How many of use would give a good bit of our anatomy...

"Slave2anMG" (Slave2anMG)
06/30/2014 at 11:47 • Filed to: Trainlopnik

to be one of the guys sitting in the cab of 844 on this run? Built by American Locomotive Company in 1944 it was built as a dual service engine to pull both passengers and freight across the Great Plains. It rides on 80 inch diameter drivers, burns #5 fuel oil in its boiler to produce steam at 300 psi, and weighs 486,000 lbs. Drawbar HP is between 4,000 and 5,000. From burning fuel oil and boiling water.

Here's it's doing what it was designed to do - move a train across the Plains at high speed. And damn, it's magnificent doing it. No panty-waist liability lawyers setting absurdly low speed limits...just let it do what it's supposed to do. Give the girl her legs and let 'er run....

DISCUSSION (18)

FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 > Slave2anMG
06/30/2014 at 11:48

Love this video. It should get posted to oppo monthly.

ly2v8-Brian > Slave2anMG
06/30/2014 at 11:53

These big 4-8-4 locos are awesome. Kind of the last gasp for steam before diesel, especially from GM and GE

Where have all the lightweights gone? > Slave2anMG
06/30/2014 at 11:56

As awesome as this footage is, the methods used to capture videos like this piss me off to no end. I've chased locomotives for short periods of time and abruptly backed off because guys taking these videos have a total disregard for other people's safety.

I've seen guys chasing locomotives make abrupt passes on two lane roads, running others onto a shoulder, and nearly causing multiple car wrecks in a variety of weather conditions.

djmt1 > Slave2anMG
06/30/2014 at 11:57

Amazing how relaxing it is listening to steam locomotives.

tromoly > Slave2anMG
06/30/2014 at 11:59

That is beautiful.

jsmizira > Slave2anMG
06/30/2014 at 12:04

that thing is booking. anybody have any idea how fast it is going?

For Sweden > Slave2anMG
06/30/2014 at 12:11

A steam train that doesn't require shoveling? I'm in.

daender > jsmizira
06/30/2014 at 12:14

I heard the driver of the vehicle mention they were doing 75 mph...yee-haw!

desertdog5051 > jsmizira
06/30/2014 at 12:27

They were designed to safely operate at 120 MPH. They only rarely hit 100 while pulling. Most speed limits were based on track conditions e. g turnouts, curves, etc. Where I live, the BNSF freights regularly run 75. They cross great expanses of relatively straight track with no towns and no turnouts and few crossings.

briannutter1 > Slave2anMG
06/30/2014 at 12:33

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Pac… The national speed limit for steam is 79mph. apparently. Design speed was 110-120. according to the link

NaturallyAspirated > Where have all the lightweights gone?
06/30/2014 at 13:03

Yeah, my first thought watching the video was "I sure hope the guy filming isn't also driving." In any case, it did strike me as looking quite dangerous, given how much faster he was going than the flow of traffic.

Slave2anMG > briannutter1
06/30/2014 at 13:43

79 mph is the national speed limit for any railroad equipment that lacks in-cab signals. My speed limit reference was made because at the end of the last NS steam program the lawyers limited the N&W Class J #611 to 45 mph due to liability concerns...611 would cruise all day long at 90 mph.

Slave2anMG > Where have all the lightweights gone?
06/30/2014 at 13:45

I'm with you on that...which is why I don't do the chase/pace caravan thing any more. Too many distracted drivers in one place. Bad. Oh, and your earlier posts on the Big Boy etc fired the memory of this video in my pea brain...so here you go :)

briannutter1 > Slave2anMG
06/30/2014 at 13:52

Yeah, I just wanted people to know what they were really capable of. You probably already know about this one as well:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PRR_S1

Slave2anMG > briannutter1
06/30/2014 at 13:54

The S1 was pretty incredible; I'm a fan of the PRR S2 turbine...handsome thing that it is.

Where have all the lightweights gone? > Slave2anMG
06/30/2014 at 14:01

The liability concerns came from an employee appreciation trip in 1986 when the 611 derailed, along with 12 cars. It injured about 1000 people.

Slave2anMG > Where have all the lightweights gone?
06/30/2014 at 14:06

1000 on board, 181 injuries. The cars that rolled over/jackknifed did not have tite-lock couplers and that was found to be a major contributing factor in the injures; most of the seriously injured were in those cars.

http://www.apnewsarchive.com/1986/Excursion…

http://www.rypn.org/forums/viewtop…

And yet somehow the British and the UP allow their steam engines to run at full track speed...thus my disdain of the liability lawyers.

Jedidiah > Slave2anMG
06/30/2014 at 14:17

*Watches video in awe*

*Grabs model train set*

*Feels like little kid again*