Re: Another K-27 question

I'd like to see the pic of 464 in Durango with the smokebox door open. All shots I've seen of 464 in Durango, show her in an ever-disintegrating state, but always with the smokebox door closed and all the smokebox door dogs clearly in place and tight. There would have been no reason for the D&RGW to open up 464 after she was retired. If it hadn't been for the D&RGW's post-1955 policy of not scrapping any more narrow gauge engines, 464 would have been cut up. In order to cut out the front flue sheet, the entire smokebox front would have to be removed. Then all of the smokebox appliances (netting, exhaust nozzle, petticoat pipe, and baffling) would need to be removed. Then all the superheater elements would need to be pulled. Then the tubes cut off inside the sheet and the sheet cut out through the flange. Then the tubes would be cut off at the firebox end and hauled out of the boiler through the smokebox.

This would have been a whole lot of work put into a locomotive that would never be run again. It also would have take a lot of time to do this and it would have created a big pile of scrap on the ground. There were lots of fans around Durango then. Somebody would have seen it and taken a picture.

Lastly, I submit the following slide I took at Knott's in September of 1977. My dad and I got a backyard tour at Knott's. 464 was there, but not running that day. the slide I took show 464's flue sheets. On the bottom of the pile is the rear flue sheet. You can see the corners where it fit into the side and crownsheet of the firebox. On top of it is the front flue sheet which was chopped up into bite sized pieces for removal. Note it was removed by torch cutting through the rivets. The numerous small pieces of angle were welded on to the sheet so that it could be used for a forming buck to bend the new flue sheet to size.



One last question to be answered about 464's life in California. For some reason the State took great exception of something in 464's boiler that caused to have the boiler pressure severely decreased to somewhere in the 100 lb range. Any of KBF guys care to comment on that?