Future home of the Northern Pacific and Black Hills Ry.

badlandnp Mar 17, 2013

  1. badlandnp

    badlandnp TrainBoard Member

    4,587
    16,153
    90
    Live steam just plain "ROCKS!!!!" It is a rush to ride and work around diesels, especially as an electrician, but steam just has an awe inspiring majesty to it! Yeah, it is a passion for me, steam. Locomotives are really the only reason for a railroad! The rest is just the supporting cast, so there is a reason to have really cool locomotives!

    So, I spent some time working on and thinking about the supporting cast. Am down with a spring cold, can't go up to visit my friend, which allows for a bit more sleep and rest. Even an extra hour or two of trains... which I spent either planning the oil processing townsite, fixing a crossover or just running trains.

    Kind of a planning layout for the processing area. The ice house and racks will become tank car loading platforms with pipes and such, a few more pumpjacks out there and a derrick or two. Pipes, tanks etc. PIC_0696.JPG PIC_0697.JPG Of course, the roughnecks need fresh baked goods, haircuts and shaves and a place to rest,
    PIC_0699.JPG PIC_0700.JPG While switching out the tanks and boxcars, this crossover was being an issue, so here we go securing it to the roadbed with ties,
    PIC_0701.JPG PIC_0704.JPG PIC_0705.JPG PIC_0706.JPG PIC_0715.JPG

    Will still have to do something for switching them, I do have a plan......
     
  2. Moose2013

    Moose2013 TrainBoard Member

    747
    3,490
    47
    Ohhh-yeah! (y) Now, where's the quadruple like button when a moose needs one? :confused: Okay, you mis-spelled disease'el. Actually, you mentioned a disease'el in a positive light? o_O Sooo, so wrong... :(
     
    tonkphilip, badlandnp and gcav17 like this.
  3. badlandnp

    badlandnp TrainBoard Member

    4,587
    16,153
    90
    Welllllllll............I did make a living rebuilding them things for a lot of years. And 'diesel' is really a misnomer. That there thing just makes the generator/alternator go around so us electricians can make the locomotive do it's thing. And they ARE a very cool complex electrical toy!!! And an experienced sparky can make them do fun things!!

    Had one with 6, yes six, bad traction motors! The 'suits' wouldn't believe the results of all the different tests we did to prove that the insulation was shot in all them. The loco was a 1969 SD40 of CR heritage that had a lot of issues when we got it. It spent a whole weekend with open covers and high volume fans 'drying' the motors out! Finally, my foreman told me to 'prove' it had bad motors it to them in an incontrovertible way. So, a few jumper wires later and the Ground Relay system would no longer trip off the power. Put the power to the rails and let her lurch and jump down the track until it quit! I tell you what! They jump a lot!! That whole thing 'birdnested' all six motors, which finally proved to them they were bad. Six new motors later, and it worked like a new loco!

    So, an occasional positive spin towards the hapless diseasel will just have to be ok.
     
  4. badlandnp

    badlandnp TrainBoard Member

    4,587
    16,153
    90
    But, STEAM JUST ROCKS MY WORLD!!!! Especially up close and personal!
     
  5. Shortround

    Shortround TrainBoard Member

    4,333
    5,042
    93
    Steamers are great but, I've never seen one running. I have watched a steamer crane on the rails unloading logs, a cord at a time, and stacking them or putting them in the pond outside the paper mill. Two locals had steamer farm tractors. At 13 years old I got to ride on the big one going into the city for a show. It was as big as a 4-4-0. FUN FUN !!! (y):ROFLMAO:
     
    badlandnp likes this.
  6. gcav17

    gcav17 TrainBoard Member

    1,065
    581
    30
    Well shoot. Maybe find out when milwaukees 261 is up and running. That would be a great show!

    Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk
     
    badlandnp likes this.
  7. mtntrainman

    mtntrainman TrainBoard Supporter

    9,982
    10,821
    143
    Me too !!! I make my shower as hot as I can stand it and the steam seems to clean the sinuses. Wife hates that it steams up the mirror. Oh well !! Yea...give me a nice steam shower up close and personal any day !!!!! :p:p:p:p(y)(y)
     
    Doug Gosha and badlandnp like this.
  8. badlandnp

    badlandnp TrainBoard Member

    4,587
    16,153
    90
    George, George, George. I know you aren't that old! Or maybe you are just pulling my chain? Which will only make the steam whistle Hoot! Hoot!!!

    :LOL:
     
    Doug Gosha and mtntrainman like this.
  9. badlandnp

    badlandnp TrainBoard Member

    4,587
    16,153
    90
    Being mostly at home today, still finishing off this sore throat and such, I did get out there and finish with the crossover. And since I was in the mood, put ties in a couple of other switches. Also took some time to do some more solder repairs to a couple of dead spots. Those were caused by the move, I suppose.

    PIC_0726.JPG
    And yes, I did adjust those ties before the glue set....
    PIC_0727.JPG PIC_0728.JPG This is the stuff I am trying on these ties, just to see how it works out. I picked these up at Hobby Lobby or Michaels years ago.
    PIC_0729.JPG
     
  10. badlandnp

    badlandnp TrainBoard Member

    4,587
    16,153
    90
    Some wheels by Exact showed up. They should work well under the MT cars. They are a bit different in tread than the preferred brand I like,
    PIC_0736.JPG

    I did get the oil site tracks working pretty well. Still need to get the frogs powered by position switch, so I did still pics instead of video as the local powered by Mike 2361, (of Model Power vintage,) switched out some oil cans and boxcars at the Cabin Creek site.
    PIC_0744.JPG First we drop the cab and the through boxcar,
    PIC_0745.JPG Then pull ahead and separate the boxes to switch out after the oil can work,
    PIC_0746.JPG

    Pull ahead, throw the switch, back in on the ready to ship oil cans and pull,
    PIC_0747.JPG
    Place the full oil cans on the boxes, then pull ahead to respot the empties and the fresh empties,
    PIC_0750.JPG
    Out and ahead after spotting the empties on the oil loading racks, while the barber shop curmudgeon peruses the work,
    PIC_0751.JPG
    Then swap out the boxcars empties for loads,
    PIC_0752.JPG Put it all back together, air everything up,
    PIC_0753.JPG
    And head out of town under the watchful eye of the barber shop curmudgeon!
    PIC_0756.JPG
     
    Tad, Kurt Moose, John Raid and 7 others like this.
  11. badlandnp

    badlandnp TrainBoard Member

    4,587
    16,153
    90
    And as evening falls, a last couple of shots as we trundle along to Ekalaka and 'beans' hopefully with a good steak, spuds and hot coffee!
    PIC_0757.JPG PIC_0758.JPG
     
    Tad, Kurt Moose, tonkphilip and 8 others like this.
  12. Doug Gosha

    Doug Gosha TrainBoard Member

    3,595
    7,664
    80
    I like the full term for what we usually just call diesels: Diesel-Electric.

    I have seen three steamers live, in action, that I can remember. Once, up in the twin cities when I was just a little kid, we drove by one of the yards up there and there was a, what looked to me now, anyway, 4-6-0 trundling along one of the tracks. I saw CNW 1385 in Rochester, MN in 1991, I believe. I stood right next to her as she started up. Finally, I witnessed 4014 in Albert Lea, MN on July 17, 2019.

    To say a steamer is impressive is a vast understatement. Actually, being right next to a diesel-electric as she revs up has about the same effect.

    Doug
     
    badlandnp, Moose2013 and mtntrainman like this.
  13. badlandnp

    badlandnp TrainBoard Member

    4,587
    16,153
    90
    Just had to play a bit this morning as the rest of the day will be taken up with busy-ness work and family. So, ran a train,



    And the 2511 started getting a bit jinky on me, so did a bit of fuzzy removal, which helped a bit. It is acting like I need to get in the tender and see if the engine pickup wires have come unsoldered from the board.

     
  14. Doug Gosha

    Doug Gosha TrainBoard Member

    3,595
    7,664
    80
    Shouldn't you turn off the steam while you're working on it?

    :D

    Doug
     
    Moose2013 and badlandnp like this.
  15. BigJake

    BigJake TrainBoard Member

    3,259
    6,174
    70
    That was yet another issue that led to the rapid replacement of steam with diesels. You can't just "turn off" a steam engine and leave it. More importantly, unless you want to spend a lot of time getting one going again, you need to keep the fire going (at a low rate) and the water hot, or it takes a LONG time to get under power later. Getting up steam from no fire and a boiler full of cold water was a LONG, slow process.

    "Starting" a cold steam locomotive is kind of a chicken and egg problem: you need heat in the water to create the airflow out the stack, which then sucks in air through the firebox and boiler tubes to feed the fire that generates the heat. If/once you have enough heat in the water for steam, you can really boost the firebox airflow by venting steam into the stack, which rapidly rises, sucking in more air through the boiler tubes from the firebox, creating more heat (fire) more quickly. Then you can quit venting the steam and let the boiler pressure/heat rise. Note that the steam cylinders exhaust into the stack to help 'siphon' the airflow through the firebox and boiler as the locomotive is running (moving), keeping up the heating of the water to replace the heat exhausted through the cylinders.

    In some situations, they would literally build fires under the locomotive, to help heat the cold boiler water more quickly.

    If you ever noticed, the first steam engines (not necessarily locomotives) had vertical-tube boilers, which would naturally generate hot air flow through even a cold boiler as soon as the fire was lit. But the size/power of steam locomotives dictated a horizontal-tube boiler. They work fine as long as they are already working...
     
  16. badlandnp

    badlandnp TrainBoard Member

    4,587
    16,153
    90
    Studying the transition from steam to diesel made for interesting reading. The cut in labor costs alone was a huge boost to the company, and damaging to the workforce. Efficient use of resources is better with diesel also, which makes for even more cost savings. Which just continue to get more efficient.

    However, the visual and sound impact of steam always shouts out better than diesel do. Being an electrician working on these diesels and rebuilding them and then getting the pleasure, shear pleasure, of test riding them as they go into service, was an awesome job! Then I met a running steam locomotive, the 261. Wow, just plain wow!!

    No turning back after that! Steam is an awful lot of work, in real life or model life, but just wow!!!

    :):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):)
     
  17. badlandnp

    badlandnp TrainBoard Member

    4,587
    16,153
    90
    Almost forgot, back in 89 when in Boise working at M-K rebuilding diesels, I did get up close to then UP 8444! Did not get to watch it steam out of town, but it was and is a beauty!! It took until 1998's BNSF steam special before I saw big steam in action, with 261.
     
    BoxcabE50, Moose2013 and Doug Gosha like this.
  18. badlandnp

    badlandnp TrainBoard Member

    4,587
    16,153
    90
    Finally had a long enough block of free time today to finish the basic install of the lighting in my Empire Builder set. The plugins betwixt cars has surely eliminated an flickering! Now to get it to the right place in the tender to stop that from stalling on every little hiccup. The lack of light effects memory is my only gripe with the Tsunami 2. I do love the sound stuff in it tho!



     
  19. badlandnp

    badlandnp TrainBoard Member

    4,587
    16,153
    90
    And just running trains to relax again!

     
    Doorgunnerjgs, MK, BoxcabE50 and 3 others like this.
  20. badlandnp

    badlandnp TrainBoard Member

    4,587
    16,153
    90
    So, I bit the bullet early, and got my BLI T-1 out to do a little investigating into it's issues. It only had a few hours of run time on it when it gave me the "I quit!" attitude. It turns out, that there were several issues that I had to fix. First I cleaned and applied CRC 2-26 to the tender wheels, ran it and that made a marked improvement. Still had stuttering issues, so I turned it over and pulled off the gear plates. Two issues there, over lubed and several of the brass wheel block were stuck. After cleaning the excess oil, adding a bit of the CRC to the contact points and reassembling it. So, I flipped it over and pulled the boiler, (after removing the attachment screws,) to check the connections inside as the engine did not pick up power from the track. I discovered that the two screws holding the PC board to the frame were backed out 1/4 turn. After tightening these, and reassembling it, it's like a completely new loco!

    PIC_0160.JPG PIC_0162.JPG PIC_0163.JPG PIC_0164.JPG PIC_0167.JPG

    And a couple of video's,







    I also turned down the volume to decrease the amperage draw.
     

Share This Page