STRASBURG, Pa. — The Strasburg Rail Road wasted no time unleashing its workhorse, 2-10-0 No. 90 back onto the tourist railroad’s main line through the Amish countryside.
The locomotive began 45-minute excursion runs by early April, mechanically fresh from a federally mandated 1,472-day boiler inspection that began in early 2024. Cosmetically, the gold numbers, lettering, and pinstripes from the 1990s have been reapplied as part of a throwback look.
Strasburg Rail Road Mechanical Services’ Facebook page recently posted an extensive list of what went into completing the work in about 15 months:
- Stripped locomotive of all necessary appliances, piping, jacket, lagging, and cab to expose the entire boiler
- Ultrasound thickness survey of the entire boiler
- Verified boiler was still safe for a working pressure of 200 psi
- Removed and replaced 28 superheater flues and 166 2″ boiler tubes
- Replaced overfire tubes
- Inspected and pressure tested superheater units
- Cleaned the entire interior of the boiler of scale
- Performed all annual inspection tasks including hydrostatic test and internal inspection of the boiler
- Fabricated and replaced the upper two-thirds of the rear flue sheet
- Fabricated and replaced two-thirds of the front flue sheet
- Designed, fabricated and installed new smokebox baffles and screening
- Fabricated and installed patches in all four bottom corners of the firebox
- Replaced over two dozen flexible staybolt sleeves
- Replaced over 50 flexible, rigid, and crown staybolts
- Replaced over two dozen boiler studs
- Replaced the water column
- Replaced three washout plug sleeves and four washout plugs
- Overhauled throttle valve body
- Modified throttle thimble for installation of replaceable valve seats
- Added two additional backhead boiler braces
- Check valve cracks in course welded up
- Replaced cab deck and wooden cab floor
- Replaced cab window frames and window sash
- Repaired sand dome
- Rewired entire locomotive
- Replaced one broken tender truck spring
- Replaced all threaded studs for weld on studs on boiler barrel
- New air compressor bracket supports fabricated
- Air compressor bracket repaired
- Power reverse bracket repaired
- Overhauled power reverse
- New steam piping to air compressor
- New check stop valves
- Valve cages bored
- New valve packing and bull rings made and installed
- New piston packing rings made and installed
- Adjusted valve timing
- Rebuilt rear headlight case
- Low pop safety reconditioned
- Resurfaced and realigned crosshead guides
- Renewed babbitt in crosshead slippers
- All cab seats, seat backs, and arm rests are reupholstered
- Replaced much of the boiler jacket with new stainless steel panels
- Engine and tender lettered, numbered, and pinstriped to “1990’s” look
- New running boards fabricated
- New firebox grate linkage/new grate bear studs
- Overhauled dynamo
- Overhauled foundation brake rigging
- Overhauled spring rigging
No. 90 was built in June 1924 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works for freight service on the Great Western Railway in Colorado. The locomotive was sold to the Strasburg Rail Road in 1967, becoming a favorite to the employees and rail enthusiasts with its size and strength.
Visit the Strasburg Rail Road website for more information.
Happy early 101st anniversary to the magnificent No. 90 that is ready to ply the rails again.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
The dear Decapod returns to The Road To Paradise… Remember that, as of today, Strasburg No. 90 is one of only two operational Decapod type steam locomotives in America, the other being Frisco No. 1630 at the Illinois Railway Museum.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
the last time I saw the number 90 wearing this paint scheme was in 2004
Looks like I’ll need to make a trip there!