• Winter Operations of Steam Locomotives

  • Discussion relating to the pre-1983 B&M and MEC railroads. For current operations, please see the Pan Am Railways Forum.
Discussion relating to the pre-1983 B&M and MEC railroads. For current operations, please see the Pan Am Railways Forum.

Moderator: MEC407

  by TPR37777
 
Does anyone here know what the conditions were like inside the cab of the last generation steam locomotives during nights like this? Was the cab buttoned up at all, or did the boiler give off enough heat to make it bearable? Were the shops heated? I can't imagine being able to heat the cavernous buildings in North Billerica. I only ask because I work mostly outside on the night shift and I can not fathom working in northern Maine with temperatures like they saw this week.
  by RGlueck
 
If experience is a teacher, with a good fire and a better fireman, the draft of wind around the crew's necks and backs might be bothersome, but inside the cab, with the curtain shut,
it would be close to sitting in your living room with the wood stove fired. Now understand, the fireman in a hand-bomber would have to go out and keep the coal moving and broken up, and that would require "stepping out onto the porch", so to speak. If he had an auger fed locomotive, the crew would be very comfortable.
Now, consider Union Pacific's situation. The Big Boys were power fed and had immense fireboxes, yet the cabs were provided with steel doors due to Wyoming winter winds. Canadian National and Canadian Pacific's more modern steam locomotives had steel door enclosed cabs as well. Then the engineer, fireman, and brakeman, would each have to get out periodically to check the running gear.

A good answer would be, it was almost comfortable.
  by MEC407
 
Operating them in the heat of summer was another matter, I suspect. :wink: