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Great dialogue explaining all the steps taken to keep ‘er moving and git ‘er done
I have a whole new appreciation for an engineer in control of a steam locomotive on a slippery incline!!!
That engineer had a huge work-out pulling the throttle on and off just to keep the wheels from slipping continuously.... and keeping it on the knife-edge of stalling.....I never considered running a steam locomotive to be that intense!!!
Great video of what happens in the "real world" of steam locomotion.
Peter....Buco Australia
Y
@Buco posted:I have a whole new appreciation for an engineer in control of a steam locomotive on a slippery incline!!!
That engineer had a huge work-out pulling the throttle on and off just to keep the wheels from slipping continuously.... and keeping it on the knife-edge of stalling.....I never considered running a steam locomotive to be that intense!!!
You had no idea but, now you do! What makes it even more difficult is if the throttle is stiff, i.e. hard to pull.
Great video of what happens in the "real world" of steam locomotion.
You got it!
Peter....Buco Australia
Y
Great video for sure. Real steam could use some traction tires
@fast freight posted:Great video for sure. Real steam could use some traction tires
Right. At the first slip, they would be history!
I may be off, but I counted 15 heavyweights in the consist. That's quite a load.
Nice work. He did a good job of handling the wheel slips. Since this is a coal fired locomotive, it would be interesting to know how this was affecting the fire, with the draft suddenly becoming much greater when the wheels slipped. The Engineer was right on top of each wheel slip, though, and he obviously knows the road well.
With steam, unlike diesel power, the Engineer has to limit the use of sand, and cannot employ the trick of applying a couple of psi of independent brake to keep the wheel tread wiped clean, which, with diesels, can help to control wheel slippage. He has to do it with throttle manipulation, and be very responsive. Constant sanding with steam engines risks doing damage. More than one bent rod has resulted from use of sand to control wheel slip without good throttle manipulation.
A fellow Engineer once remarked that the steam locomotive is the epitome of precision, manually-operated, machinery. That's why the quality of the operation is so dependent on the quality of the engine crew.
@Hot Water posted:Right. At the first slip, they would be history!
Therein lies the rub. With traction tires it wouldn't slip in the first place
Just kidding
The old heads at Steamtown used to call this working of the throttle while slipping, "Rowing the Boat."'
@fast freight posted:Great video for sure. Real steam could use some traction tires
Your joke went right over his head!
Manual machinery in the hands of a skilled man is a thing to behold.
