The N&W Class J 611 Steam Locomotive

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beana51

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Many things can make one say "WOW' From a space launch, A New Super Carrier,The Concord Landing at JFK. However there is one more,that is a living breathing Steam Locomotive...I think the love of Planes and Trains were part of most growing up...This "611" 4-8 4 locomotive was a sight to be hold...It ruled the rails with other great Steam engines.Were you to get up close to one ,you would never forget it..They are now of course extinct,and are for most a dim memory,or at best the dedication of some to preserve them....ALL ABOARD!....Vin!!

fireup611.org/

www.vmt.org

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0np1GJy3fc
 
i live a couple hundred yards (literally) from the original alignment of the "first transcontinental railroad",Central Pacific side,about 19 miles railroad east of Roseville yard.quarter mile east of "Bloomer cut"

[video=vimeo;26658167]http://vimeo.com/26658167[/video]

there are a set of tight curves below my house that are a 25 mile per hour speed limit ,its one of the few places on the line (donner pass route) that has been left untouched ( besides ribbonrail,and i think they may have recently placed some concrete ties) but the topography cant easily be changed so the curves have had to be left as is.

my point is,in 1991 and several times since,i just dont remember the years,the Union Pacific had brought the 844,4-8-4 ,and the 3985,4-6-6-4 steam locomotives past the house,having never seen or heard a steam locomotive under power live,and not in a demonstration mode.when the two locomotives passed by lashed together they were under power with the diesel idling ,our window in the house rattled as though we were having a large earthquake!!!

we have a family friend named Jim Mahon,he was known as "the Bear" when he was the head of track maintenance for the Southern Pacific railroads Donner sub.(if youve ever seen any of the train videos of donner ,like the ones from pentrax.youve seen him,,,he is a short stalky "bear of a man" ...the one he was the "star of" was snow fighters over donner.he was telling us the reason it was so violent was because of the tight radius of the curves and the doubleheaded locos ,they were just pounding the rails trying to spread them.
 
Just got 'a love steam engines and steam tractors. Thanks to all for posting those links. I really liked the last one. It reminded me of the Thomas the Train videos that the kids watched while growing up.

American trains really look business like and powerful while British steam engines have an air of understated grace and refinement.
 
Steam engines ... the mastery of both water and fire ... no matter what incarniation, locomotive or ship ... I love them!
 
ever watched a steam fire pumper under full steam and pumping at full capacity? i had the joy of seeing the Woodland Cal,San Francisco City and reno Nv,steamers all pumping full on at once ,they were literally dancing..
 
Aaah - the beauty, grace and power of a steam engine at speed....all that steel whirring and thrashing around.......
That is is one fine locomotive! The NZR J class initially had the same styling - although they were a lot smaller.
The last NZ steam locos topped out regularly at 70-75 mph (meant to be 60, but...hey......engine drivers being who they are......) on a 3'6" gauge...

<iframe src="//www.youtube.com/embed/90P0HwU3v9A" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe>
 
What I find bothering in today's steam loco runs are the mandatory back-up diesels that are placed behind the lead steam locomotive. It kills the charm a lot. <label for="rb_iconid_13">
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pXdvTZMe8M

I was lucky enough to leave school while the railway was still steam powered, and started work as a loco cleaner at 15yrs old. Soon after my 16th birthday, I was passed to act as a fireman, hauling mainly loose coupled coal and mixed freight trains. By the time I reached 18yrs, I was a regular fireman on passenger trains, firing and driving Thompson B1's (identical to the one in the vid.) on a daily basis. There was none of this over played "Health & Safety" nonsense in those days, and the majority of drivers shared the driving/firing 50/50. After we started converting onto the diesels (mainly EE type 37) I found the job very boring, and left the railways. Of course, being lucky enough to have been a footplate man on steam locomotives does have a down side ... it means I've now turned 70 ... which I'm not too keen on at all.
 
Yeah, Peppercorn A1, terrific loco's. When I was 17, got moved down to Hitchin depot for 6 months. Had to relieve the fireman (he took sick) on one of the top pullman expresses. Think it was the "Yorkshire Pullman" but not sure, hauled by the Peppercorn A1 "Abbotsford" My God, my head was so big, being one of the footplate crew on such a prestigious train as we swept into Kings X, even though the trip did'nt last much over half an hour.
 
I was fortunate to spend time in Sasebo, Japan 1969-71 during the last years of mainline steam on the Japanese National Railways (JNR). I found out that many JNR employees were proud of their steam locos and friendly to railfans who came to take pictures of them. I've even had roundhouse "hostlers" volunteer to move engines so I could get better shots. I love airplanes, but there's no finer piece of heavy machinery than a steam locomotive fired up and pulling a train.
 
The only thing I "hate" about YouTube videos is that I always find myself spending hours watching some of the "related video links..." :icon_lol:

At first I thought it was a compression effect of a telescopic lens, but this stretch of track really is so very "rippled..." :icon_eek:

 
n4gix said:
At first I thought it was a compression effect of a telescopic lens, but this stretch of track really is so very "rippled..." :icon_eek:
Click to expand...
Lotsa ballast between the rails, maybe they should try putting some of it under the ties. :icon_lol:
 
brad kaste said:
What I find bothering in today's steam loco runs are the mandatory back-up diesels that are placed behind the lead steam locomotive. It kills the charm a lot. <label for="rb_iconid_13">
icon13.png
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Click to expand...

Running a diesel is not mandatory. It is up to the mainline owners if they feel there is a need for it. TVRR runs one of their trips without a diesel. Terrain and how many cars they are going to attach to the steam locomotive also will determine that as well. 611 ran many times on excursions without any help.

Don
 
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