The Union Pacific big boy was the last monarch of steam. For the first time since 1959 a Big Boy (4000 class) is running under his own power. They are without a doubt the biggest, most powerful, and most elegant brute ever put on rails. The legend is real, the power is real, and so is the size. This is A rare case where the truth was not exaggerated. Very few locomotives anywhere in the world can compare to a big boy. As of last night #4014 is back. He was rebuilt for the 150th anniversary of the driving of the Golden Spike. celebrations will be at the Ogden, Utah union station and 4014 and UPs other active steamer the legendary 844 will be there. 4014 is starting his journey tomorrow and taking a leisurely trip to Ogden. A little about these legendary machines: End to end they are taller then a 14 story building weight over 1,000,000 lbs can pull a loaded 5 1/2 mile long freight train 6500-7500 hp 80 mph top speed (high for a articulated/hinged) locomotive consume over 25 TONS of coal and 23,000 gallons of water every 60 miles under load the drive wheels are the same height as a grown man they stand 2 1/2 stories tall
Thanks for the posting! A couple of minor corrections and a comment: The C & O's Allegheny was slightly smaller in size then the Big Boy, but was also slightly heavier; not an advantage - Lima (the Allegheny's builder) was successfully sued by the C & O for being over the contracted weight. Secondly, Classic Trains magazine stated that the UP's minimum bridge height is 16.5 feet, and I found that The UP's door height for servicing facilities is 20', so I doubt seriously that anything about the Big Boy is two and a half stories high (unless they are really short stories). The comment is that there were 22 Big Boys made by ALCO, and seven have survived; that is the highest percentage of survivors of any American steam locomotive type. The UP knew that it had something special decades ago.
Union Pacific really honoring their own history and the world's first transcontinental railroad -opened in 1869-150 year ago. Great job on the Big Boy!
You are right about the Allegheny. There are a few other steamers that can hold their own in a bar fight with a Big Boy, but not many (you can count them on 2 hands). In total 25 big boys were built in 2 orders (first a order of 20 in 1941, and the second order of 5 in 1944). Numbers are 4000-4024. The issue with UP current regulations changed entirely from the steam age. Todays railroads aren't very hospitable to steam. Thats why you usually see a diesel in tow (dynamic braking, electricity for consist, back up power, etc). There are many places a big boy can't go due to the sheer size and weight of them. They had to take a odd route to deliver them to Omaha from Schenectady where they were built because of that. The railroad had to beef up and rebuild track, turntables, and roundhouses just to handle them. A lot of that 'BigBoy' modernization from the 40s is gone now, but they do plan on sending 4014 all over their system this year to celebrate these amazing feats of engineering!
That's pretty awesome. I wish I could make it out there for a portion of the tour. https://www.up.com/heritage/steam/schedule/
Ironically steam locmotives have no top speed. The faster you boil water, the faster they will go. The problem is in the steam circuit and valve gear. There is a easy way to calculate the 'safe' top speed. That is what is used to decide on a 'agreed' top speed. The big boy is balanced for 80, but can go upward to 100, but will vibrate and pound the track and damage the rods, pistons, eccentrics, etc.
I would love to see that engine in action. We are going to see this ghost rail yard dating back to WWII later this year: http://www.myradiantcity.com/blog/2018/1/18/the-ghost-trains-of-istvntelek-train-yard
For you train aficionados do you remember the C & O 614 that ran excursions over NJ Transit from Hoboken to Port Jervis back in the 90's? I was trackside when this thing went by and let me tell you your friggin liver rattled. What an amazing piece of history. Read up on it.
BTW: The Union Pacific also has the what to American Railroad fans is the most famous steam locomotive of all time. It's the 844. 844 is a Northern type (4-8-4) and is the only class one railroad American steam locomotive that has never been retired. 844 has been on UP's "active" roster since it was delivered in the 1940s. It is also a lot faster then either UP's 3985 Challenger - a 4-6-6-4 articulated, or the Big Boy. The Big Boy was developed primarily to haul heavy freight trains over Sherman Hill west of Cheyenne, WY. It was a very successful locomotive, and served (as I recall) into the late '50s. Most USA class one railroads had or were phasing out steam by about 1950.;that is why many more European steam locomotives have survived - Europe, and particularly Britain kept the steam locomotives until about a decade later then the USA because Europe had a lot of coal, and at that time, not much oil. One more comment that this know-it-all can't resist - no offense to any British members - I don't think that Britain ever built a steam engine that wasn't beautiful. British practice is to name individual steam locomotives - there is even one named UGLY. It isn't. I also believe that they have never built a Diesel locomotive that wasn't ugly.
I've been watching this for years since it was first announced that they were going to fix this on from CA. And while it is the most famous, it wasn't quite the most powerful of them all. But it did take almost 50 years before they built a diesel/electric one that could pull as much. This is awesome. I've seen a number of them that are on display. But I'm going to have to try and see this one in action.
Just hope they have the engine REALLY pulling itself instead of a diesel engine doing the pushing. I went to see the Challenger and as it passed me, it was just an airy huffing and wheezing as a diesel pushed it down the tracks. I was disappointed. The fun is when those things have a load and pound out the power. You will hear and feel 4 powerful hits per revolution of the wheels. The Challenger and Big Boy have two full sets of engines in one. As they pound away, they do not stay in sink and do double hits of power. Steamers went by my Grandma's house (many per day) till I was about 10 or 12 years old. Fascinating machines.
My dad was a machinist at a shop that repaired wheels for steam locomotives. They would spray weld up the OD then put them on a fixture where someone would fill large areas between some spokes with molten lead to balance the wheel. Once sufficiently balanced they could then put the wheel in a BIG lathe and turn the OD of the wheel for size and proper finish. If you look at the wheels they have big counterweights that have to be compensated for....
I believe that the Strasburg Railroad in Pennsylvania is where most North American steam engine wheels are serviced. The Strasburg is the oldest steam railroad in North America still operating under it's original charter. They still operate steam, and still have all of the equipment necessary to service them.
...love steam, and these occasional OT threads where members chime in with their knowledge and personal experiences...
My grandfather was first a fireman and later an engineer on Steam Locomotives. Later he was an engineer on Diesel units. He had a lot of tales. The ones that really remain with me are all the apparent suicides by laying on the tracks.
