When I was firing in the summer of 1990, my regular Engineer, Chad Martin?, told me a story about he was on the 497, I think as fireman, and they were going up the steepest grade of the short stretch of 4% around MP483? And the pipe out of the side of the steam dome to the whistle cracked, split sideways and they had to turn on the injectors and do everything the could do to get up over the 4% hump to tie down on the other side where it is probably only 2% or less as they knew they would have to dump the fire and the steam for air pump and brakes would be gone and then you would have one heavy train standing on the worst grade only with hand brakes on the coaches, the weight of the engine would be pushing on them DOWNHILL...in the end they decided that it was metal embrittlement failure due to overheating from the proximity of the pipe to the roof fire, pretty high up, whistle naturally was replaced but not the pipe.
I wish someone would collect these stories of all the of mechanical failure and how the train crews deal with it, but for an industry serving tourists, it would surely not make them feel an easier...or help the Business. Will just have to keep most of my experience to myself or share with railroaders. Sure gives you respect for the crews in old days without roads, pickup trucks with spare parts and tools. The only thing that comes close are the occasional trains that get snowed in around the world probably only once every 5-10 years judging by Internet pictures...
Hats off to the D&S employees that pulled that off. The German National RR Museums Roundhouse in Nuremberg burned down on an early Saturday morning in 2005, the steam engines are still being occasionally cosmetically restored, one pacific 01 150 and the Adler copy now run again, but the heritage Diesels and Electrics were all scrap, imagine tanks of diesel catching fire under the belly of a diesel...the steamers sitting over pits still had grease in their bearings.
Cause, outside company repairing leaks in the tarred roof on a Friday and then not leaving a firewatch, which use to be standard practice...
Thor Windbergs
Ludwigsburg, Germany
Facebook: Thor Windbergs
Volunteer G&L RR 86-88
Fireman/Engine Watchman D&S 90-94
Member Frankfurter Feldbahn Musuem, feldbahn-ffm.de
Member IFPPC (Society for Preservation of Perus Pirapora Railroad) Brazil www.internationalsteam.co.uk/trains/brazil54.htm
Member German Standard gauge Group www.eisenbahnfreunde-zollernbahn.de
