Good to hear the chassis isn't damaged and can be repaired 👍 I'm sure she'll look amazing when rebuilt 😁 hopefully won't be too long before she rides the rails again 🤞 Be an interesting video to talk to your friend and speak about the shay he's building on the bench please 😁 I do like shay's as well as switchers 😁

Great to see the improvements, Aaron. Thanks!

Suggestion: Get the Marine plastic battery boxes and sit your batteries in them which would more protect the frame. Nice video Eaglegards...

Great work shop

Be interesting to see what you come up with bro. Safe travels

So thoughts on batteries. I run 4 deep cycle 6 volt batteries on my ex-RMI Ingersoll Rand box cab. These batteries live in marine cases in pairs. The cases take up a lot of room, but I have had no leaking issues. Each battery has a quick plug based on some 3d printed parts and Anderson SB150 connectors. All batteries are removed in transportation, as loaded the engine crushes my pickup bed liner. While my engine hasn't gone over, the battery straps have kept things solid during some substantial derailments. My overall point is that some battery cases could be a very good idea for ES-2-500's, along with good battery tie downs. Look forward to seeing the rebuild and best of luck.

Good news about the frame.

New frame looks stronger at axles location, but being longer, all the stress when derailing is still supported by 2 channels. With closer axles, easier in curves with less rail and flange wear but more instable. Longer one offers more stability but harder on rail and flange wear self steering axles would be fantastic, well may be, but chain tensioning would be quite an issue challenge. And all dimensions must stay in portability space/weight of a single person and car space. Good to see work on 71 and 70 rebirth.

The 70 Means a Lot to MBRR… It needs to be kid gloved better, being moved to different railroads he visits. Yet the 70 might need to stay in its home rails to avoid transportation damages. The newer locomotives can be ruggedized for transport. I’ve been told older locomotives that once ruled the rails after many years of use were assigned to yard duties or local use of the line. Unless the engines have extended warranty service contracts to overhaul the diesel engines over a few million miles of use. Keep the 70 as a home yard unit for pellet deliveries and track service. Let the new units get broken in.

That sure is a nice looking Shay on the bench there...

With the redesign have you considered making it easier to remove the batteries to make it easier to pull in and out of vehicles during transport?

Make a trailer to haul it on so there less chance of it being tore up next time you visit another railroad. With a custom build trailer you can load it and unload it with it never leaving the rails. Have a great day be safe.

Wow... I can hear it you wanna get back to operating those rails soon... I thought about your grass and weeds on the track issue... years ago they used propane heat to deaden grass and weeds on the farms... I was wondering if you could rig up a propane powered de weeder out of a few of those Propane powered snow meters to stunt those pesky grasses that grow through the riff raff

Nice Shay in the background. Can you tell more about it, is it a Kenneth Schroeder shay ?

This is a perfect time to add a third axle in the middle.

Hay ever thought about making the 70 into a B unit

Is that a Shay locomotive on the table?

Hey how you doing, I just acquired a 7 1/4 locomotive from my local railroad museum, I would like to have it electric with deep cell marine batteries. I’m just looking for a suggestion on owing my first 7 1/4 gauge locomotive…where to shop to get couplers parts etc…. Thank you hopefully 70 gets healed quick!

what's the story with the shay locomotive?

Is that a shay under construction?

At this point, I would just go and upgrade the frame to the new style. Better ride, less derailments, more power.

change out the sprocket for more torque and so what is the 70 has a little Bend in it so it limps

One question I have always wondered: How do you afford to do all this? I mean, this has to be costing you thousands of dollars if not tens of thousands.

Why don't you follow suit as most railroads do when a locomotive becomes obsolete? Retire it with dignity. I would concentrate on the 71 instead.