Merry Christmas from Waukesha

Kids,

The article in the Standard-Examiner sure did the trick.

This is Gary,
he was the first to answer the call,
apparently he knew all to well what it's like to be stranded.

He said, "I'll step to the Plate and pay for all the parts.

The second was Russ,
former Fire Chief at the Thatcher-Penrose
Fire Department and Engineer at Golden Spike.

"Have Creeper will Travel"

In addition, Santa brought with him $150 Cash,
a Golden Spike Pin, 2 Golden Spike Belt Buckles
and a signed Helmet from the TPFD for the Museum.

The third was Raymond,
a local historian who found this Civil War Autograph Book
which included incriptions by US Grant and Abraham Lincoln.

Once the engine was torn down we miced the sleeves and pistons.

Both were out of tolerance.

I immediatly got on the horn to Waukesah with the bad news.

Mike, the Service Manager said,

"Maybe we can help, Let me do some checking."

Three hours later I had my answer,
straight from the top.

"Tis the Season...Merry Christmas from Waukesha."

Hard to believe, but they donated,
6 Cylinder Sleeves with O-Rings,
6 Pistons with Rings, Wrist Pins and Bushings,
A full Gasket Set, Head Set and a Valve Spring
for a Grand Total of over $2200!!

I called DESCO, the Waukesha Dealer
in Salt Lake with the good news.

Chuck, the President said,
"If Waukesha will donate all that,
we'll donate the Rod and Main Bearings."

A $350 dollar value!!

Happy Days..truely it was the Season!!!"

The parts were shipped Overnight Express
via Emory to Salt Lake.

This is Scott from DESCO playing Santa Claus.

Russ came down the following day
and we put in the Main Bearings.

That being accomplished,
it was time to pause and reflect.

Here's a shot looking out,
"My Backdoor"

The day after Christmas,
I spent the day preparing the block for the Sleeves.

That night, we put the sleeves in the Frig.

Next morning,
I lubed up the O-Rings and took this shot as a benchmark.

The "Old Boys" just wouldn't set down,
so Ty made a persuader.

Quite clever don't you think???

Sometimes they'd "Pop back up",
so we used a steel bar or
dowel pin to hold them down.

With the sleeves in it was time to put in the pistons,
but wait what about rings??

There are 5 on each piston.

Russ checked each to make sure they were properly alined
to allow for minimal blow by and max oiling.

Here they are on Static Display with the Master,
all ready to go.

Now all we have to do is slip them in
and button up the bearings...right??

Uh Oh, check out the Rod Caps.

There's a centering pin on the cap,
but no hole on the new bearings.

Curve Ball...

So now what do we do??

Checked the part numbers,
no mistake here.

A desparate call went to DESCO for "Help".

"Pull the pin or grind it off."

You try pulling a 1/8" polished pin
from a curved surface sometime
and see how far you get...

Thank God, for die grinders!!

Finally, it was time for the Oil Pan.

Check out the bolts,
all neatly painted and ready to reinstall.

No detail is too fine for the "Spirit of the Lincoln Way".

Finally, it was time to put the Heads back on...

But wait, what's this???

A surprise visit from "B Shift"
of the Ogden Fire Department,
and just in time.

In case you were wondering,
the heads weigh aobut 80 lbs each.

I had everyone,
including the mechanics sign the Head Gasket.

That way they'll always be with me.

Here it is with the last morning light.

Next, were the Head Bolts, Push Rods and Rocker Arms.

Again, organization is the Key...

Then, finally after almost 2 weeks,
Ty pulled out his feeler guage,
it was time to adjust the rocker arms
and get the "Old Girl" back on the road.

But wait, what about TV and all the Pomp and Circumstance??

Well that's next in Chapter 65,

"The Big Day".

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