And a significant number of staybolt caps and sleeves on #844. Now lets debate if THAT even needed to be done.........

Does anyone here think the UP steam program with Dickens in charge will ever turn the corner and start to move closer to having an operable steamer? All that new stuff he's acquired should start to show benefit some day, shouldn't it?

I've known Ed for many years and he does have talents and a fair amount of experience with steam (prior to his UP experience). My concern is he's fallen into the trap that I'm sure many of us have seen before: if its not perfect it can't run. Especially speaking of a steam locomotive if that's your approach it really will never run. Making a steamer go is all about making the RIGHT compromises at the RIGHT times - and having someone who can make the judgment calls of what to do and sometimes even more importantly what NOT to do. Knowing what you NEED to do and what you can get away with requires knowledge, experience and a certain amount of "balls". Avoiding making those judgment calls by defaulting to "everything must be perfect" is a recipe for never running anything. I guess we'll see....

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