Hello Rick!
Tuesday October 28 1997 11:28, Rick Jones wrote to Ken Freeman:
 -> TW>> But the Big Boy would have the best PR value to whoever operated
 ->> it.
 ->> True, but where would you run it? From what I've heard, those things
 ->> pounded
 ->> the whatsis out of the rail and ballast, and needed nice broad
 ->> sweeping curves.
 RJ>     They somehow managed to get the thing to the Fairplex in Pomona, CA 
by
 RJ> rail, not by truck. There's a picture somewhere at the NRHS facility 
there
 RJ> showing it being pulled over Cajon Pass, so it's requirements aren't
 RJ> impossible to meet.
But at a snails pace on some of the curves, obstacles. Not impossible but I 
doubt that BB could do it at excursion speeds. They also had one at Steam 
Town, Bellows Falls, VT, but now in Scranton, PA.
And the Big Boy  had to be shipped from the Alco plant, in NY(?) I believe, 
to the UP. It wasn't a 'Do-It-Yourself' kit after receiving many carloads of 
parts. :)
 RJ> As far as running it flat out...maybe the Santa Fe tracks east of
 RJ> Barstow to Flagstaff and beyond, out through New Mexico into Texas?
 RJ> Or the Southern Pacific in the same region? I think there's some L O
 RJ> N G straight sections of rail out there. I just wonder if there are
 RJ> any shop facilities still left that could handle the work on an
 RJ> engine that size, other than the Cheyenne shops maintaining #3985?
The only turntable I know that is still operational that could handle the Big 
Boy, is at Cheyenne. On shorter tt's, they had to pull the engine on, with 
lead and trailing trucks not on the tt and then jack them up so they would 
clear the tracks. Then they could turn it. Quite an operation when they did 
that on the shorter tt's.
                               -=[Bob]=-
Internet:
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rowingender@worldnet.att.com
rwingend@mail.orion.org
... Retreat hell! We're just fighting in another direction.
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