Work on C&NW 1385’s three sets of 63-inch driving wheels continues. Work is being carried out by the Strasburg Rail Road shop facility in Pennsylvania. Here is a run-down of the status of the drivers as of an October 13, 2014 communication from Strasburg to Mid-Continent’s 1385 Task Force:

• The #1 driver crankpins are turned and only in need polishing.
• The #3 driver crankpin hub faces are welded up.
• The new R3 crankpin (#3 driver, engineer side) is pressed in and ready to be riveted over on the back side.
• The old R2 hubliner (#2 driver, engineer side) has been removed, its mounting studs are center punched, and ready to be drilled out. New hubliner material is on hand.
• A crack near the R2 crankpin hub has been chased out and welded up.
• The R2 crankpin hole has been bored out.
• The new R2 crankpin is being machined.

Diagram showing driving wheel arrangement on a R-1 class steam locomotive. Driving (powered) axles are numbered front-to-back and specific wheels on the axles are defined as being on the left or right side. For example, L3 refers the wheel on the left side (fireman side) of the third powered axle.

The estimated completion date for the driving wheels is the end of 2014. The biggest influence of whether the target will be met is uncertainty of the lead time for the delivery of new tires. The order of operations is to press all new crankpins in, then turn the tire seats on the wheel centers. The new tires will then be ordered to fit snugly to the final dimensions of the wheel centers.

See the March 30, 2014 post for a further explanation of wheel centers and tires.