Frinm Trains magazine (paywall) http://trn.trains.com/news/news-wire/20 ... -steamtown : "On Oct. 17, Steamtown National Historic Site took delivery of a new inside firebox built by the Strasburg Rail Road that will be installed in the Lima-built Pacific. The firebox cost about $148,600 and a year to build."

Someone posted a comment to the TRAINS article stating that the photo is of the OLD firebox. Does anybody know when this restoration began? I'm getting up there in age and would hope to see this steaming in my lifetime. Of course, I would also like to see the K4, the two Long Island Gs and the yet-to-be-built Pennsy T1 belching smoke.

Looking at old issues of Trains magazine, here's a rough timeline of her Scranton history. I have the original Trains DVD archive that ends with the December 2010 issue, so the last several years of progress aren't represented since it's a much more involved job to search physical magazines than it is to type 3713 into a search engine.

1984: Moved from Boston Science Museum to Scranton.
1995: Identified as next in line for restoration. Fund raising campaign sponsored by the Lackawanna & Wyoming Valley chapter of the NRHS started to raise the estimated $200,000.
1997: Asbestos removal expected to begin.
1999: Project underway in June with disassembly, parts cataloging, and asbestos removal. Cost expected to be $500,000. Restoration being done by the Lackawanna & Wyoming Valley chapter of the NRHS.
2005: 0-6-0 #26 expected to be ready for 2006 season, with the 3713 expected a year later. 1/3rd of the $68,000 needed to match an available $334,236 grant is on hand, bringing total funds raised for the restoration to the expected 1.2 million needed to finish the job.

Hopefully the long awaited finish line is drawing close.

It would almost be unfair to lump current progress on the engine with past events. The project is under new stewardship and has made significant strides in the last few years. The park service has also only recently backed volunteer efforts with substantial capital investment, which is essential on a project of this scale.

As stated, 3713 has just received a new firebox constructed by one of the premier steam locomotive shops in the country. The drivers were also sent to Strasburg for repair in 2017, as another vendor supplied new wheels and bearings for the lead truck back in February.

A totally new tender body had to be fabricated off site and is either back in Scranton or on its way, as work continues in the shop on the tender trucks and frame, including a conversion to rolling bearings and new draft gear. A brand new cab shell has also been constructed off site, while various other components are either out for repair or fabrication, on order, or are stockpiled and ready for installation when the time is right (new safety valves, restored head lamp, etc.).

All of this follows up boiler repair and steam dome work performed by Steam Services of America in about 2016. Sure, there is still a long way to go, but within the next year I'd fully expect to see the tender and cab completed, the lead truck reassembled and the drivers back under the frame. Maybe Santa will bring them a new wrapper sheet for December 2020. If not, she's still the closest she's been to seeing steam in a long, long time.

From their Facebook page, which is viewable without an account:

New tender body

wonder what the price tag was on the tender body/tank

I haven’t seen an individual cost breakdown but the total allotted for all contracted work was roughly 650k.

You mean for the locomotive in total or that allocated for just tender work?

650k for all recently contracted work. This included, mainly, the tender body, firebox, and cab. This may also have included the drivers, lead truck work, and some other odds and ends but I can't say for certain. I also do not know if the total funds allotted have been exhausted.

This amount came about through negotiations between the local RHS fundraising for the project and SNHS staff. Steamtown agreed to fund certain aspects of remaining work, while the RHS agreed to a list of items that they themselves are responsible for (and a dollar amount). All remaining work is within the scope of the Steamtown shop crew to complete.

Both parties appear to be honoring their respective responsibilities and there is no indication of SNHS altering course despite several changes in management. She'll be pounding the rails inside of five years. If you want to speed things up, there are a number of ways to contribute through the Project 3713 website.

I should also mention that volunteers have been making strides as well, working on items like fitting out the new cab shell and prepping the tender trucks for restoration. All of this work advances the timetable and conserves funds.