In today's News Wire, Alaska 557, a former US Army 2-8-0 is shown being transported on a flat car on the ARR behind two GP40s.
The flat car appears to be equipped with 3 feet gauge tracks. I assume that there is no three feet gauge in the ARR area so this flatcar would appear to be intended for use with White Pass and Yukon locomotives.
So it seems likely that the 2-8-0 travelled on the barge on the flatcar and that it was loaded in Washington state on a car normally used for WP&Y vehicles.
M636C
It was sold to a group in Alaska and they want to restore it to running condition. The move and lots more information can be found here... http://www.railroadforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=38222
I notice none of the current pictures mention a tender for the 557 (?)
Also, what about side rods and valve gear? Will they need to be replaced?
Is the ARR going to do all the work in their shops?
Are they going to g to outside contractors?
Inquiring minds, etc,etc!
The tender was not original and was not going with the locomotive. I believe the original tender is in a museum in Alaska somewhere. It is standard to remove the side rods and valve gear when moving steam locomotives that have been sitting idle for many years. This is done mainly because the pistons are seized up, there is no lubrication, and removing the side rods eliminates a large number of possible problems including hot bearings, and seizures.
I don't believe this has anything to do with ARR but I could be wrong. Check that website I posted above. It has all the answers.
Having checked the linked website, the flatcar is indeed ARR 17104 and was used on the barge.
But nobody has explained why it has three feet gauge track on its deck....
Was it used with WP&Y locomotives? Or were there other railroads of that gauge adjacent to the ARR?
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