@Ilia.Obuhov.52@jmadhavadas We’re all very pleased to see it. Originally painted in 1974 for America’s Bicentennial and remaining in this scheme until 1978, it served Santa Fe and BNSF for many years before being retired and placed in storage. About two years ago it was scheduled to be scrapped, but through the last-minute intervention of several dedicated fans and current BNSF personnel, it was donated for this purpose; to restore the last remaining bicentennial-schemed ATSF SD45-2, with the goal of presenting it to a railway museum willing to display the 5704 indoors, away from the harmful effects of sunlight and weather. But that’s not where the donations ended. Also contributing significantly to the success of the project was Mid America Car, Inc., who provided the facilities and many hundreds of man-hours of labor to restore the 5704 car body to nearly its original appearance and the many phases of preparation and final application of the paint. All paint was donated by the Sherwin-Williams Co., matched to original color numbers provided by the maker of the paint applied in 1974. Eagle Graphics of Wichita, Kansas, provided all the precision masking materials and the round shield stickers for each side. The BNSF Topeka, Kansas, locomotive shops donated numerous major engine components to make future operation possible, even providing an expert on EMD locomotives to ensure that the motor could rotate properly through a full cycle. There are probably many more aspects of this project that will be overlooked, but it can be safely said that the overall success of the effort can be attributed primarily to Stephen M. Priest, Michael Brusky and Eric Goodman, who provided countless hours of their own time and expertise to ensure that every detail was correct. The completed 5704 will remain in Kansas City until June, 2022, when it will be displayed at Kansas City Union Station for about a week before proceeding to its new home at the Southern California Railroad Museum at Perris, CA, where it may eventually see service on museum fan trips.
@Maersk.146 It is good that such a symbolic and beautiful locomotive has been preserved. Let everyone please with their appearance in the new house. If so many people were involved in saving the locomotive, then it was worth it!
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We’re all very pleased to see it. Originally painted in 1974 for America’s Bicentennial and remaining in this scheme until 1978, it served Santa Fe and BNSF for many years before being retired and placed in storage. About two years ago it was scheduled to be scrapped, but through the last-minute intervention of several dedicated fans and current BNSF personnel, it was donated for this purpose; to restore the last remaining bicentennial-schemed ATSF SD45-2, with the goal of presenting it to a railway museum willing to display the 5704 indoors, away from the harmful effects of sunlight and weather. But that’s not where the donations ended. Also contributing significantly to the success of the project was Mid America Car, Inc., who provided the facilities and many hundreds of man-hours of labor to restore the 5704 car body to nearly its original appearance and the many phases of preparation and final application of the paint. All paint was donated by the Sherwin-Williams Co., matched to original color numbers provided by the maker of the paint applied in 1974. Eagle Graphics of Wichita, Kansas, provided all the precision masking materials and the round shield stickers for each side. The BNSF Topeka, Kansas, locomotive shops donated numerous major engine components to make future operation possible, even providing an expert on EMD locomotives to ensure that the motor could rotate properly through a full cycle. There are probably many more aspects of this project that will be overlooked, but it can be safely said that the overall success of the effort can be attributed primarily to Stephen M. Priest, Michael Brusky and Eric Goodman, who provided countless hours of their own time and expertise to ensure that every detail was correct. The completed 5704 will remain in Kansas City until June, 2022, when it will be displayed at Kansas City Union Station for about a week before proceeding to its new home at the Southern California Railroad Museum at Perris, CA, where it may eventually see service on museum fan trips.
It is good that such a symbolic and beautiful locomotive has been preserved. Let everyone please with their appearance in the new house. If so many people were involved in saving the locomotive, then it was worth it!