I recently read on Virginia's Musuem of Transportation website that the N&W J-class 611 was so efficiently counterbalanced and engineered that it could be pulled by a couple of guys and a rope. I know that the J-class was very well engineered and argubaly the fastest passenger engine with the lowest drivers; but 2-3 average full grown men being able to pull it with a rope seems a little extreme. I just that this would spark some interest in all the steam fans out their. You can follow my link to the Virginia Musuem of Transportation below, click exhibits, and you should see the link to the j-class.
-Matt Ferencz
http://www.vmt.org/exhibits.htm
-ChrisWest Chicago, ILChristopher May Fine Art Photography"In wisdom gathered over time I have found that every experience is a form of exploration." ~Ansel Adams
CopCarSS wrote:Didn't Timken stage a stunt where a group of secretaries pulled the "Four Aces" Northern, which was one of the first locos equiped with roller bearings?
Like this?
From Timken Industries website:
During the early 1930's, the competitive advantages of tapered roller bearings had been proven on automotive passenger cars; however, locomotives remained a challenge for Timken. To demonstrate that tapered roller bearings could be successfully used on locomotive axles, Timken commissioned the "Four Aces" -- the first steam locomotive equipped with Timken tapered roller bearings. Using three women to pull the locomotive with a rope, the Four Aces was an outstanding success and achieved all the objectives. During the two years of intensive testing on 13 different rails and 23 years of heavy service on the Northern Pacific Railway, this engine never failed. It saved fuel and ran at high speeds more smoothly than conventional steam locomotives. This reduced engine and track maintenance that was due to the heavy pounding caused by driver wheels equipped with standard non-tapered bearings.
Quentin
Poppa_Zit wrote: [
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WOW. Rather impressive. I know there are laws of friction, drag, and all that jazz to explain it all. But.... just today, I had to grunt and grunt to move a 1986 Toyota 4 Runner (heavily modified I might, but still a 4-Runner) by pushing and pulling to the other side of the shop. It only weighs 4000. IF!..
Amazing.
Best Regards, Big John
Kiva Valley Railway- Freelanced road in central Arizona. Visit the link to see my MR forum thread on The Building of the Whitton Branch on the Kiva Valley Railway
canazar wrote:WOW. Rather impressive. I know there are laws of friction, drag, and all that jazz to explain it all. But.... just today, I had to grunt and grunt to move a 1986 Toyota 4 Runner (heavily modified I might, but still a 4-Runner) by pushing and pulling to the other side of the shop. It only weighs 4000. IF!.. Amazing.
That's probably because each of those four sticky rubber tires was likely making more surface contact than all 16 steel wheels of the "Four Aces" combined..
Larry Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date Come ride the rails with me! There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...
tree68 wrote: canazar wrote:WOW. Rather impressive. I know there are laws of friction, drag, and all that jazz to explain it all. But.... just today, I had to grunt and grunt to move a 1986 Toyota 4 Runner (heavily modified I might, but still a 4-Runner) by pushing and pulling to the other side of the shop. It only weighs 4000. IF!.. Amazing. That's probably because each of those four sticky rubber tires was likely making more surface contact than all 16 steel wheels of the "Four Aces" combined..
Yes. The steel wheels on the loco would have compressed very little, so the 'footprint" of each wheel, combined, would be less than that of one tire on the vehicle. Then, you have three others that compress enough that you are essentially lifting the vehicle by the distance of tire compression.
Y6bs evergreen in my mind
Actually, rolling resistance on rubber-tired vehicles on a smooth concrete surface is amazing. I remember (when I was much younger) on the engine room floor at the firehouse I could move a fully-loaded pumper (out of gear, no e-brake) by putting my hand on top of one of the rear tires and sliding it sideways while pressing down.
It took some effort, but it could be done. I was pretty suprised when another fireman showed me that trick.
Back in the 50s, I read that Lionel had a picture of there class J model pulling the prototype.
I've never seen it.
--David
....Rolling resistance of a rubber tired vehicle can be quite different depending what tires are installed on it....{among other factors}.
Radial belted tires have somewhat less rolling resistance than previously produced bias ply tires. Hand pushing a vehicle with radial tires will be somewhat easier than a similar equipped vehicle equipped with bias ply tires...{all other factors being equal}.
Switch8frg wrote:Clover 1; There also a ( show and tell ) Of 4 or 5 cuties pulling a Niagra # 6000 in 1945 for a publicity stunt. That engine also had tapered roller bearings . Respectfully, Cannonball
The women were probably stronger back then. Maybe this is what Rosie the Riviter did before she retired.
TomDiehl wrote: The women were probably stronger back then. Maybe this is what Rosie the Riviter did before she retired.
I don't know about that. I've known a couple of women who could probably have pulled that locomotive single-handed. Always made it my business to be VERY nice to them, to avoid a lengthy hospital stay.
The trick to generating enough horizon force to move the locomotive is traction. Those "cuties" are leaning back on their high heels and thus are able to translate their entire body weight into the ground.
I remember being a counselor after graduating high school in a summer boys camp where we played a game called smugglers. The object of the game was for the "smugglers" to break through a ring of defenders, retrieve a block from the center, and break out again. We were caught if we were tackled to the ground on the way in or out. I wore sneakers the first time and was broguht down by two or three people when my foot slipped. After that, I sent home for my ripple soles shoes and was never brought down again unless I ran into the one counselr there who weighed more than I did.
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