OK, so I'm confused now and hope that this doesn't come across obtuse, but are using parts from one piece to get another one running bad? If that were the case I would surmise that we wouldn't have these great cars to still oogle (I'm sure that's not spelled correctly) over (I'm just guessing here and have no knowledge of the actual parts available, but just from seeing pictures....)
-D&RG 49
-C&S 1113 (RGS ????) - was there much left of this car
-One, if not most of the Geese (engines being replaced, etc)
-RPO #60 - wasn't it sitting on blocks in the west gulch a few years ago?
I'm sure there are more, but these are the ones I can think of off my head.
My point being, things can be left on items, and all the items can be left status quo. No events would be done...and all items would slowly rot away. Just a few hard core people come and see the museum, but funds slowly start to dry up, and then the unthinkable happens. Everything is gone. I hope that we never see that point.
I also may be one of the few that enjoy seeing things operate vs. being stuffed and mounted. I'm sure glad to see the RGS #20 coming back, and there will be a LOT that are not original on her when she returns. But I'm rejoicing at having another running locomotive! Heck, lets switch gears here...look at one of the best representations of a B-24 flying in the US today, how much do you think is original on that B-24? Not much! Most of that plane was robbed, scrapped, and borrowed in the IAF. It was just a shell. But now...one can sit in her and really get a feel for what she did, and how she did it. And yes...she is in a flying museum!
Sure, I'd love to see the 683 still have everything on it, but do you know that they aren't looking for replacement items? Do we even know if those items are original (I'd surmise that the D&RGW changed things on her all of the time, to keep her doing what she was designed for, to haul goods from point A to point
? Questions upon questions.
OK...gotta run. Grillin time!
Craig
Somewhere up in NoCo