Joes 1938 Porter Locomotive Project
Joe bought this in Polaski W. Va. It worked in a limestone quarry pretty much all its life. I did a bunch of research on it and we ended up with copies of the original boiler prints from the Canadian National Archives (thanks to the Iron Horse guys in MN), and original factory docs from the NMRA library in Chattanooga, Tn. It was originally bought by the American Viscous Company, who were the inventors of rayon, but seems as though it never was used by them. We have pictures that were taken in the late 50’s of the engine in the quarry.
The locomotive is somewhat disassembled, and the tubes have been removed and boiler was sandblasted. We did the ultrasound measurements and the boiler is in very good shape. Cab was poor, but the whole thing is as complete as you could hope for in a steam restoration project.
Most people would think, where do I even begin on something like this, but Joe has experience. He was fireman for a few years on the OTHER engine that was bought in Pulaski and him, Scott, and Gary restored to operational condition. Oh, did I fail to mention, those guys hauled TWO steam locomotives out of the Gem City Scrap yard. It must have been quite a site, 2 semi trucks hauling a matched pair of 0-4-0 tank engines down the road.
The restored Locomotive travels around western NY doing shows, and sometimes pulling a short string of cabooses. If you have never seem LIVE STEAM in action, its something everybody should get out and see. There are lots of organizations in the US that are still running it, at least for now, so drag your self, friends, kids, and any motor heads you know to your local steam guys. I will be posting live steam links and places in the very near future. For now, enjoy the pictures. dr