By Railfan & Railroad Staff

An Amtrak F40PH has been restored to its historic Phase III paint scheme, making it one of the first of the iconic EMD passenger locomotives to be cosmetically restored. 

The F40PH 231 is owned by Dynamic Rail Preservation Inc., and was saved from the scrapper back in 2002 by Chris Fussell. Over the last two decades, it has spent time in Oregon, Utah and Nevada. Today, it can be found at the Nevada State Railroad Museum in Boulder City.

Locomotive 231 is one of three F40PH locomotives to be preserved as Amtrak locomotives; the other two are at the California State Railroad Museum (281) and North Carolina Transportation Museum (307). Those locomotives, however, still wear the paint applied to them by Amtrak, whereas 231 is the first to get a refresh in preservation. The Amtrak decals applied to the locomotive came directly from the Beech Grove, Ind., shops and the Operation Lifesaver decals were paid for by a grant from the non-profit dedicated to rail safety. The finishing touches were applied to the locomotive on the afternoon of April 17. 

While the locomotive has been restored cosmetically, it still needs some work before it can run. Fussell estimates that it’ll cost about $10,000 to complete the project. Donations can be sent to Dynamic Rail Preservation; P.O. Box 91975; City of Industry, CA 91715-1975 or via Dynamic Rail’s website.