Alaska Railroad 2-8-0 #557 to be returned to service!

Crescent-Zephyr · **Joined:** Wed Jan 20, 2016 1:15 pm **Posts:** 1509

Dave wrote:

Crescent-Zephyr wrote:

So true! While ARR is obviously very friendly to passenger service… steam is going to be new to them

Hardly...... they ran steam for decades before dieselizing later than most American mainline railroads. These guys know what they're doing and have been and will continue to be successful in their endeavors.

Things kinda change after 60 years haha

Dick_Morris · **Posted:** Thu May 02, 2024 4:36 am

We have lots of good news to report in our April, 2024 status report. Here is the direct link: https://alaskarails.org/pix/former-loco ... index.html

In addition to news, the report includes a virtual tour of the 557 Engine House, including a view of the palatial Engine 557 Restoration Company international administrative offices.

PMC · **Joined:** Sat Oct 17, 2015 5:55 pm **Posts:** 2325

Do you heat the shop all year long to keep it above freezing? If so, how much roughly does it cost to heat it in, say, January?

Dick_Morris · **Posted:** Wed May 22, 2024 10:29 pm

Quote:

Do you heat the shop all year long to keep it above freezing? If so, how much roughly does it cost to heat it in, say, January?

Sorry, I just saw this.

Except for a while during the first winter before the heater was installed, the 557 Engine House has been heated. Use of the Engine House (an Alaska Railroad property that had previously been leased for many years to a former lumber yard as a millwork shop/warehouse) is an in-kind contribution from the Alaska Railroad Corporation. I don't have any idea of the cost for utilities, they are included in our "lease." Heat is from a single large ceiling hung natural gas unit heater. Several ceiling fans keep the hot ceiling air mixed with the colder air at the floor.

Dick_Morris · **Posted:** Wed May 22, 2024 10:44 pm

The boiler work on ARR #557 that started in the fall of 2012 reached a major milestone yesterday. An inspector from the FRA, Robert Franzen and Bob Gold from Steam Services of America, and the volunteers from the Engine 557 restoration crew conducted the formal hydro test of 557's boiler. Work on the boiler has included installation of a new fire box, installation of new stays (including upgrading about 25% of the rigid stays to flexible), and new tubes and flues.

The image below is from the official report. It doesn't get any better than this!

PMC · **Joined:** Sat Oct 17, 2015 5:55 pm **Posts:** 2325

Congratulations!

Alaska Railroad 2-8-0 #557 to be returned to service!

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