At the Backshop...

Our regional FRA (Federal Railroad Administration) inspector was up in mid-Septemeber to do an internal inspection on number 19 prior to the new tubes going in. He found no problems and approved the locomotive for the repairs. While we've been waiting on the last of the new components to arrive, work has been underway on cleaning and prepping the undercarriage for paint.

The Heisler is providing the steam to clean number 19. Number 3 was cleaned earlier in the afternoon in preparation for a boiler wash.

Not quite under steam in this picture, more "over" steam. Ha. 

The steam chest is definitely going to need a fresh coat of paint.

The running gear is starting to look like it should. The rods all need to be polished, and the drivers repainted, but most of the oil, grease, and debris has been removed.

The engineer's side builders plate from number 19. This plate is a replica as the original plates from both number 19 and 20 were removed at some point in Alaska and are currently in a private collection.