A close-up view of No. 611 during a steam test this morning.
N.C. Transportation Museum
N&W No. 611 without streamlined jacketing preparing to undergo a steam test at the N.C. Transportation Museum in Spencer, N.C.
N.C. Transportation Museum
SPENCER, N.C. — The sight of smoke rising from the stack of Norfolk & Western Class J No. 611 filled the Carolina blue skies this morning at the North Carolina Transportation Museum as the famous 4-8-4 saw its first testfire after restoration. This marks the first time the engine has been in steam since Dec. 7, 1994.
Crews started the process of bringing the engine back to life about 6:30 a.m. Eastern time. A switcher towed the engine out of the Bob Julian Roundhouse and placed it on a track beside the 1924 structure, close to a source of coal and compressed air. By 11 a.m. Eastern time, the process was going smoothly with no complications, all gauges working and a half glass of water on the gauge.
By 3:40 p.m., crews built up 150 pounds of steam pressure in the boiler: halfway to operating pressure.
“The restoration is expected to go fast and smooth from here,” says FireUp 611! organization volunteer coordinator Cheri George.
The locomotive began restoration in June 2014. Trains will cover the return to steam with a special magazine, 611 in Steam, available in July and with a DVD available in October.
Crews started the process of bringing the engine back to life about 6:30 a.m. Eastern time. A switcher towed the engine out of the Bob Julian Roundhouse and placed it on a track beside the 1924 structure, close to a source of coal and compressed air. By 11 a.m. Eastern time, the process was going smoothly with no complications, all gauges working and a half glass of water on the gauge.
By 3:40 p.m., crews built up 150 pounds of steam pressure in the boiler: halfway to operating pressure.
“The restoration is expected to go fast and smooth from here,” says FireUp 611! organization volunteer coordinator Cheri George.
The locomotive began restoration in June 2014. Trains will cover the return to steam with a special magazine, 611 in Steam, available in July and with a DVD available in October.
