Re: Why 1472 Days?

Although the 1472 day rule sounds like the same 1472 days of the previous FRA rule, it is actually more liberal in some ways, particularly for tourist railroads and museums. The FRA counted any day with fire and pressure in the boiler within any month as having accumulated that month's service. In other words, if a museum fired their engine up once or twice per month, they would use up a month of service time. Under today's rule, they would only use up one or two days.

If there was a steam railroad today that ran 365 days per year, the current rule would actually be more restrictive, since it is 1472 days period, with no extensions, whereas the old FRA rules would allow a couple of one year extensions. Railroads like the C&TS can now get 10 years of service before tearing down the boiler, whereas before it might have been from 4 to 6 years. Groups like the 4449 and 1225 can now get a full 15 years of service before having to tear everything down. In the UK, the rule is 10 years on a boiler before a mandatory overhaul.

As far as tubes today, it is a mixed bag. There was a rash of premature tube failures a few years ago, blamed variously on improper water treatment and on inferior metallurgy. If the steel for your tube came from China, look out. The best tubes today come from Germany and bring Mercedes prices. How you care for your boiler no doubt makes a big difference in tube life.

Michael