Don't Miss the IT Meet

Ed Oslowski has been working hard on the interior of the 277, mostly the front compartment, and here he is, Mr. North Shore, planning what to do next. He wants to keep working on the car after the IT extravaganza this Saturday, which is great! I helped him a little with sorting parts and figuring out the window numbering system.

Locks on some of the cars are being changed, so at first I was unable to unlock the 319. Norm Krentel and I are planning to work on the control system for the 36 this summer, so I spent a couple of hours sorting parts and then started meggering the contactors. Of the six (out of 13) I did, one coil appears to be open, but the others are fine. All of them have good insulation between the coil and the frame. And they are heavy -- about 100 lbs apiece.

One interesting aspect of the DB-15 contactor is that the frame itself is part of the motor circuit, and may be live whenever the main power is on, even if the control circuit is off. That's why they're always mounted in wooden contactor boxes. DO NOT open a box when a pole is up on the train!

Later I got a new key and was able to do some more paint stripping in the vestibule of the 319. I hope to start painting it soon.

Jack Biesterfeld continues his thorough restoration of the B&M wooden diner in Barn 3. He is working along the side of the car, stripping off the outer layer of the old paint, and applying a new coat of Pullman Green. The dim lighting makes it difficult to see it very well.

When the diner was converted to camp car service, the kitchen was gutted. We probably won't have the money to replace it, so Jack built a beautiful 1" scale model of what the original kitchen looked like, based on the Pullman plans. It's now on display inside the car. He used to build model boats and is quite good at this sort of craftsmanship. This picture isn't very good, since I'm shooting through the window of the car. You will have to see it for yourself!

Finally, here is the progress on the B&G extension. The roof is complete and the north wall was installed today.