Jb 1236 - Struggling for Steam

[@tonymckeage1028]

Great Video, Love the View and the noise! Thank you

[@johnbovay8353]

Excellent video and audio! Thank you!

[@michalkedrigern7653]

ouu shit, best sounds steam..nice panorama country video...

[@ScooterZn]

Poor old girl! It seems a shame they have to keep running her until she stops but I guess they have to try and get her off the track before the next scheduled train comes along.

[@keithtanner2806]

If she is “struggling for steam” how is it then that there is a constant feather of steam from the safety valves?

[@TheKiwianTrainspotting]

That is the dynamo (steam powered generator), not the safety valves. During the climb the loco was only running at about 130psi

[@Rey-ju8ic]

Why was she pulling Capital Connection carriages? I would have thought they'd be needed to run the actual connection.

[@53over]

I did hear, not sure how true it is, but someone put a load of Transformer oil, in her bunker,not designed to burn!

[@exutiku]

Love the old steamers, first scene is Utiku, second scene is coming up the hill from the Taihape rail yard (used to be a station!) parallel with Mataroa Road, shot is probably taken from the Ruru Road rail crossing and the third shot with the 'curious' cattle is the climb parallal to Mataroa Village Road towards the village of Mataroa. From there she started to sound like she was generating enough steam but wouldn't want to wager any funds as to whether or not she managed the climb up to Waiouru.

[@kjksteam]

If you look at the last still shot you will see she didn't get past Matoroa. Luckily was a spare electric loco on a good train which was available to get train to Tangiwai.

[@exutiku]

@@kjksteam TY for the reply mate. I grew up in a railway family and lived in a railway house right beside a cutting, I'll will never forget the sights, sounds and smells associated with the steam engines. I can't help but think that the youngsters of today will probably have similar memories in their dotage relating to diesel and electric loco's lol

[@haroldwilkes6608]

Love that kind of country, it makes me want to climb just one more hill to see what's there...and repeat. That grade is really deceptive.

[@bigkiwimike]

MLS has been trying for years to turn water into fuel oil. Yet again they show it can't be done.

[@joelmclean3283]

Not water, it was cold oil that did it.

[@joelmclean3283]

But don't quote me on that, it was what the fireman told me.

[@malcolmmidgley]

There is also a noticeable clonk from the motion, not good straight from overhaul. Great video though.

[@billmorris2613]

That clonk is from the clearance between the rod bearings and the pins on the driving wheels, which should be .025 of an inch. They make the clonking sound each time the bearings change from pulling on the pin to pushing on the pins. It’s common on a lot of steam engines.

[@billmorris2613]

At the 3:14 mark you can hear the clonk. Watch the rear driver and the clonk occurs each time the connecting rod is around the 10:00 o’clock position. The camera is a pretty good distance from the engine so when you hear the clonk it actually happened just after connecting rod reached the 9:00 o’clock position. Sound travels much slower than sight. As the connecting rod goes through the 9:00 position the connecting rod with its bearing goes from pushing on the pin to pulling on the pin. So the bearing in the rod is taking up the clearance of about .025 of an inch. The engine at this point is working very hard climbing a grade, and the rods may need greasing. That grease is very hard and looks like a block of fudge, but much harder, and it does not taste as good. If the clearance is full of the grease the movement still happens but the grease muffles the clonk.

[@gedungisphoopnuchle9121]

Steam locos inherently make clonking noises...however you can hear it very distinctly from far away!

[@rodsmith3911]

They may be struggling against the gradient, but no way are they struggling for steam. As a former steam fireman I can see that in all the shots there is a show of steam at the safety valves, proving that the fireman has her right on the red line! She couldn't be making any more steam without blowing off.

[@kjksteam]

Not sure about the safety valves passing steam, perhaps not seated properly, but they definitely were not going to lift them. Problem was bad oil (oil burner loco). In the end they hooked an electric on front as seen on last shot. Have a look at other later video of this loco I posted, shows it performing when steaming properly.

[@raystarky3896]

Wow how sad! the overhaulers probably did not have all the neccessary parts to make a complete rebuilt with spec parts necessary, Wished i could have been there to volunteer as a Machinist/welder/fabricator help out

[@gavinwhitelaw86]

Do you actually KNOW what you are talking about? This was due to poor oil/burner problems. NOTHING to do with "spec parts".

[@raystarky3896]

@@gavinwhitelaw86 OK to answer your QUESTION! I BELIEVE I DO YYI. from what your video "was the 1st outing and description below said it was a problem with the after overhaul/ So maybe that you are so well versed in that engine maybe you can tell us how a OIL BURNER problem would not be part of a "spec parts"

[@Kiwigeo8339]

@@raystarky3896 issue was with the fuel oil...not the burners. Nothing to do with "non spec" parts......you don't buy off the shelf parts for a locomotive built in 1939.

[@raystarky3896]

@@Kiwigeo8339 exactly correct! a Machinst does not take parts of the shelf to make parts for a machine built in 1840! UNLESS he is going to alter the part to make a machine made for1939

[@paullangford8179]

Was there some problem with the burners?

[@marvinwatkins8889]

In that last panoramic scene, it would appear that cattle are not steam train watchers, but would rather stampede instead. Hopefully they have a greater appreciation for quiet electric power. Diesel, who knows? Seeing how the steamer was struggling to get through, it may be no surprise that Kiwi had to help it back. It just plumb got tuckered out!

[@haroldwilkes6608]

The cows outrunning the engine are thinking, "you don't need horsepower, you need cow-power."

[@rmz250k7]

Plenty of steam in the first two shots! lots of smoke in that last shot..

[@frankmcwilliams618]

Get some, smoky joe!

[@kerryjames7150]

Maybe they should tube it out on the run , clean the tubes , steams a whole loy better .

[@abbottcooper3243]

Scared the cows.