Paul,
This website is guilty of both rumor, and offering advice and information. As with anything, it's up to each individual to verify what they hear and get their own perspective.
It's good to see your input. I'd bet that most people reading this would love to see Stuhr's railroad be a great success. Objective evidence shows that Stuhr's equipment hasn't been given the favor proving its added value to the museum. Without sustained maintenance any piece of equipment will deteriorate. Stuhr is unfortunate that the majority of what is there hasn't had the attention it needs. I'd hope that you're in this for more than just getting a few things rolling in Grand Island.
I posted the question of who would take better care of the equipment that Stuhr has. I put my neck out by saying that very few places have the resources to do anything with what exists at Stuhr. So, no worries of tenticals or crazed railfans showing up in Grand Island with a convoy of flat-bed trailers. Every other operation has more than what they can keep up with anyhow.
If additional car burns were planned for Stuhr, I'd hope that you and Stuhr management would contact a few narrow gauge enthusiasts. I'd hope that the parts getting cut from the complete freight cars for dimantling be reconsidered. May I ask where these parts will go? Have you considered contacting other operations to see if these parts are available without scrapping (dismantling) the cars you have?
Restoration isn't a question of condition. Restoration is a question of significance, intention, budget, resources, and sustained maintenance. If you want to restore something it's a matter of time and money. If there's a piece of railroad equipment that is not roadworthy (or is even close to splinters), the existing equipment serves well as a pattern and contains hardware that could be used in restoration. Since the F&CC cars are rare, this perspective may justify reason to keep them around. Back to the question of who else would take any better care than Stuhr?
I'd encourage Stuhr to not establish "Stuhr vs. the rest of the world". That's the beginnings of rumors and slow death of any establishment.
Few other businesses have such a collection of people that are as involved as narrow gauge railroading. The crazy thing is that they're mostly volunteers or underpaid, have a genuine passion, and put their money and time into several operations.
The F&CC car? Through gossip, I heard that it is going to the Ordway restoration facility. I've also heard that Ordway has ceased restoration. I'd certainly enjoy knowing what is happening with this car, directly from you.
The worst vice being "advice", I'd suggest not alienating narrow gauge church ladies from your operation. I'd suggest posting updates on what you're doing. This website is a good place. There's publications also. No matter how hard you try, you alone will not restore Stuhr's collection = logistcially not possible.
If you take the right approach you'd discover that the people here are on your side. I think you'd be surprised with things that the people here would be willing to help you with. You might even find $s from more sources than you currently have. We'd all like a place to visit during road trips through Nebraska to see a successful operation.
