Smoke & Cinders (2nd Quarter 2018) – It All Started with A Birthday Party
It All Started with A Birthday Party Second of two part series
The 6914’s restoration is the first, complete diesel locomotive restoration done at TVRM.
Refurbishing the cab was one of our biggest hurdles. Before TVRM began work on the E8, the cab had been almost completely stripped. There was no floor, no brake equipment, no heaters, no defrosters, no seats, no sand boxes, and no windows. Much of the electrical system had been cannibalized, and we had an abundance of rust. We first removed or covered everything in the cab that could be damaged by sand blasting and then hired a contractor to blast the cab interior. He worked round the clock and did a great job too. Then we had to learn how to operate a paint sprayer and apply Corlar Epoxy and Emron paints. That gave me a new respect for professional painters!
Next, we ordered marine plywood and installed the floor. This made the cab a much safer work environment because we weren’t walking on the narrow steel floor support beams.
In all restoration projects, you have to ask yourself if you want to end up with a display piece, a barely running locomotive, or an every day…