Re: Pipe train restoration/display

The pipe train restoration is complete except one idler flat which I beleive was pinted last month. The display consists of pipe gons 1648, 1557 and idler flats 6708,6746 & 6755.
The two pipe gons were completed and handed over to the paint crew three years ago. The two cars recieved new center and intermidiate sills, end sills and about half of the side boards. One car got a new side sill also. The first use of these cars was during the big brush clearing project a few years ago when they went up the hill many times before even being painted.
The three idler flats were ground up restorations. Our crew did the sill work on 6708 and Art Randall led a crew that finished it back in 2001 or 2002. It is a cut down stock car. 6746 and 6746 are cut down box cars and were finished in the last two years. They both were completely rebuilt.
The 1648 with the pipe load will all be coupled in with the rest of the cars for a nice display. I think all of the cars have been used some in freights and I heard that this fall they will see some mileage on freight specials. All were fun projects. Our crew is now turning back to do another drop bottom or two, 727,811 and 791 being rebuilt before we started on the pipe train.