oil... & with valve gear levers disconnected ...towed at track speeds 600 miles...Vermont to Conneaut... 1968...

W.

wcamp1472 Wrote:
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> Why not remove the pistons and valves, or take
> down the oscillating machinery?

Wes, I would think that the engine would be much more difficult to move, what with the pistons & valves offering significant resistance (after sitting some 60 years).

> Or...
>
> The NKP left the main rods in place, with cylinder
> heads ( diored) replaced by stout, oak boards over
> the lower half of the cylinders, with oil-soaked
> waste and a gallon or two of car oil... & with
> valve gear levers disconnected ...towed at track
> speeds 600 miles...Vermont to Conneaut... 1968...
>
> W.

Yes..
As I’ve said, the NKP had shipped the 759 from Conneaut with tithe main rods and pitons in plaice and oscillating.
Tye NKP guys had a ‘pillow’ of journal waste, as a sponge, that retained a couple of gallons of slop-oil  that pleased the cykinder walls every forward stroke.  Also the NKP guys had removed the piston rod packing .

In ‘62(?) upon arrival at Steamtown, their guys removed the temporary wooden half-heads and replaced the steel,heads for display.

Under Dale Moses’, former NKP roundhouse foreman from Frankfort, Indiana,  we removed the steel heads, reapplied the wooden half-heads and rolled west at track speeds.  759’s cylinder walls were well coated with stiff valve oil protectant.
I would expect that the cylinder walls of 576 would have similarly protected the cylinders and rings, etc.

However, it would still be prudent to remove & look ( and lube) at the cylinder and valve internals before dragging the engine around. It would have been easy to drop,the crossheads’ union links, prevent & protect forcing the valves from moving.

But, we’re only spectators,  if they’d wanted our advice, they’d have reached out.

Wes.

 

This move is going on a heavy haul lowboy so not sure it matters to much?

http://www.nashvillesteam.org/2019/01/relocation-of-no-576-begins-trains-magazine-to-livestream-sundays-move/

Regarding rods etc. NashvilleSteam on Instagram:
"no need to when you’re only moving 100 feet. Main rods will be removed for the tow across town later."

Spoony81 Wrote:
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> This move is going on a heavy haul lowboy so not
> sure it matters to much?
>
> http://www.nashvillesteam.org/2019/01/relocation-o
> f-no-576-begins-trains-magazine-to-livestream-sund
> ays-move/

Well, just my opinion but, I would NEVER move a steam engine ONE INCH without making totally sure that neither the pistons nor the valves MOVE AT ALL! 

I think the engine is in safe hands, with well educated people.

-AWF- Wrote:
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> I think the engine is in safe hands, with well
> educated people.

I'll say, check out some of the names on the Advisory Committee

• Wick Moorman - Co Chair
• Doyle McCormack
• Mark Hinsdale
• Jim Wrinn

-Regards,

Dave

Good.
Its a readily do-able candidate and a fine, flexible, go-anywhere locomotive,

One of my criteria for determining the viability of candidate locos for restoration is the condition of the tires.
Nice, new and thick tires indicate that the owning RR had great confidence in the overall continued future use of the loco.
They would not go to the expense of all new tires, if the future use of that candidate was dimmed by poor overall and worn-out condition.

Worn-thin, badly dished-out treadwear on tires, to me, indicates they ran that loco to the end of its economic life, and decided not to put scarce dollars into a loco with a short usefullife, near the end of steam operations.

Go to the tire condition, first.  
If the tires are worn out, to continue restoration with THAT loco invites greater expenditures and very extensive repairs and a lot more  work....as well as the cost of new tires, right out of the gate..l*
Search for a better candidate.

My memory is that 576 has virtually brand-new tires...that’s a good sign of “a get it ready quickly “ candidate.
Total disassembly and tinkering by amateurs uneceesarily endangers a viable loco, more than helps it .
There are no more folks who had worked at loco factories and built the machines from the ground up....we’re all newcomers and amateurs —— avoid pretending otherwise.

​W.


* However, there are some locos, by virtue of their rarity and historical signicance, tat are definitely candites worthy of first-class restorations.  Several current projects fall into that class....worthy candidates supported by superb, experienced teams & leaders.

 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/09/19 18:52 by wcamp1472.

dbesade Wrote:
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> -AWF- Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > I think the engine is in safe hands, with well
> > educated people.
>
> I'll say, check out some of the names on the
> Advisory Committee
>
>

• Wick Moorman - Co Chair
  >
• Doyle McCormack
  >
• Mark Hinsdale
  >
• Jim Wrinn
  >
  > -Regards,
  >
  > Dave

Again, just my opinion but, an "Advisory Committee" isn't doing the actual hands-on work.

HotWater Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> dbesade Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > -AWF- Wrote:
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > -----
> > > I think the engine is in safe hands, with
> well
> > > educated people.
> >
> > I'll say, check out some of the names on the
> > Advisory Committee
> >
> >
>
>

• Wick Moorman - Co Chair
  > >
  >
• Doyle McCormack
  > >
  >
• Mark Hinsdale
  > >
  >
• Jim Wrinn
  > >
  > > -Regards,
  > >
  > > Dave
  >
  > Again, just my opinion but, an "Advisory
  > Committee" isn't doing the actual hands-on work.

Jack,

I don't disagree with your sentiment regarding the advisory committee. In contrast, I do find the fact they have an advisory committee, not to mention one with some well known names goes a fair bit of way to showing how serious they are.

Wes,

Aren't most steam engines at this point a giant money pit unless you find a unicorn? Most have been sitting for 50 years...

Regards,

Dave

A lot of the decisions about operability are made out of curiosity, not  by real necessity.
A lot of the decisions on tinkering-necessity are actually best determined on case-by-case basis.
just because you CAN tear everything apart, doesn’t mean that you SHOULD,,,

Yanking all the flues and tubes would only be a necessity if one ( or both) of the tube sheets needed replacement.
Just because you COULD  spend $5miilon dollars on an 0-6-0, but should you?  The removal of the flues and tubes is for the purpose of examining the condition of the boiler shell interior.  The majority of the flues and tubes need NOT be removed.
Damaged tube sheets would necessitate the total removal. 

Wise decisions can save lots of dollars.
During the course of future operations, you can schedule-in specific component rebuilds, at a later times; not all that stuff
needs to be toyed with, all at once, getting towards the first steam-up.  Be wise and you can save your project millions of bucks.  
We have too many examples of $millions spent and yet the candidate locos are in pieces, scattered about landscape.

Wes



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/09/19 18:54 by wcamp1472.

I don't normally comment much on here but living less than 100 miles away I have been following this effort pretty closely since it got the green light in 2016. The folks prepping 576 for this move have been working on it for over 2 years and are pros and veteran steam people. Every bearing has been checked and the oil changed where applicable. All the rods have been removed cleaned and serviced before being re installed. I remember seeing pictures fairly early on of the valve spools being removed and I also remember seeing pictures of the piston heads being removed and you could see the pistons. I don't remember if they were removed or not and Facebook won't go back that far to see now. The spikes that were welded to the rails in 1953 as wheel chocks  were removed last fall and a large wrecker cable attached to the rear of the locomotive. I think it surprised everyone just how easily it started moving. You could see the cable just really start to get tight and it started rolling back without any complaints. If you have access to the current Facebook video you will notice that it essentially makes no noises at all as it was eased out onto the temporary track. I'm confident that 576 is in very competent hands and look forward to riding behind her in a few years!

jb

Wes you are right again. A good viable candidate of historical significance, regardless of the existing tire wear, would be a New York Central  Hudson.  I am still looking for that abandoned coal mine treasure hidden in Ohio.   Just saying.

The 576 has been delivered to live rail...

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