Yeah I was told by a shop guy in Chama that he hadn't heard anything about 487 being backup and that it was as ready as 484 for regular rotation. I assume that the locomotive just has lots of smaller things that need work but nothing major. When it was assumed that 488 would be in service by June that would've allowed time to tune up 487.
Guess it isn't that odd for 488 to need a new smokebox given that the work this year was focused on the firebox and flues. Just goes to show what it takes to keep these things running and performing at their best after 96 years
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/15/2021 08:21PM by IanLK.