Damn Yankees

[60800]

This may sound a little rash, but if I had the money to finance such a run and to keep a loco sevicable with a damn good fireman to hand I'd be prepared to take an A4, A1 or duchess very close to it's limit to stop the yanks from stealing our thunder during Mallard's 75th

I wouldn't push a loco to or beyond it's limit though and if I was an owner of a loco I'd take the utmost care of it and would ensure that the loco was fully capable of such a run. The loco would be fully stripped down, all parts checked and tested before and after the run, ensuring that no damage could take place.

[giner]

Does anyone know what locomotive the Americans are proposing to use for this attempt?

[Mickey]

Does anyone know what locomotive the Americans are proposing to use for this attempt?

Wot loco will the Yanks be using giner?.

Probably A4 no.60008 DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER fitted with booster rockets and after burners!!.

[60800]

It's some big 4-6-4 that looks too big and heavy to get past 55mph and is coloured a nice shade of rust

[Steve05]

Hi Black60800,

There is nothing anyone could do today that would ever steal the thunder or diminish the outstanding achievement of the LNER’s Mallard and crew in July 1938!

Regards

Steve

[manna]

G'Day Gents

Two things to think about, you have to have the 'Right' engine, Mallard and SNG, were the 'Right' engine, as not all A4's were equal, 60001, Sir Ronald Matthews, was never trusted with any prestige trains, 60008 DoC was another, that never did a great deal until, it got it's double chimney, so you have to have that 'Right' engine.

The other thing, most of the American high speed engines were nearly all 4-6-4's......................hmmmmmm !!

manna

[Solario]

Below is a quote from a friend of mine -

They say the engine they are going to rebuild for the job is a 1937 built Baldwin 4-6-4 and numbered 3463.

Only six of this class were built and quite fierce beasts they look.

They work on 300 lbs/sq in boiler pressure, have driving wheels of 7 foot in dia and have a firegrate of 98.5 sq/ft.

It has been calculated that fired on coal these machine could develop well over 5000 Indicated Horespower.

I think that they are talking about an attempt on level track, we will see if anything transpires, I dare say that the American Railroads will be as circumspect as Network Rail would be.

By the way, I believe that the pre war German record of 124.5mph was made over a fair distance on pretty level track. Even SNG himself did not claim 126 but did claim 125 because the higher speed was only momentary.

[60800]

The thing that really makes me angry is that it's an ugly non - streamlined loco with pipes everywhere. If they were doing it with a streamlined Hudson, I wouldn't mind as much

[richard]

There's an awful lot of speculation here with little information to back it up. Even the original news source sounds suspect to me. Let's wait until anything happens: the original news report could be based on the kind of wishful thinking we see in this thread.

(There was talk of restoring a local Big Boy for a movie. Considering the rusted boiler and the cut motion, it may have been cheaper to build a new one. Oddly enough, it never happened either)


Richard

[2002EarlMarischal]

Regrettably, I would not dismiss this threat to Mallard's record.

It is not a fly-by-night outfit but the University of Minnesota - see the attached link:

http://www.csrail.org

Quote from site:
"Coalition for Sustainable Rail (CSR), a collaboration of the University of Minnesota (U of M) and Sustainable Rail International (SRI), will work towards the creation of the world's first carbon-neutral test locomotive. As its first major step towards completion, SRI acquired a test bed steam locomotive via a transfer of ownership from the Great Overland Station, a world-class restored train depot and museum in Topeka, Kansas in November, 2011. The locomotive, Santa Fe steam locomotive 3463 (CSR 3463), is a 1937-built, high-speed locomotive that will be thoroughly overhauled and modernized. Once transported to the Twin Cities, the locomotive will undergo a complete engineering review, modification and reconstruction.

The University of Minnesota's NRRI and IonE will work with SRI to perfect the torrefaction production system. The plan is to engineer biocoal not only to power the test locomotive in operation, but also to supplement or replace fuel used in U of M-owned steam and power plants.

Once its modernization is complete, CSR 3463 will have little in common with the smoke-belching steam engine it once was. Featuring a gas-producer combustion system, improved steam circuit, modernized boiler, low-maintenance running gear and steam-powered electric generator (to power the passenger train), CSR anticipates 3463 will be able to pull a passenger train with electric-like performance for less than the cost of diesel-electric locomotives. In order to further prove the viability of biocoal and modern steam technology, CSR plans to test the locomotive in excess of 130 miles per hour, out-performing any existing diesel-electric on the market and breaking the world steam speed record. In light of this achievement, CSR has named this endeavor: “Project 130.”

Time to build a streamlined Gresley 4-8-2 and put the limit out of reach!

[60800]

Looking through the project, it will end up not being a 'steam engine' in the traditional sense anyway, so if it does get the record, with it's very apparent differences to Mallard, I can happily say I'd still quote Mallard as the fastest steamer

[richard]

Yes this UMN proposal has been posted here before - so nothing new to see, move along. A lot can be done to make a steam locomotive more efficient, but starting with a 1930s loco is not the starting point that comes to mind. I wouldn't be surprised if the project goes quiet as 'issues' are found.

[60800]

The main issues I can think of are the driving wheels and frames. They'd be better off starting from scratch

[mr B]

Does anyone know what locomotive the Americans are proposing to use for this attempt?

it would be nice to see Southern Pacific's 4449 put throu its paces, mind you do the yanks have a bank long enough to sustain the excess spped at the bottom? , would Mallard ever have done so without gravity ?

mr B

[mick b]

If any one wants to travel in a 1937 Loco at 130 mph they are welcome to it . Cannot see how it could ever be declared safe or insurable.Without both its a load of nonsense.