Re: Most difficult to fire in terms of skill

I agree with Russ. I've done limited coal but lots of oil.

Oil is a mental challenge, You have to account for any and all throttle movements, even hooking up or dropping done on the Johnson Bar affects how you fire behaves. You have to listen to the sounds of the fire and watch your stack color. Wheel slip will throw everything into chaos sometimes. You have to pay constant attention, its not just "going for a ride" you have to be alert. Now some engines are more forgiving then others, Shay 9 you could just about fire in your sleep, she gets hot easy. 111 will make a fool of you fast if your not on top of her. Her compressor will suck out your fire if its too low, and her cylinders are so big their exhaust will take it away really fast. And she likes to explode when she relights. Little 12 was a dream, she had an external compressor exhust and little cylinders, and a short boiler so it was easy to get hot and keep it that way. Only time I ever had a bad day with her was when a fire brick fell in front of the burner, but it still made it up the hill and ran all day (still don't know how). 40 is a lot like 111, once you get her hot she wants to go, but you have to watch her carefully, you can't sit back and relax (but she is not quite as demanding as 111).