Will Gant Wrote:
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> I think, but am not 100% sure, that the axles for
> passenger cars are a little different.
>
> It would be nice to convert the old journal boxes
> to accept roller bearings, and build the ne new
> trucks to take roller bearing axles, but still
> look like and old journal box. Its not that hard
> to do, but it would save on maintenance in the
> long run.
Yes, a great idea for roller bearing trucks. However there's a caveat...If a car is restored to a historic standard, are roller bearings historic? No. That can lead to other issues with groups donating and expecting a historic restoration. There's a lot of wood in some of the historic trucks being built too. Obviously would be better to use wood facsimile but then it's not a historic restoration.
Stuff like this is going to be an issue bringing historic passenger cars online. Historic might not be all that operations friendly. However historic groups can come up with a lot of money to bring these cars back to life.
RPO 54 was done to historic standards with a restoration point in the 1920s. I'm sure the railroad tourist operation could have used a different interior configuration. Ends are sealed currently just like in 1920. Makes it therefore unusable on the daily train. Also flying bolster with roller bearings would be more efficient but it's not historic.
So we're kinda stuck doing things like the current plan of historic(and expensive). Trust me, Russ could build anything desired truck wise. As well, have it better engineered than anything out there. If anyone wants to volunteer, sign up for a project with Russ. Great way to learn a lot.
