Engine 557 Restoration Company
Progress Report January 2022

On New Year's Eve the wind started to blow in Wasilla and did not slow down for 4 days. Gusts of 91mph with temperatures as low as -15 F. Roofs, walls and some entire buildings were damaged. At the concrete block 557 Engine House the only damage was the loss of the direct vent stack on our one gas fired space heater. The building belongs to the Alaska Railroad and their facilities people were on the job as soon as the wind subsided. They use a scissors lift to access the heater inside over the machine shop and a large boom lift for the outside work.

Notice there is no snow left in the parking lot, just a skating rink. The wind moved snow into convenient drifts on roadways. With the cold dry air, much of the snow disappears by desiccation, moving directly from solid to gas. Winds are not unusual here but the severity of the storm was. Snow alternating with wind and cold continued through the month of January providing real winter weather for the first time in several years.

What other say:
Jim Wrinn follows us at 557 Facebook and comments: “Some gorgeous work there! Thank you for bringing No. 557 back around for an encore.”

From Railway Preservation News, Eric Schlentner Orrville Railroad Heritage Society Car Knocker, Gandy Dancer & Hog Jockey “This is another thread I enjoy immensely. I like the monthly reports with all the photos. You certainly have a dedicated group.”

On Saturday January 8th we added another new volunteer at the 557 Engine House. Twenty year old Jamie Sullivan of Palmer joined Jessie Lehman and Delano (Del) Horner in the machine shop. Jessie and Del joined as soon as they turned 18 having been involved with the welding instruction program at Greatland Welding. Jamie wants to be engaged in heritage railroading, so he is starting at the beginning with some basic knowledge of steam locomotives. These young men represent a new generation of enthusiastic hands on railroaders in training. We all share the affliction of Ferraequineosis, young and old.

This comment came from Stewart P. Park Jr: “It is absolutely wonderful to have young folks get involved with the machinery of yesterday, which relied heavily on the hands and heads of people to do what is no often done by computers depending on entirely different skills. This is what makes heritage railroading so important!”

Fred Meyer Community Rewards Program for the last quarter of 2021, deposited $85.33 to our account. Thank You, to the 26 families who directed these funds our way. If you shop at Kroger family stores you can also make painless contributions. Just sign up here.

After a total rebuild the front engine truck has been placed under the front pilot ready to be fit to the Bissell post and equalizer when we begin to wheel 557.

As part of the new 26L brake upgrade we are installing a 975 series twin tower air dryer system by Graham White. This was purchased through J&L Consultants . The unit will be suspended between the frame rails from the cross member between driver sets 1 and 2. Plumbed in between the wet tank reservoir under the left running board at the end of about 65 feet of radiator pipe, it will then discharge into the large dry tank reservoir between the frames.

A great deal of prep work is going into setting all the blocking and jacks to lift 557. While it reverses the process used to remove the drivers, it is much more exacting to avoid damage in the assembly process with all new shoes, springs, suspension links, and driving box brass. This work is being lead by Jeff DeBroeck, Jerry Cunnington, Terry Douglas and Dean Sawyer.

One reinforced steel I beam is blocked and chained in place with no wiggle room, under the smoke box along the cylinder block rivet line. David Lucas fashioned the custom fit block from Oak. He also fashioned 8 sets of wheel chocks with handles to help control the driver sets as they are rolled under the loco.

The front corners at the cylinder block each have a 100 ton Duff-Norton Air motor jack and will be fit into a retainer ring fixed to the beam. As the locomotive moves up and down on the jacks, back up blocking will be adjusted under the frame at the cylinder block.

At the rear the yellow reinforced I beam extends through the fire box space below the mud ring and over the frame right behind the waste sheet. This is secured with lumber core plywood spacers on top of the frame and an oak wedge tapered to match the mud ring at the top. Again there is no wiggle room. Back up blocking at the rear under the frame will be more complicated.

Just to add some interest to the process the locomotive did move laterally a few inches on its blocking during the 7.1 earthquake of November 2018. We need to reposition the frame over the rails before we make the final lift.

Preparation on the right side blocking mirrors that of the left. The driver sets patiently wait at the right in the photo.

Staffing this month between weather and Covid has been commendable. Volunteers were moving fast enough that photos were not a priority. Gene Augustine did catch the Monday, January 31st crew. Lynn Willis, Ken Elmore, Ron Dudley, Gene Augustine, Pat Durand, Paul Dalleska and Jamie Sullivan. During the course of January work these folks also provided volunteer support: Mike McKervey, Tom Walker, Del Horner, Jamie Lehman, David Lucas, Laverne Buller, Keith Nore, James Keene, and welders from Greatland.

557 Board Members, Pat Durand, Paul Bates, John Combs, Sean Mesloh, Jane Walker, Dale Wade, Dick Morris and Scott Hicks. These are unsung volunteers who attend to the behind the scene details. Dick Morris our Secretary Treasurer keeps the books, pays the bills, leads the fund raising effort and writes several funding grant requests each year. Jane Walker, CPA reviews his work. Dick also manages our Facebook page. COO Paul Bates, motivates funding, develops the long range operations plan and negotiates that with the Alaska Railroad. Sean Mesloh as the ARRC CMO, makes sure our efforts are compatible with operation on the Alaska Railroad. Dale Wade, VP for Sales at ARRC helps guide the business plan. Scott Hicks our VP is well placed in the Alaska Business Community to access trends and opportunities. John Combs is our web master hosting 557 progress reports. When you meet any of our volunteers, thank them for their tireless support of our Alaskan Heritage through Engine 557.

Good news is that we have reached 60% of our 2021 Year End Fund Raising goal! Bad news is that donations have been reduced to a trickle in recent weeks. GOOD NEWS is we still have just under $20,000 in matching funds so we can still match your contributions dollar for dollar. Thank you for your serious consideration of this appeal. You are just one click away from making that donation.

 

Patrick J. Durand
President Engine 557 Restoration Company

 

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