Nevada Northern Railway
National Historic Landmark        Ely, NV


Locomotive 40 is now in the NNRY Shop
Locomotive 40 with her tubes being removed
Locomotive 40 years ago
Locomotive 40 with her original passenger consist
Locomotive 40 in East Ely Yard
Locomotive 40 during an overhaul decades ago

Pick-Your-Part for 40's Overhaul

You can OWN a Part of the ACTION

Fast Facts

WHAT: Capital campaign to finish the restoration of Locomotive 40.

WHY: Locomotive 40 will be shopped soon for a major overhaul, and two steam locomotives are imperative to keep the program operating at sustainable levels.

GOAL: Find a sponsor for each of the major components required to complete the overhaul of 40.

HOW:

Sponsor a Part of the Restoration.

Make a donation in any amount.

Start/Renew your Membership

We all love'em!  They're majestic, and they remind us of a time when things were built to last!  Built to last, of course, with a little help from their friends every so often.  That's where we come in, as old, true friends of the Queen of the Rails, Locomotive 40! 

Why Restore 40?

People visit here to experience standard-gauge, main-line steam engines working like it was 1910.  In 2020, Locomotives 81 and 93 are currently pulling all of the excursion trains and special assignments.  Locomotive 40 is out of service for her 1472-day boiler overhaul and running gear rebuild.   Her running gear has issues that date back to the 1930s!  These must be fixed. 

In 2008, we experienced a year without steam. The results were devastating, our ridership dropped almost 30% and even worse, our revenue dropped over 40%! We cannot, we must not, let that happen again. Since 2008, like a Phoenix, due to the incredible hard work of our staff, volunteers, donors and members, we rose up from the ashes. Today, our ticket revenue has grown by over 70% from the depths of 2008.  We learned our lesson. Our program has grown so much that we must have two three operating steam locomotives, why? Steam locomotives are high maintenance machines. All of our steam locomotives are over a century old. Invariably, we have one steam locomotive in service, one steam locomotive on standby and one in a maintenance cycle. If we don’t, have three operating steam locomotives we are setting ourselves up for a catastrophe!

Rebuilding Locomotive 40 is also teaching the next generation mechanical skills that our country needs.  Boilers are used in power plants, the principles are the same.  Machining and welding allows us to build things here in the USA.  It's part of the trend in education to focus on STEAM which stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics.

BOILER: Tubes, Flues, and Super-Heaters - Total Cost $138,235.50

Flue, less tubes

This photo is of Locomotive 40's front flue sheet. It supports the 139 two-inch tubes, or flues and 21 super-heater flues.

All of these have to be repaced.  Then there are 21 super heater bundles. Sponsor a tube or a superheader bundle and YOUR donation is MATCHED!


DRIVERS: Axels, and Pins - Total Cost $62,730.62

40 Axle Overhaul

Locomotive 40 was delivered in 1910 to haul the railroad’s passenger trains. By 1930, the railroad was losing gobs of money on the passenger trains forcing management to only invest as little as possible in Locomotive 40. Now 92 years later, we need to rebuild her running gear. Locomotive 40 needs three new axles, her 6 drivers need to be turned, her 6 drive boxes need refurbishment, she needs 8 new crank pins, and six refurbished spring handers and pins.

Once again, your donation is MATCHED!

 

AXLE BRASS: All Running Gear Brasses, Shoes and Boxes - Total Cost: $21,770.92

Stay overnight right in the East Ely Railyard

Steam locomotives did not have roller bearings (except a very few right at the end).  They used brass journals.  The polished part of the axle you see in the previous section rode in the Crown Brass you see here.  It was polished steal riding in special brass fittings with a monocle-thin layer of oil in between.  These heavy brass parts were made to be replaced every so often.  "Every so often" has arrived.

Locomotive 40 has 6 crown brasses, 8 rod brasses (including the connecting rod on each side), 6 boxes,  shoes, and wedges (to allow the crown brass to move up and down as needed by the sprung suspension).  The cost for all of this custom brass milling keeps going up.  

 

Your donation is also MATCHED!!



Here's how we can split this into bite-size pieces, get together, and get this done: