Monday, April 17, 2017

Do You Think A Manual Transmission Automobile Is Hard To Drive? Try This...

Engineer's station of the steam locomotive $2156, a Y6A Class locomotive (click to enlarge)
Olympus E-M1 Mark II, 12-100mm f/4 lens @ 12mm; 1/2 sec. @ f/8; ISO 400; Handheld
If you think driving while shifting gears, pressing a clutch, steering, etc., on a manual transmission automobile is difficult try operating a steam locomotive!  I've posted three images from the Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke, Virginia, USA that I made a few days ago.  The top image is the engineer's side of the cab of locomotive #2156, a Y6A class compound articulated steam locomotive of the 2-6-6-2 type (meaning 2 pilot wheels, 2 sets of 6 large drive wheels in the center, then 2 wheels trailing beneath the cab) built in 1942 by Norfolk and Western Railway.  Without going into a lot about steam locomotives, a compound steam locomotive means it has two sets of cylinders instead of one set.  One set uses high pressure to which the steam from the boiler first goes, then as it exits the first set of cylinders, it is sent to the second set, which are a low pressure set of cylinders.  It is almost like having two steam engines in one.

 This next image is of the fireman's station of the same engine.  The fireman was just as important as the engineer as it was the fireman's job to make sure the engine had the proper boiler pressure (too much pressure and the boiler would blow up and kill everyone!), had the right amount of coal being pushed into the firebox and enough water to keep boiler from overheating, among other duties.  Both engineer and fireman had to work fluidly in tandem in order to achieve peak efficiency from the steam that passed from the boiler to the cylinders.

 A steam locomotive is a remarkable machine.  Some call them "living machines" from the sights and sounds they make.
Just a few valves for the fireman to use to operate his side of the engine!  Notice that none
of them are marked in any way as to their function! (click to enlarge)
Olympus E-M1 Mark II, 12-100mm f/4 lens @ 54mm; 1/5th sec. @ f/6.3; ISO 400; Handheld
Back in the mid-1980s, I was fortunate as I got to ride in a steam locomotive for about 50 miles. We ran at approximately 60 mph.  It was a thrill for me.  One thing I learned was that locomotive crews must have had iron kidneys as that was the roughest, bumpiest, most jarring ride I've ever experienced.  Additionally, I couldn't imagine working in a locomotive everyday for an entire career.
This is the firebox door that sits low between the
engineer, on the right, and the fireman, on the left.  It was operated with a pedal.  Notice the word "Butterfly"
cast into the door as it opened like a butterfly's wings.  The fireman would often open the door to check
on the fire in the firebox and increase or decrease the supply of coal from the Tender to keep the fire
burning at a constant level (click to enlarge)
Olympus E-M1 Mark II, 12-100mm f/4 lens @ 44mm; 1/8th sec. @ f/6.3; ISO 400; Handheld
Also, if you ever are near Roanoke Virginia, take my advice and visit the Virginia Museum of Transportation.  It will be the best $8 US you spend that day.  Fascinating place.

 Thanks for looking. Enjoy! 

 Dennis A. Mook 

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3 comments:

  1. MikeApril 17, 2017 at 9:57 AM

    Thanks, Dennis. What an amazing piece of machinery. Think about engineers and desigers drafting, stock clerks keeping track of valves fittings and a thousand other items of supply, and metal workers casting and finishing parts and then the assembly of all the above.
    I'm surprised, though, that the fireman's controls weren't labelled as a matter of safety and efficiency, though.
    All in all, a great post and one of these days I'm going to go over to Roanoke!

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    Replies
    1. The Wandering LensmanApril 17, 2017 at 11:34 AM

      Mike, I look at steam locomotives as sort of the pinnacle of mechanical engineering. The last great analog machines before electronics got into the picture. No computers, no electronics, everything mechanical or steam powered.

      Just to give you a better idea of its size and power, the drive wheels are just under 5 ft. tall, the locomotive weighs just under 1 million lbs., and the 166,000 lbs of tractive effort roughly translates into 5600 horsepower. Then add the tender with 66,000 lbs. of coal and 22,000 gallons of water. She is one heck of a(n) (iron) workhorse!

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  2. gnarlydogApril 25, 2017 at 11:04 PM

    well to be honest a car might have just as many, if not more "dials" and pedals. I count 3 pedals for the feet, then lets not forget all those other buttons, switches and levers that I need to operate to have my car travel safely on the road (indicators, wipers, horn, lights... you get the drift)
    But yes, all those almost identical non-labelled wheels in your photograph make one wonder what it's going on... :-)

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