B&SR Box Car 56 - Official Work Thread

[Brendan Barry]

56 was placed on shop trucks and moved into the shop this week.

Stewart's photo of the car being brought from the parking lot and over to the roundhouse track.



We pushed the car onto the turntable from the roundhouse track and 52 picked up the car on the turntable track.





Coming into bay 3 of the shop.

[Bob Holmes]

I love this car, and I'm seeing more masks. Great progress on both!

[Bill Reidy]

Brilliant.  Thanks for the photos, Brendan.

[Jeff Schumaker]

See "The Bridgton and Saco River: A Technical and Pictorial Review" by Peter S. Barney for details and photos ...

Available in our gift shop!

The book or livestock?

Jeff S.

[Bob Holmes]

I've been hoping for livestock version for two reasons:  1) it's then just not another boxcar, but unique; and 2) it will allow more light into the tool car.

[John Kokas]

If it's a tool car then "as-built" externally.  With tools and equipment we should have maximum protection from both a weather and security standpoint.  I fully expect that the car will be left out on the line from time to time and should be as secure as possible.  Big openings, like windows are easy to pry open.

[Ted Miles]

Folks,
         The pictures appear to show that the box car did not have freight trucks.

Does the museum have a pair to put under it? If not, the wheel sets are the expensive part, the arch bars are less so.

Ted Miles, narrow gauge fan

[Dwight Winkley]

Ted, All the photo's but the first one, show box car 56 on trucks being moved into the shop,

[Brendan Barry]

56 is riding on shop trucks in the pictures. B&SR flatcar 34 came with the parts to build new trucks but the railway needed 34 in service for the work weekend that was coming up and there wasn't time to build new trucks. To get 34 in service 56's trucks were used for 34 and 56 was put on blocks in the parking lot. The plan is to build a set of WW&F common bolster trucks for WW&F flatcar 126 and use the B&SR trucks that 126 presently rides on under boxcar 56.

[Jeff Schumaker]

So, when does the rebuild start?

Jeff S.

[Bob Holmes]

I still advocate for the livestock version to be a unique version of a 2 ft box/livestock car.

We can figure out how to make the windows weatherproof and vandalproof if we use our usual WW&F ingenuity.

[Jeff Schumaker]

I agree with Bob. It shouldn't be too difficult to make the "windows" tamper proof.

Jeff S.

[Mike Fox]

Weather and vandal proof is easy.

I took a quick look inside the car Saturday and the roof is original. It still has the bolts that held the roofwalk on sticking down through, complete with blocks that were used to keep the nuts from sinking into the inside of the roof boards. Really wish I took a photo but did not.

[Jeff Schumaker]

Is the roof in decent shape?

Jeff S.

[James Patten]

The roof's in good enough shape that Marcel was sitting on it as he removed the roofing.  He thinks he can save most of the boards.