I recall very clearly the first diner drama. A no-cost offer was made from a working Car Inpsector that had experience with this type of aged equipment to inspect and prep the car for transit, but the offer was rebuffed in that Jacobsen would inspect it. Tom's qualifications for that are unknown to me, but the root cause of the draft gear damage seems to have stemmed from the Carrier Irons not being lubed, which prevented the drawbar from being easily moved by switch crews. The end result was a by-passed drawbar coupling, obviously at speed; it probably got kicked into or was the car being kicked. The couplers themselves showed no apparent lubrication or inspection, which is uncommom for freight equipment anyway, but would be a minimal task and appropriate for passenger equipment- especially this old and that far away in transit.

If I recall correctly, there was some stenciling on the car indicating inspections and handling instructions, but I did not see strong evidence of proper craftmanship regarding same. The car was not stenciled properly for Rear-End Only handling. Stencilling should have read "Shove or ride to rest, do not kick, drop or hump this car", minimum 4" letters, white on black field and it should have been prominent near each cut lever. The car did not also get a proper COT&S, which would seem fundamental. If I recall correctly the car is equipped with field-lube, non rotating end caps. These bearing end caps showed no evidence of removal which is necessary for inspection of the bearing assembly. They were lucky the bearings made the transit. Anyone care to change out the center axle of these trucks at some far flung set-out track? Wayside detectors cannot properly read this type of bearing, most often giving the message "integrity failure". I'll leave it to the more inclined to look that up in the UP SSI and figure the mileage one could get on an improperly read hot bearing before calamity occours.

Among all this, the centerplates were not lubed, and the handbrake was not stenciled as inspected, either. I seem to recall that two of the brake shoes were renewed.

Keeping in mind that all of the above and more could easily be performed in the field by a competant car inspector without the use of heavy machinery or a large labor force. Remember also that the average age of the Switchman these days precludes experience handling passenger equipment, and so necessitates the need for additional precautionary measures in handling the equipment, foremost being the idea of making it simple and easy for the young switchman to work the car.

Sending a lawyer inexperienced in the craft and not equipped to perform work to do the above was imprudent and could have damaged OERM's reputation as being a professionally responsible outfit. I have doubts it was little more than a railfan-with-authority excursion, based on the end result: a long-sought-after but damaged car. Had further damage to the handling line's equipment and/or injury to employes occour due to negeligence found on the part of the car owner, future moves would probably not come to fruition. While it is highly likely the carrier dispatched thier own Car Foreman to inspect the car prior to interchange, that does not indicate that the man would have experience inspecting antiquated equipment. At any rate, he/she failed to make any of the corrections or observations I note here, my claim substantiated by an expensive, and most likely doomed railcar.

I believe that car originated at some far off place like Iowa or Nebraska...? That's a long way and two railroads to travel on. That many miles most definitely warrants careful preparation.

It's too bad there seems to be a move to scrap the car. When I looked at the car after it arrived, the draft pocket was obviously damaged, but repairable. (it arrived in train, didn't it?) Unless I missed some gross damage elsewhere on the car, OERM's resources, budget and shop equipment properly administered could, and should, be administered to rectify the situation. Dropping out the draft gear and cutting away heavily damaged coupler pockets is a common occourence for Class 1 railroad shops. Keep in mind, part of OERM's mantra is to preserve and display the industry artifacts for future generations. The tendency of the body at large is to try and do everything 'in my lifetime', which often leads to short-sighted plans.

BNSF operates a heavy RIP track at Barstow, and UP has one at West Colton. TTX also has a shop in Mira Loma. Has OERM's governing board ordered a consultation from anyone from these shops for advice? Certainly the car is worth repairing! It was worth getting, wasn't it? I recall clearly the excitement at the time...'We're finally going to get a diner!'...so to scrap it out seems more like the decision process of a child who broke his new toy as opposed to a professional organization faced with an unexpected, significant setback. At the very least, make it roadworthy and sell the damned thing.