For all of You Train Lovers

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[Photon440]

These steamers all have one thing in common -

They're all steam turbine units. The Pennsylvania Railroad Baldwin drives the wheels directly off the turbine (third image with 6200 front plate) while the other three use the turbine to drive a generator, making them steam/electric drives.

 

[Roadcuda]

...and in the end they all proved to not be good enough for mass production. But still very interesting machines for the time period.

 

[MiradaMegaCab]

Lionel S-2 Turbine 671

 

[YY1]

Although not coal fueled, UP had a fleet of about 60 turbines in use until the 1960's.

More modern design than the one pictured above and in several different variations.

 

[Photon440]

Although not coal fueled, UP had a fleet of about 60 turbines in use until the 1960's.

More modern design than the one pictured above and in several different variations.

View attachment 1294517

Yes, they did some interesting stuff. But those UP locomotives were gas turbines (jet engines), not steam. They were powerful too, but extremely noisy.

Interestingly, the UP website says that they were the only US railroad to operate gas turbine locomotives, they fail to recognize the turbo train operated by Penn Central/New Haven/AmTrak and also by CN/VIA. Much quieter, they were propelled by a variant of the Pratt&Whitney Canada PT6 engine.

 

[Rusty knuckles]

Dad is kind of a train nut. Up to and including building his own narrow guage loop and just recently hauling home a 0-4-0 Porter locomotive.

 

[demonram]

Thank you for all the great pictures and history. My dad worked on the railroad in the early 50’s until he was knocked off the top of a boxcar by a slow (thank God) brake not set proper train. His brother was an engineer, his father was a part time engineer. He always loved the old trains. What I love about them, the old aircraft and everything from the past, was what they built with their heads, not computers. To be able to engineer and build what we see in these works of art and mechanical marvels from the past, is truly incredible.

 

[YY1]

I think the "turbo train" was a guest on American railroads but was Canadian and primarily operated there in regular revenue service. Technicality, maybe.

Pretty cool, though.

I believe it was the inspiration for the train in the Rush song "Red Barchetta".

 

[Photon440]

I think the "turbo train" was a guest on American railroads but was Canadian and primarily operated there in regular revenue service. Technicality, maybe.

Pretty cool, though.

I believe it was the inspiration for the train in the Rush song "Red Barchetta".

Although Canada operated more of them, they were designed by United Aircraft - the owners of Pratt & Whitney. UAC built the trains for American use, while Montreal Locomotive Works built the Canadian trains from the same set of plans. When Amtrak was formed in 1971 they took over operation of the trains in the USA and ran them until 1976. Canada operated theirs until 1982.

If anyone is interested, United Aircraft has, through their archives, made the original equipment diagrams available to study: https://ia902900.us.archive.org/29/items/1969TurboTrainEquipmentDiagrams/TurboTrainDiagrams.pdf

 

[Photon440]

How it's done in Australia. This was a world record - 682 hopper cars loaded with iron ore, moved along by eight GE locomotives.

I wouldn't recommend watching the whole thing....it's the same scene for an entire eight minutes as the train (100,000 tons of it) moves along.


As an aside, you won't see something like this in North America. The usual train is about 100 - 120 cars, limited to 6,000 feet. If it gets longer than that it is considered over length and the running crews are paid a premium. The railroads don't like paying premiums. However, when it does happen, it's usually double length to 12,000 feet. May as well get the value out of the premium being paid to the crew. Any longer than that is usually not allowed, cities and towns that the train passes through won't allow critical crossings to be blocked for extended times and permits usually have to be obtained for that.

 

[DeltaV]

In August 1979, the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway was preparing to close the Sabot Depot station in Goochland County. The station hosted its first passenger train in 1881 and its last in 1957; it limped along until 1979 handling odd jobs. CSX dismantled the building in 1993.
David D Ryan

 

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[Photon440]

 

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[Photon440]

View attachment 1299018

Wait...is that guy above giving a molten steel shower to the lower guys with his acetylene torch?

 

[khryslerkid]

Mission Impossible 7. No authentic steam engines were used in this film stunt.


About the train at the 2:30 min

 

[khryslerkid]

Some drone footage...

 

[Richard Cranium]

Now you know why it costs hundreds of millions to film a movie.