AltonFan There's this tendency among those contemplating projects like this to want to restore the huge engines of steam's latter days. The problem is, many of these engines were HUGE, and often were limited to certain territories. A lot of times the "latest and greatest" got early retirement, because they were unsuitable for anything but mainline service. ...
There's this tendency among those contemplating projects like this to want to restore the huge engines of steam's latter days. The problem is, many of these engines were HUGE, and often were limited to certain territories. A lot of times the "latest and greatest" got early retirement, because they were unsuitable for anything but mainline service.
...
Dan, you are right. I had not looked in this thread for quite some time, and don't even know if I have offered an opinion earlier...probably, but can no longer recall. But, it's funny you should say what you did because when I saw the 'rejuvenated' thread from the welcome observation preceding yours, I thought that $5M is not pocket change, and not even for refurbishing a steamer. So, I was in La-la Land thinking about some of my favourites, and what came to mind was the mighty Allegheny. I know there is at least one, and I would walk ten miles barefoot over broken glass just to get close enough to hear it lift a 7000 ton coal drag, let alone see it. I don't know what it would do to modern Class 1 rails in the eastern hills at 40 mph working near to capacity. It probably wouldn't be good.
Got any tweezers?
But some of us have good reason to believe that 50-year old Budd domeliner equipment meets the needs of the tourist and other long-distance traveler better than anything since. The equipment on the California Zephyr and the Super Chief and the El Cap was as pleasant to ride for several days as Horizon and Superliner equipment today if not better. The Canadian still gets good reviews.
I tend to think forward rather than back. I have no desire to return to "the good old days". I would use the money to put together a modern train that would address the needs of today and tomorrow.
Dave
Lackawanna Route of the Phoebe Snow
I don't know how much it would cost and whether $5M would cover it, but definitely the Santa Fe Super Chief including an ABBA consist. Then, Amtrak would run it from Chicago to LA. Since the trackage from Dearborn Station is no longer there, I'd settle for a departure out of LaSalle Street Station.
Rich
Alton Junction
My thinking has been that restoration projects should center around moderately-sized engines that can be used on secondary lines. 2-8-2s and 4-6-2s would be better choices than 4-8-4s, 2-10-4s, or a Big Boy.
Dan
Hello, My name is Andy and I live up in the PNW. I just thought you would like to know that this thread of yours is an outstanding place to engage in interesting, fun and light-hearted dialog and read what others think. This thread’s actually fun (not tedious) to read through. It’s not loaded with page after page of material that has been copied and pasted from other threads in an attempt to “stay on top”. Or worse yet, material that has already been posted to the same thread, then copied and repeated! Very interested in hearing what others would like to see restored and operating again. Very impressed with the knowledge that thrives here, from all over the country! I am one of those "silent types" who does a lot of browsing, but very little talking. So, just let me congratulate all of you for the material that has kept me interested for the last several years.
For my part, I think that a person would have a greater likelihood of being able to afford to run something not too big, small enough to venture off the mainline, but big enough to pull a few restored heavyweight cars.
There are a number of 2-8-2’s sitting around the country rusting away. Maybe a 2-8-2 able to run around 45 or 50 mph, pulling restored 1920’s era baggage car, heavyweight coach and lounge car with an open platform. Being able to venture off the mainline would afford the opportunity to operate on some of the country’s short line railroads if permission could be obtained.
As a New York Central fan, it would have to be the L-3a #3001 that is now sitting at the National New York Central Railway museum. It's rather sad that no Hudsons or Niagaras even survived the cutting torches for us to enjoy looking at.
Tom
https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling
Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.
I would try to restore the T&P 2-10-4 # 610 back to operational condition. But the question was to restore a whole train, not just a loco. I don´t know how many T&P "Eagle" streamliner cars have survived, but it would be great to restore a complete consist, that could be pulled by the 610. I think that for an Eagle consist you need a baggage, a RPO, a coach, a "Planetarium" dome, a diner, a sleeper, and an lounge observation. So at least 7 cars are needed for this project. It would be great if excursion trips could be organized across whole Texas from New Orleans over Dallas / Fort Worth to El Paso over the old T&P line. But I don´t know if 5 Million $ would be enough for a complete operational Eagle restoration together with the 610.
That's a toughie...sometimes my mood dictates different answers. I love big steam, but $5M would typically just get the job done, and not cover long-term care or preservation. I think an endowment of a worthy rail preservation institution might be the better approach, so more could benefit, not just one "artifact" locomotive, car or structure.
That said, if I had to pick a steam locomotive today, and even tho' I'm a diehard Westerner I'd go for that New York Central "Mohawk" just because it's as close to an NYC J-class as we'll get unless someone springs for $50M to replicate a Hudson. I'd love to see an SP Cab Forward run before I die, but seeing as how there's only one and not enough money obviously available for its operational restoration and long-term fueling, and a semi-unfriendly UP to running anything other than their own steam power on former SP routes, I have a feeling that will go unsatisfied.
Someone has already beaten me to restoring the last Milwaukee Road 'Skytop' Olympian Hiawatha sleeper-lounge-obs, "Coffee Creek." That's my ultimate dream private car.
by all means a BIG BOY
If I was handed $5XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX.
I would own a Big Boy. I know everyone would give me all the money to run it.
They would throw all the money I needed as I passed them by.
K4s #1361, and if any money was left, restore some of the Broadway Limited cars that are still around to go with it.
daveklepperso we should all thank the UP and CP for continuing to give us a taste of what modern steam operations are really like. I hope their steam programs will continue indefinitely. They are truly of tremendous value to North American history and culture. Both railroads are doing a tremendous job with these two programs.
Well, I'd restore SP's AC-12 4-8-8-2 cab forward #4294 to operating condition, but it would probably be a bit of a problem with UP, since they'd say, "Oh, we don't have Insurance to cover operation of that locomotive over OUR (their ex-SP) lines." That's what they keep saying about #4449, the only operational SP GS-4, currently residing in Portland (WAY out of its ex SP territory, BTW, but an always welcome guest steamer on BNSF).
But it would be kinda fun the next time UP sends their much-touted 4-6-6-4 out here to Sacramento to just grin and say: "Send the Baby back to Cheyenne and change it's diapers, we've got a REAL articulated, now."
Hee-Hee.
Tom View my layout photos! http://s299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/TWhite-014/Rio%20Grande%20Yuba%20River%20Sub One can NEVER have too many Articulateds!
I'd restore CNW's 1385, currently sitting in pieces at Mid Continent Railway Museum. Any left-over funds would be used to purchase CNW's 8601 (the first C44-9W IIRC) and donate that to IRM.
It would have to be a UP Big Boy 4-8-8-4 to all its former coal burning glory ..
PRR K-4s 1361. I`ve been cranky ever since it has been unservicable. I got to see her run in 1988,and I wonder if I ever will again?
Any money left over would go to getting another Pennsy steamer going or the LIRR 35.
Another wish is that I had enough money to make sure the East Broad Top is kept intact and even improved(restored).
How about CNJ Boxcab #1000 with it's Reading inspired lettering. Then, have it team up with the CNJ Camelback #592 for a tour between Baltimore and Jersey City. Find a permanent home for equipment currently residing on the former Lackawanna Boonton Line.
My first choice would be the ERIE's last doodlebug #5012. Number two is Susquehanna S-2 #206. Number three, which would probably eat up all 5 million would be UP's Big Boy currently residing at Steamtown.
sd40-2
Mine has to be a layered answer because of different historic interests.
I'd probably rather see $5M spent on recreating a vanished New York Central J3a in full 20th Century Limited Raymond Lowey streamlining (though I'd bet $10M wouldn't even get the project halfway done).
If it were for an operating restoration of something captive in a museum, it might be the SP 4294 AC-12 cab forward at CSRM, though finding a place to run it wouldn't be easy these days. You'd have to have a $1M endowment just to keep it in good shape and fueled, too.
I wouldn't mind seeing a complete 5-unit brace of as-built Black Widow SP SD-9s, but I'd also want to see (and smell) a long train of lumber products behind them...
I'd love to have $5M to use toward replicating a complete pair of historically correct circa 1868-69 passenger and official cars and the miscellaneous clutch of freight cars that were at Promontory Summit in and around the scene of the great Last Spike driving ceremonies. The excellent replica 4-4-0s at Promontory NHS look too lonely...
Great choice, the Atlantic Coast Line Pacific #1504, along with all the other fine trains that operated out of Jacksonville's Union Station. Ah well, now all we have to do is win the large power ball. Mind you, I'm partial to those green pacific engines that Southern ran.
All the best,
The Commodore
This would be my choice too, only the whole consist, from nose to toes..
Always will be a Road Fan
I would do one of two things:
(1) Have Atlantic Coast Line P-5a Pacific No. 1504 restored to operational service. She currently sits in front of the Prime Osborn Convention Center (Old Jacksonville Union Terminal) in Jacksonville, Fla. The beauty of this idea is that it probably wouldn't cost $5 million. ACL did a complete operational overhaul of the 1504 before putting her on display in front of their Jax headquarters. Since she hasn't been run since (meaning no wear and tear on the moving parts), it would probably take very little work to make her fully operational again.
Failing that, I would love to have a shop which specializes in locomotive restoration, fabrication and replicating build a full-sized, operational replica of an Atlantic Coast R-1 4-8-4 Northern. But that would probably cost more than $5 million!
Two choices both from my childhood and early train riding days. Southern's Crescent Ltd. big green Pacific powered. Atlantic Coast Line's East Coast Champion with those purple and silver E units. I road the Crescent as a child and the Champion as a teenager and later as a serviceman in the Coast Guard traveling on the East Coast.
Sancho1Great Northern Railway 2523, no contest. 1964 in Willmar, MN several years after retirement and before she was cleaned up and put on display. 2001 on display at Willmar, now has a new shelter over it.
There is only one train worth the five million dollar restoration: THE PHOEBE SNOW! And I would run it anywhere and everywhere!!!!
RIDEWITHMEHENRY is the name for our almost monthly day of riding trains and transit in either the NYCity or Philadelphia areas including all commuter lines, Amtrak, subways, light rail and trolleys, bus and ferries when warranted. No fees, just let us know you want to join the ride and pay your fares. Ask to be on our email list or find us on FB as RIDEWITHMEHENRY (all caps) to get descriptions of each outing.
I think the above posting is quite correct, and so we should all thank the UP and CP for continuing to give us a taste of what modern steam operations are really like. I hope their steam programs will continue indefinitely. They are truly of tremendous value to North American history and culture. Both railroads are doing a tremendous job with these two programs.
But with the right parts and asbstos eliminations and new transformers, a reliable GG-1 could be possible and could be reliable enough to run regularly on the Corridor south of Sunnyside Yard, NYC to Washington, as long as Amtrak retains the current 25HZ electrification on this part of of the Corridor. I understand this electrification is still in good shape (except that much of the catenary is overdue for replacement) and there are no current plans to convert it to 60Hz, as was done by Metro North and used for the New Haven - Boston electrification. Amtrak might even appreciate the addition of one very reliable locmotive. Rewinding old armatures and field coils with new wire with modern insulation could make the old quill-drive motors more reliable even than modern motors!
Login, or register today to interact in our online community, comment on articles, receive our newsletter, manage your account online and more!
Get the Classic Trains twice-monthly newsletter