Their Motives were just plain Loco
March 7, 2014 7:38 AM Subscribe
If you've time to spare, the Unusual Locomotives page is a good index for your perusal.
The individual pages are often chock-full of readable technical details and are categorized in logical groups, making the site a great resource for scholars of the Age of Steam's less (ahem) successful and thought-out endeavors.
A few highlights:
The Zoelly Swiss Turbine Locomotive of 1919
The Fontaine Fiasco
The Hush-Hush 10000 of 1929
The individual pages are often chock-full of readable technical details and are categorized in logical groups, making the site a great resource for scholars of the Age of Steam's less (ahem) successful and thought-out endeavors.
A few highlights:
The Zoelly Swiss Turbine Locomotive of 1919
The Fontaine Fiasco
The Hush-Hush 10000 of 1929
I love the futurist-influenced design of the Hush-Hush, even if it didn't perform. Also - anyone want to join me in my new, highly dangerous, pastime?
posted by Think_Long at 7:54 AM on March 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by Think_Long at 7:54 AM on March 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
Interesting about the Hush-Hush. I've always wondered why locomotives weren't built with water-tube boilers rather than fire-tube ones, since the former would seem to reduce maintenance demands (and explosion risk) tremendously by reducing the surface actually exposed to steam pressure. Naval and stationary boilers switched over to water tubes long before the end of the steam locomotive era; as far as I know, trains were the last instance of fire tube boilers in wide use.
posted by Kadin2048 at 8:48 AM on March 7, 2014
posted by Kadin2048 at 8:48 AM on March 7, 2014
Self's Museum of Retro Technology is fucking amazing, and seems to have been constantly growing for years now. It's a great place to waste some time.
posted by 2N2222 at 9:10 AM on March 7, 2014
posted by 2N2222 at 9:10 AM on March 7, 2014
gen: "Doctor Yellow"
My children have a Doctor Yellow toy train and it is the NUMBER ONE THING THEY ARGUE ABOUT. Next relative to visit Tokyo must bring home TWO Doctors Yellow.
They are literally arguing about it as I type this comment.
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 9:56 AM on March 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
My children have a Doctor Yellow toy train and it is the NUMBER ONE THING THEY ARGUE ABOUT. Next relative to visit Tokyo must bring home TWO Doctors Yellow.
They are literally arguing about it as I type this comment.
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 9:56 AM on March 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
I just shared this with Mr. Roquette, he loves trains!
posted by Katjusa Roquette at 10:58 AM on March 7, 2014
posted by Katjusa Roquette at 10:58 AM on March 7, 2014
I've always wondered why locomotives weren't built with water-tube boilers rather than fire-tube ones
It has to do with firing rate vs. steam demand vs. physical plant size. You are less limited by physical size in marine and stationary applications. The volume of steam required versus the physical size, basically. A firetube boiler produces more volume of steam in a smaller space.
posted by pjern at 11:40 AM on March 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
It has to do with firing rate vs. steam demand vs. physical plant size. You are less limited by physical size in marine and stationary applications. The volume of steam required versus the physical size, basically. A firetube boiler produces more volume of steam in a smaller space.
posted by pjern at 11:40 AM on March 7, 2014 [1 favorite]
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posted by brokkr at 7:47 AM on March 7, 2014 [2 favorites]