5 Interesting Locomotives (You've Probably Never Heard Of) | History in the Dark

Sometimes locomotive designs appear and are seemingly overlooked for one reason or another. They're not necessarily bad, but they're not great either. They're obscure, but still worth mentioning.
0:00 - Intro
1:00 - FS 670 locomotive
3:12 - The Canadian High-Pressure Locomotive
5:00 - 400 Class
6:57 - Arnold's Electro-Pneumatic Locomotive
8:44 - Fyansford Cement Works Railway Garretts Number 1 and 2
🚂 Further reading 🚂
it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Locomot...
www.douglas-self.com/MUSEUM/LO...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2BB2_400
www.douglas-self.com/MUSEUM/LO...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bellari...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fyansfo...
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#top5 #trains #railfan

[@boston_and_maine]

i can already tell that canadian pacific's t4a is making it onto the list because of how unique they looked

[@ngarewyrd]

Aaaand once again, Loving the mangling of Australian Place names!

[@blacenwite]

Geelong is pronounced Je-long

[@harrisonallen651]

Knowing how pure gold the Garrett's were, it’s no wonder you put them on number one.

[@perha45]

But he put Garrat on #1. That is one I have never heard of.

[@ianmandy127]

No body ever talks about the gl garrett its worth a google pronerly one of the most powerful garretts ever

[@nigelslade5276]

Garratt is correct spelling not garrett

[@ianmandy127]

@@nigelslade5276 sorry never noticed been spelling it like that for ever thanks

[@ianmandy127]

@@nigelslade5276 i do see many south africans spell it with an e

[@railtrolley]

9:35 The diesel loco in the photo of the Fyansford railway is still running around today. D1 was sold to Victorian Railways, as it was the similar type to their T class loco: EMD G8. Renumbered as T413, a few changes were made for running on the VR betwork: 3'6" gauge motor bogies swapped for 5'3" and the Chopper couplers swapped for Janney-type Auto knuckles.

[@shadyhaze2013]

I believe (could be wrong here) that D1 was considered for preservation along with everything else from Fyansford, however besides being being a carbon copy of a first generation T class, what got VR's interest were the dynamic brakes that were fitted from new. After the conversion it went to Wodonga to be the main motive power of the Cudgewa line, that had continuous gradients of 1 in 30 and 1 in 40. Now preserved and the diesel flagship of 707 Operations, it has been hired out as exta motive power to current freight operators and is currently under overhaul. Fun fact: to transport D1 from the Fyansford site, it was decided that road transport was to be used, so they jacked up the loco, disconnected and removed the bogies and installed road train dollies in there place. It made for quite the interesting photo!

[@matthewpowell2429]

I already knew about the FS670 Steam Locomotive after seeing it on a poster I have, as well as a tycoon game I play.

[@PiersDJackson]

A list of the Garratts in Australasia - 0-4-0+0-4-0 (K class 1909) Tasmanian Government Railway 2-6-0+0-6-2 (M class 1911) Western Australian Government Railways 2-6-0+0-6-2 (Ms class 1912) Western Australian Government Railways 2-6-0+0-6-2 (G class 1926) Victorian Railways 2-6-0+0-6-2 (Msa class 1930) Western Australian Government Railways 2-6-0+0-6-2 (unclassed 1936/39) Australian Portland Cement 2-6-2+2-6-2 (L class 1912) Tasmanian Government Railway 4-4-2+2-4-4 (M class 1912) Tasmanian Government Railway 4-6-2+2-6-4 (G-class 1928) New Zealand Government Railways 4-8-2+2-8-4 (unclassed 1929) Emu Bay Railways 4-8-2+2-8-4 (Australian Standard Garratt 1943) Queensland Railways/Tasmanian Government Railway/Western Australian Government Railways/Emu Bay Railways/Australian Portland Cement 4-8-2+2-8-4 (Beyer-Garratt class 1951) Queensland Railways 4-8-2+2-8-4 (400 class 1953) South Australian Railways 4-8-4+4-8-4 (AD60 class 1952) New South Wales Government Railways

[@PiersDJackson]

Of note the WAGR M class was the basis for the upgraded Ms class, and the Msa class, as well as the VR G class, and the APC models. The Tasmanian L class were similar, but more a development of the errors in the K class and a counterpoint to the M class, which were intended for express passenger service, with eight cylinders.

[@Jimboliah3985]

3:40 *The LMS Fury locomotive did it at roughly 1600 PSI.* ;)

[@iankemp1131]

Nope, 900 psi, and even that was too much as it blew a tube and caused a fatality, after which it was converted to a conventional locomotive.

[@Xalerdane]

Was there ever an oil-burning Garrett? Because I’m thinking that if someone was to design one, the cab could be moved to the front of the middle component, increasing crew visibility.

[@PiersDJackson]

The answer is yes, there were oil burning Garratts...... but if you consider them as oversized Tank engines that bend, most smaller ones were driven backwards almost half the time. These Fyansford examples were similar to the Victorian Railways G class (1926).

[@Gordanovich02]

Now... I don't mean to be, well, mean, but that Italian loco looks for all the world like they designed a tank engine, and then someone asked "where does the water go?" Then there was a lot of gesticulating and multi-syllable cursing, resolved by hooking a little water bowser onto the back.

[@KibuFox]

One that you have probably never heard of, was the Davenport Duplex. Not a lot is known about this engine, of which only five were ever built. They were an odd geared locomotive that used regular pistons and a jackshaft to drive their axles, which were located on bogies. What set them apart from other geared locomotives, was the fact that they had a steam powered shifter, and could switch between high, and low gear on the fly.

[@woodrubber4538]

I think the Union Railroad's 0-10-2s would fit in a list like this.

[@niallitty2592]

The bellarine railway is restoring the ASG to running order at the moment

[@CardScientist]

The only reason I knew the FS670 existed was because it is in Railroad Tycoon 3. But I never knew what it was called because I don't think the game called it the the FS670, at least on the disk version (just aged myself didn't I...)

[@Bragbigfoot]

the only reason I knew abouth thw FS670 is BCS i'm italian

[@JohnGeorgeBauerBuis]

I also knew about it from a couple British books on express passenger locomotives.

[@jameskubajak8489]

The Canadian Pacific's 8000 isn't the only 2-10-4 Skerik on its roster, but it's the most powerful and has a unique engineering design! The fact it has 3 cylinders and a high-pressure boiler was it's downfall.

[@ianmandy127]

Here in south africa we had a similar thing called a class 18 worth a read

[@ianmandy127]

It was a 2-10-2 with 3 cylinders

[@CrazyGWR57XXmanufacturer]

00:03:13 That is an example of a Locomotive owned by the Canadian Pacific that I have a reason for me to be proud to be Canadian.

[@ianmandy127]

I think a video on the sas sar class 26 would be great

[@richardnelson-ux1zz]

Very excellent video lots of inspiration and information about this locomotive

[@bladeobrian2144]

Didn’t Canadian Pacific have a full on fleet of “Selkirks”? They were streamlined like the Royal Hudsons.

[@geebs76]

Cool video! Thanks Darkness.

[@StickwithBrooklyn]

Wait! I have a recommendation if you make another one of this type of list. My recommendation is Norfolk & Western 1100. she's basically A N&W M class but high-pressured and has streamlining with skyline casing. She's an Oddball, and she's not well known, either, so she fits perfectly with this list, the only reason I'm sending you this because of the CP T-4A you included. Also, she kinda looks like she has that SpongeBob fish stare meme because of the length of her boiler/smokebox.

[@roadwolf2]

Geelong isn't pronounced “GEE-long“ but is pronounced “JA-long”

[@carltonkeys6205]

If you say so 😅

[@matsv201]

Here is the thing. High-voltage electrical motors is pretty much impossible to control. They are either on or of. You can´t regulate either speed nor power. So most electric trains use a transformer to convert the 15-25kV electric voltage to typically 4kV electric voltage that is much easier to use then either rectified and feed into a DC motor, or feed into a multi-current motor or a AC motor. Some locos used "rotary rectifiers" that is a AC motor that turn a DC generator that in turn power the DC motors. But some (specially early on) used other means of power transfer. Using a AC motor directly from the power line powering a gearbox or a fluid transfer case. Having a pneumatic transfer really just the same thing. The problem with both transformers and rotary-transformers is that they are both heavy and expensive. This made the sort of electrical train revolution in 1960 with electronics having both electronic rectifiers and thyristors. Having a compact small transformer than running a somewhat efficient DC motor that would be replaced with transistors and AC asynchronous-motors in the 80s that would be even more efficient and synchronous motors in the 2010s that is even more efficient. The benefit of a pnumatic drive is that it would be fairly cheap and light, the draw back would probobly be that the efficiency would be fairly low. Still the efficiency of a rotary-transformer at the time was also fairly low

[@tomasbarbosa8654]

Portugal's stem engines, I think, never had classes, they just had series numbers (cp series 001, cp series 01 to 08), but some series like the 501 to 508 are sometimes called series 500. These days we still call them series but are more like series 1400 or 2600

[@iBackshift]

That Canadian loco, wow, looked Big-Chungus with the tech guy standing beside the drive wheel. I wonder how much traction force it had.

[@Captain_Timezone]

2:17 i think this one was on a train picture in my dads house

[@David_Mattox]

9:26 XD Gotta say, I never expected that to be made into a joke.

[@angeloinfinity3054]

Italy is represented once more! And such a great choice, thank you darkness! Next up I'd suggest the SFAI RM 300 class (later FS Gr. 650): they are a class of locomotives that have an interesting history and some of them are also amon the few named italian lomotives, among which is the first of the class named "Vittorio Emanuele II"

[@JohnGeorgeBauerBuis]

The PO electrics I’d also read about in a British (of course) book on express passenger locomotives and multiple units. It also covered the Italian cab forwards.

[@richardnelson-ux1zz]

Would like to see more history on these locomotives 🎉

[@asteroidrules]

The idea of an "electro-pneumatic" locomotive initially made me think of an electric steam loco. During World War 2, facing rising coal prices and nearly 75% rail electrification, Swiss Federal Railways converted a couple 0-6-0 steam locomotives to use electric boilers. The design was exceptionally strange, adding an overhead pantograph for pickup, a rectifier in place of the coal bunker, and an electric heating coil in the firebox, but otherwise retaining all the features and mechanisms of a steam locomotive. It was the only time someone combined steam and electric locomotives in such a way, although unfortunately they were all converted back to regular coal-burners after the war.

[@iankemp1131]

An ingenious idea but a huge waste of electricity - converting it to steam and then back to power at about 6-7% efficiency. Even the best power stations converted fuel and steam to electricity at only 30-40% efficiency. Once you've got electricity, use it directly in motors!

[@williamnichols467]

Here’s a video idea for you: Five trains that are in the US that aren’t American

[@matthewpowell2429]

I can't remember if did, but if you didn't, could you please do a video on NKP 587?

[@oldninjarider]

Geelong is pronounced "jell long" not "G long"

[@NZHazard]

How about NZR H Class, a Fell type locomotive locomotive?

[@PiersDJackson]

That would be good with the other "third rail" railways, like the Abt Cog and the like.

[@avilok4880]

the Timken 4-8-4 would fit in this category well since it was a advert engine for timken roller bearings.

[@choochoooo317]

9:12 i find this part simular to how we barely see any shays in britain

[@westernstudios2484]

Could you make a list of the worst Railcars?

[@amtrakproductions-mx9ib]

Please do the german class 52 2-10-0s there were 7,794 of them built, and they were built between 1942-1950

[@waltrogers9770]

The most important question...Who does #2 work for!?

[@KitsuneCentral]

That's right! You tell that turd who's boss!

[@ShinGhidorah17]

Missed opportunity to not include the NSB Class 49.

[@user-iw3jl7kz7w]

can you make one with preserved two could be tweetsie railroad 12 and 190

[@iBackshift]

Hope you can do a "Halifax explosion" documentary one day.

[@gheorgheconroy5102]

Can you do a video of steam trains being restored 😊

[@andrewbowen4544]

Was hoping a British Rail Class would be on this list.

[@Elliottblancher]

There really isn't anything interesting about mos of British Rails diesels

[@nicoferguson1215]

Who said anything about a BR Diesel? Those might make up the majority of BR, yes, but there's others...... I do believe that there's a few electrics

[@robertwilloughby8050]

Not quite British Rail, but how about North Eastern Railways ELECTRIC no13? Designed for an electrification that never happened (at least, not until 1991, and with AC, not no13's DC), the poor thing hauled a few test trains, then was left as a "works pet", never to run again. It was said to be an absolute BEAST on test, but..... we'll never know exactly what it could have done.😢🤬

[@andrewbowen4544]

Fought I put 101 in. I didn't

[@robertwilloughby8050]

@@andrewbowen4544 I suppose no-one outside of the UK would know what the BR Class 101 (and it's cousins the 102 and the 111) Met-Cam units would be. But Darkness has talked about them before, and there was A LOT of them. Something like the BR Class 110's (gloriously powerful, reasonably reliable, not many built) or the experiment fest that was the BR Class 109 (tubular frames, very reliable, also not many built) might be a good look by our Darkness.

[@The_New_IKB]

FS 670 was in railroad tycoon 3!

[@patrickwines9551]

Not a Garrett per say, but davenport made a few duplexes that could be confused with em, being ment to compete with hystler and climax.

[@stanleepatterson95]

The cc&v in colorado has a garret

[@teerthrajtirpude1950]

Whenever I looked at ab early electric locomotive I as kid misidentified them for being some special kind of steam locomotive

[@manicmechanic448]

Who does number 2 work for?

[@koppadasao]

Come on! NSB Class XXI and XXII, please!

[@TheGs4_4449]

Alternative title: “Top 5 Locomotives That Are in the Darkness (Like Me)”

[@theromanorder]

please do a video on the porters steam loco the Japanese class d5, the Chinese QJ 2,10,2 or just exsamples of asian trains how do gear trains work something on saddle bolier and side tanks (like the big water boxes) tank engines double ended diesel trains what to do if the train stalls one talking about the different types of steam funnles and there uses, a video on steam locomotive combination breaks (steam and vacuum brakes) a short video on how a Armstrong turn table works what did train flagman do what did trains (mostly steam) do when going in tunnels, ive heard of gas masks or just useing a wet cloth, or did they bring in other engines like later on they used electric trains, or were there no bigv tunnels. evaluation of electric trains why are some trains wagion tops (the stream lining thing to boilers) railway terms abd slang one on the meaning of flag and lantern colors like green on rear engine means theres another one coming soon, the different types of cut offs/reversers/Johnson bar some are a big lever, some are a big valve wheel, and ive also seen some that are like rods, one exsample is train sim world 3 and im not sure where to find the other reverser and how much water do steam trains take usually, and how much would the crew drink

[@andrewiantorno6942]

Love those classes. The QJ is a pretty strong locomotive to. For 2-10-2s, there fairly strong.

[@dinosauralan.9486]

I believe you may need to re-do your comments as per the two Garratts spoken of at the end of this video, they were both as your quite correctly mention built by Beyer-Peacock of Gorton, Manchester. However they were know as the `K` class, they being K 1 & K 2 of the 0 - 4 - 0 + 0 -4- 0 wheel configuration. Not as that stated in the video. K1 survives still , but when returned to Beyer - Peacock in the UK for restoration parts of K 2 were found to have been recycled. The Locomotive is now to be seen I believe upon display in the `Barn` of the Statfold Barn Railway collection, near Tamworth, Staffordshire, England. PS, I recommend you undertake just a little more research and confirm your findings within your subjects to be described and please slow down your seemingly excited narration too.

[@shadyhaze2013]

@dinosauralan.9486, you are correct in that there was a "K" class Garrett and there wheel arrangement was 0-4-0 + 0-4-0, however K1 & K2 (the first two Garratts ever built) were built in 1909 for the Tasmanian Government Railway and ran on a line approximately 430km (267 miles) South South East away from Fyansford, whereas the two Garretts spoken of were built in 1939 for the cement works. You are correct that K1 is currently at Statfold Barn Railway, and is operational as of late 2020 after a rebuild. Regards, a former member of the mentioned Bellerine Railway

[@shadowdemon9931]

I want to say one thing and that I'm pretty sure there was a reality shift cuz I swear that the Shay was called the hush hush

[@mcmadness110]

The electro-pneumatic locomotive reminds me of the air hybrid technology Peugeot Citron was working on but gave up on because they felt the technology had too little financial return for the investment.

[@havoc3742]

very good, interesting loco's you picked, but one thing, Geelong's pronounced JHE-long, come from the gutteral bastardized dialect from the early colonials amalgamating and possibly trying to pronounce an aboriginal name in Australian English.

[@SimonTekConley]

Interesting not well known electrics would be interesting

[@chefchaudard3580]

Ganz PO locomotive proved to be very unreliable. The electrical part, and the rods, damaged by the shocks at high speed, caused numerous troubles. In the 20s, PO electrified its main line with 1500V DC. The goal was to reduce coal consumption, very expensive in France, as it had to be imported in part from Germany or the UK ( France was never sefsufficient in coal and mines in France were deep, less cost effective). After thorough testing of several prototypes, including a GE ALCO electric locomotive, an obsolete design with its gearless transmission, The company settled on a 2D2 with a Büchli transmission, designed in Switzerland by Winterthur and BBC for passenger trains. Electrical part could have been redesigned, using the feed back from other, more successful, prototypes, but the connecting rods were seen as unsuitable for passenger electrical locomotives, because of the very high unsprung weights. So, there was no attempt to improve them, and only the maximum speed was reduced down to reduce strain on the drivetrain.

[@rfirtfan2809]

now do a video on modern steam

[@TrainMedia00]

1:03 Southern Pacific in a Nutshell

[@Aquatarkus96]

I think Orleans, Fr. is pronounced closer to, but not exactly like orelayon. Not entirely sure though so feel free to ignore :)

[@iankemp1131]

Why include the Garratts, let alone as #1? The other 4 locomotives are quite novel in concept, but Garratts 1 and 2 are fairly standard examples of a type that was widely used because it was good. So what is so obscure about them? They had no class number - big deal. Sounds like it was an industrial railway that hardly owned any engines.

[@clevelandmaker386]

I love Garretts....if I had screw you money I would have a 2-10-4+2-6-4 Garrett named Kangaroo jack

[@LemonSpacebirb]

Sorry to say this but you said geelong wrong It is pronounced Like juh-long

[@Low760]

Je-long. Not gee long

[@francisboyle1739]

Remember to put the stress on the second syllable and use a soft 'g' and the first syllable falls into place.

[@thekriptik1226]

What on earth is that pronunciation of Geelong? "Juh-long" is what you want.

[@wobblyboost]

Stop taking statins. Nice video.