4014 chain drive

Well, my thought is that the chain is just transmitting a limited reciprocating motion to the lubricator.

This is an interesting question.  Thanks for posting.  We await an authoritative answer . . .

I don't know why they're running it without the guards. Myself I'd want the guards on there like ALCO intended.

Maybe @Hot Water can comment.

@CALNNC posted:

The 4014 has a chain drive to the lubricator.  In older pics, the chain in contained in a metal enclosure, guessing mimicking some bicycles back in the day who had their chains sealed up and in an oil bath.

No, no "oil bath". Simply z sheet-metal cover over the chain assembly.

But now it is out in the open, and when I observed it running, noted quite a bit of slack in the chain.

When 4014 was first returned to service, the steam crew had not had enough time to fabricate new covers for the lubricator chain drives. You might check more recent photos of 4014.

  Does it ever jump the sprockets?

No, as there really is not that much movement.

Check-out page 53, in the book "Big Boy", by William Kratville (Copyright, 2004), there is a nice close-up photo of the cover over the chain drive.

Thanks for all the updated info on the chain drive, and it does move quite a bit.  The UP844 video still on Youtube with it running 75MPH has some great closeups of the lubricator ratcheting around, while the 4014 is smooth.

@CALNNC posted:

The UP844 video still on Youtube with it running 75MPH has some great closeups of the lubricator ratcheting around, while the 4014 is smooth.

That depends in which lubricator arrangement you are looking at, on 4014.

Yeah, I guess you're right, but it is related to the question about chains. Nothing more from me about trucks ...

@feet posted:

I don't know why they're running it without the guards. Myself I'd want the guards on there like ALCO intended.

Alco didn't build them with the chain drive for the front lubricator. The were built with a linkage from the expansion link to the lubricator. Over time it was found that the linkage wasn't robust enough to handle the stress and would frequently break. So UP went and developed the chain drive system, with the Z-channel cover to help keep dirt off of the chain.

Stuart

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