Diesel Service Report, July 4th, 2020
SP1006
The locomotive was scheduled for operations for both Saturday and Sunday. The museum was open for visitors over the holiday and SP1006 was the engine pulling the passenger train.
However, we still have one significant issue to resolve. Somehow, a lot engine oil is accumulating in the U channel by the exhaust manifold between the two sets of cylinders. Something up there is leaking whenever the engine is operating. Frank Kunsaitis has wiped up the loose oil in the past and is still trying to locate where it is coming from. The area is very difficult to access. And its not just a few drops of oil, it amounts to a few gallons.
The switching crew pulled the locomotive out of the barn and washed it during the week to get ready for its weekend operation.
USAF 1601
Carl Pickus and Doug Newberry were out during the week and continued to prepare for the swapping of combos between the newly arrived truck and the trucks pulled out from under 1601. They had to remove brake rigging and pedestal support bars from each truck. Then the truck frame was lifted off of the two new combos, leaving them ready to install into the trucks for 1601. It sounds simple but it is really a lot of work and careful use of cranes.
These are the two new combos after the truck frame was lifted off from over the top of them. The yellow jacks are in place to keep the journal boxes from rotating and unseating the journal bearing brasses. Those brass bearings will be kept as matching pairs to the axle journals that they have been mated to while operating in the past.
After the truck frame was lifted off, it was first placed on Carl’s utility trailer and then transferred to one of our heavy duty flat cars. All of the brake rigging, journal boxes, etc, associated with the truck will be stored with the truck on top of the flat car. Storage on the flat car keeps the truck off the ground and keeps the parts close to it.
All of the brake cylinders on the trucks from under 1601, have been disassembled in preparation for installation of new cylinder cups and fresh cylinder grease. During the disassembly, a broken return spring was found inside one of the cylinders. A spare spring will be removed from the truck frame that was placed on the flat car.
SF560
John Salvini removed the remaining 11 fuel pumps and injector nozzles. We are working to identify how we will get the pumps refurbished and the nozzles tested.
John also removed pipes that are connected to the “educators” in the exhaust pipe. The eductors are tubes installed at an angle in the exhaust system so that a Venturi suction is created from the exhaust gases. That vacuum is then used to remove dirt particles from a collector box below the air cleaners.
However in this case, the air filters were so plugged that that the engine blower appears to have been sucking exhaust gases backwards out of the exhaust pipe and into the blower. Those gases then left severe accumulations of oily residue in the blower intake and air filter box. We believe that problem will be solved once the air filters are cleaned and reinstalled.
Dave Althaus
