2009 Work Session M1/M2

August 27, 2009. By the middle of the second week, the four box cars had been moved and their new roofs were complete. And we had used all the siding we had available and painted the installed siding. Next to the track on which the spare narrow gauge trucks and wheelsets was Milwaukee Road business car 222. A very early example of a passenger car with a steel frame, MHC had opened the car and given us a tour of it. The roof of car 222 had not received any maintenance in 30 years or more, and the effects of leaking water were evident inside the car. From the roofs of the box cars, we could look over and see that the roof of MILW 222 was in bad shape. Since the time and the volunteers were available, it was decided to make the roof of this car watertight in our remaining days at Alder Gulch. The first step was to remove all the loose dirt and paint from the roof of the car. Next, the exposed sheet metal on the curved and nearly horizontal surfaces was examined for holes and cracks. Some of the metal was found to be copper, but most of it was galvanized steel. Small holes were plugged with ends of dowels and sealed with roofing compound. Large holes and section of deteriorated sheet metal were covered with pieces of galvanized steel sheet metal. This photo shows the roof of MILW 222 after the roof had been cleaned off and patches installed. Photo by John Cole.