Why such a rush to destroy our history? 497/492

I have read some of the posts about the idea to merge the 497 with the 492 and find it really nauseating to read. I for one thought the reason for saving these machines was to one day restore them and run them on C&TS. Do you really think all the K-36's will last forever without having to be torn down and rebuilt? Look at the 483 for example. And in that interim time they will need something to put in it's place---they are going to need the K-37's at one point or another in the future like them or not. We aren't hearing stories out of Durango about them tearing down the 476 to consolidate with the 473 or 478. I for one think that if the 492 is going to be restored it should be restored as a whole locomotive and not ripped apart and patched togther with another K-37. You then lose two pieces of historical property and create something that to an extent is historic but not historically accurate. The 492, 494, and 495 haven't run since the 60's and it would seem that they may be prime candidates for restoration since they haven't been used in such a long time, unlike the 480's on the C&TS. It would seem their boilers may be in better condition than some of the 480's which have been used continuously since the early 70's. I think we should really look at what it is to preserve these unique machines and ensure that we leave them for generations behind to enjoy and be able to learn about these magnificent machines that have all of us captivated. We have to ensure that we are saving our history--that is why the C&TS exists or that is what it's intention was.

William
aka drgwk37