SVRy Coach 20 Repairs...

In mid-September 2011 Sumpter Valley Railway coach number 20 the Em. Eccles Jones suffered minor draft gear damage while in service and was unavailable for the duration of the season. This 1883 vintage car is the last surviving clerestory car from the original railway and was built by the Union Pacific for service on the Utah & Northern Railway before being purchased by the Sumpter Valley in the 1890's. On January 15, 2012 volunteers removed the damaged coupler and platform beams from the "A" end of car. New beams arrived on Friday (January 27), and the coach should be back in service shortly, making the number 20 once again one of the oldest regularly operated passenger cars in America.

Coach number 20 in mid-September with the coupler and end beam removed. The car was moved into the shop shortly after this picture was taken in preparation for repairs to the undercarriage.

The new beams have been delivered and are laminated as opposed to being a solid piece of wood. In this particular application a laminate is generally superior to an individual piece of material. 

Eric Wunz notching the new beams to fit around undercarriage components. 

The coupler beams are in place. New through-bolts were constructed to replace the lag-bolts that had been used previously. The angled rod with threads on the end is one of the six truss rods that keep the car in tension and the platform tight. 

All the coupler and platform support beams are in place. Next up is the end beam and a new deck. Thanks to Eric Wunz, Jerry Huck, and Rick Gorden for carrying out the reassembly work.