Welcome back, UP 4014.....

[Tishimself]

so the drivers dont articulate like the leads and the rears?

It is known as a 4-8-8-4. So the first truck is a guide for the engine....next comes the first engine, (the 8 part) then the second engine, then the last set of wheels...(the 4 part) they are there to support the weight of the firebox. So while the entire engine is rigid, the front engine swivels on a hinge located just between the two engines in order to accommodate curves....the front bogie truck as a part of the lead engine assembly......here is a video of them, the part you are referring to starts at .055 into the video...enjoy....

[Stainless]

Thanks Tis, both videos are very intriguing!!

[Tishimself]

Thanks Tis, both videos are very intriguing!!

Yes, now enter the C&O 2-6-6-6 Allegheny......depending on who you talk to, this is the most powerful engine ever built. I love these engines, they never got out of the coal fields and got to show what they had, but folks think they would have been great with a passenger train also.......seeing one of these being rebuilt and returned to steam is on my bucket list....odds of it happening? Well, they said the UP would never rebuild a bigboy...so you never know....

[Wendi]

Wow very cook Tis!! Very fascinating for sure, keep the posts coming. Thanks.

[McRib]

It is known as a 4-8-8-4. So the first truck is a guide for the engine....next comes the first engine, (the 8 part) then the second engine, then the last set of wheels...(the 4 part) they are there to support the weight of the firebox. So while the entire engine is rigid, the front engine swivels on a hinge located just between the two engines in order to accommodate curves....the front bogie truck as a part of the lead engine assembly......here is a video of them, the part you are referring to starts at .055 into the video...enjoy....

I know what all the numbers mean. Imma bit of a train geek. Lol. I just didnt know if each set of 8 were floaters or if they only gave way via bushings set at the max degree for the tracks in their day. Riverside live steamers on columbia just east of the 215 has a scale replica they carry kids on. Its bad ass. Imma try and find a vid

[Tishimself]

I know what all the numbers mean. Imma bit of a train geek. Lol. I just didnt know if each set of 8 were floaters or if they only gave way via bushings set at the max degree for the tracks in their day. Riverside live steamers on columbia just east of the 215 has a scale replica they carry kids on. Its bad ass. Imma try and find a vid

BigBoy parts in the tender for move. Tender and loco may get onto panel track separately. 4 main rods and 4 cross heads reworked to remount for balance; brass bushings reworked or replaced. What you see here are the literal pistons of the engine. Taken out to protect them during the journey. They are the most important parts of the running gear of the engine...and some of the most well machined....I think you all would be amazed at how much hard, God aweful work is ahead for these guys as they do this. The entire engine will be broken down to the smallest part and rebuilt.....it is a monster task....

Also, the area you see here was once the coal bunker, it will be converted to an oil burner in the future.....that should prove to be interesting, as only one was ever converted, and depending on which old head you talk to, it was either a runner or a dog...LOL.....

[McRib]

Wonder if it could be converted to diesel. Make the tender one big tank then feed the boiler lije a propane bbq. Prob couldn't get it hot enough id bet.

[Tishimself]

Wonder if it could be converted to diesel. Make the tender one big tank then feed the boiler lije a propane bbq. Prob couldn't get it hot enough id bet.

Not even close. They used bunker C back in the day. If you go to traveltown over by Griffeth park, there is an old UP switcher stored over there that still drips it out of the tender. It's the original stuff....kinda cool. Messy but cool. The engine has a HUGE appetite, so it will be interesting to see how they do with getting oil into it. The main question for me has been this.....there are no pistons, piston rods, crossheads, main rods, eccentric cranks, eccentric rods, combination levers, or union links, it also looks like the valves, valve stems, and valve crossheads are gone, too. Wonder how they plan to power the lubricators that put oil in the shoes and wedges, slide plate bearing, buffer, trailing truck pedestals, etc. Those were operated by the valve motion that has been removed.

[McRib]

I have no doubt alot of one off parts will be created to recreate this behemoth. They have the orignal plans from the 40's in a vault somewhere im sure.

[Tishimself]

I have no doubt alot of one off parts will be created to recreate this behemoth. They have the orignal plans from the 40's in a vault somewhere im sure.

Yes, no doubt. What is interesting is that the skills to work on it are nearly gone, as well as the knowledge of how to run it. The guys that ran them, that can be of help on how to run them ( it was a skill not a lot of guys had) are nearly if not all gone now. They will for sure have to relearn a lot of stuff over by trial and error.....