Nick Chillianis posted:Hot Water posted:bobotech posted:I'm not really limiting to anything in particular. I'm just fascinated by stories about people who were alive to witness live steam being used for its intended purpose rather than as excursion trains.
OK, but just because a steam locomotive was/is being used in excursion service, does NOT mean that the locomotive may not be working properly, or working hard, no matter what is coupled behind the tender.
I can name one rather large locomotive that is mainly operated as a support platform for a Hancock Long-Bell, 3-chime whistle and as a load for diesels to push around. At least the blower appears to be functioning and the cylinder cocks get a workout expelling all the condensation from wet steam, since the locomotive is seldom worked hard enough to produce much in the way of superheat.
It made quite a bit of noise on the southwest tour. There is a decent hill coming out of the Tuscon area at a little town called Vail, and the diesel was in idle and dead silent on the video. It doesn't get worked consistently, but it does get worked--within the limits of the rather small load that it's towing. Kinda depends on the day also, and whether you pick the right spot for the best sound. Not to deviate too much, but I've seen days where 261 and 611 hardly made any noise for the vast majority of the day. Just not enough train and not enough hills--and that's a common issue these days with big steam.
Speaking of steam performance though on excursion trains, the recent 2015-17 revival of 611 on the mainline was very impressive from a sound standpoint. Those consists were quite a bit heavier than what was the norm back in the 1982-94 NS Program, and honestly, heavier than what the engine was designed for in regular service on the N&W. Pick one of the numerous hills on the Southern mainline or the N&W out of Roanoke, and you got an incredible show. I can remember coming out of Danville, VA one evening in the rain. The station, where they changed EMT crews, is at the bottom of a good hill that used to be a pusher district in steam days. The grade begins maybe 500ft from leaving the depot, so you aren't going to get a "run" at it, and there are some back to back reversal curves that you get into in short order. Well, we got down to a walking pace and slipping, and there was a pretty decent chance of stalling. They coaxed the engine through it, and as soon as it got tangent track, that thing took off like a rocket up the hill, cresting the hill faster than on many of the previous dry runs. Very vivid display of the steam horsepower curve and superpower steam at its best.
The previous night, they had to stop about 2/3 of the way up the hill (on another rainy day), and then re-start. We were waiting up near the top, and the slow, labored exhaust combined with the damp conditions was simply magical. It was a pure timewarp seeing that rising cloud of steam in the distance and this booming exhaust with that headlight glow through the night that played out many times each day in the steam era. It would have been easy to convince me that it was the 1950s.
Speaking of real steam, I can vividly remember a hotel in China being awoken from a deep sleep by a pair of QJ Class 2-10-2s struggling up Jingpeng Pass. It was great watching the headlight and occasionally illuminated smoke plumes from the light of the firebox listening to them climb several levels of the pass for about 15-20 minutes. Then, the sound faded and they went on.......soon to be replaced by another train doing the same thing maybe an hour or so later.
