Rich Melvin, Great Story

Thanks very much, Rick.

 

It is a day I will never forget, that's for sure!

Rich, I too just finished your story of your running the loco. It was a great story and one that you will remember forever. Your magazine reflects this love of railroading. I'll keep reading, you keep publishing. Paul 

That's a deal, Paul.

Rich,

 

I expect you will receive many a positive response to your piece in the December OGR.  I received my copy yesterday and as usual read it backwards...when I got to the front and your story, it was like a very special desert.  Your excellent writing welcomed me into the cab and the photos certainly show the warmth you feel for being connected to the living steam.  Thank you so much for sharing with us.  Please continue to do so for a very long time.  You are greatly appreciated!

 

Richard Snipes

4501 Safari

Richard, your comments are humbling. Thank you very much.

Rich Great Story,

 

Pardon my ignorance but would you expound on the term:

 

" Flange Greasers"

 

I have often wondered  what sort or wear the horseshoe curve receives and causes to the track and wheels. Maybe this is the answer.

 

I know Dad always talked about spinning a tire and how unpleasant  things got when that happened.

 

Jim

 

 

From the New River Gorge to Horseshoe Curve, 765 has never been in better hands! 

A "flange greaser" is a device that puts a little grease on the inside edge of the rail each time a wheel goes by it. They are used in territory where there are a lot of curves. They lubricate the inner edge of the rail and thus minimize the wear on the rail on curves.

 

Over time the grease will accumulate in and around the greaser location and it will migrate to the ball (top) of the rail for a short distance. That makes the area at the greaser and beyond a few car lengths a bit slippery!

 

Thanks for the kind words, Art. I get to work with a great team on the 765 crew!

Hi Rich,

   

As mentioned above by RickO, I always enjoy the articles in OGR. I thoroughly enjoyed your article. It was very interesting.

 

Thanks, Alex

Will the new DE begin with December or should I grab a hard copy.  Would love to see the article.

Well written and informative. One of those times when a person wishes he could be 2 places at once. Inside the cab and outside watching..

The latest issue in the OGR Digital Library will be the December issue. You're good.

Does anyone know if a video was made ot the climb of horseshoe curve?

It was not PRR 1361 (Bad!)

 

A live steam engine which showed what steam could do:  GREAT!

Horse Shoe Curve...that was nothing compaired to Rich running 765 up the ICRR Kentucky Division in 1992....with a REAL IC Whistle!!!

 

For that, Thanks Rich...er...Mr. Melvin.

 

Rick Bivins

 

P.S. I'm the one that wanted to wrestle you for your hat......I wear once in a while!

 

P.S.S. I know Horse Shoe Curve IS something...really I do!

Lots of videos of this move on YouTube...many of them absolutely awful.

 

THIS IS ONE OF THE GOOD ONES.

 

and ANOTHER ONE.

 I thought it was hyped up here. I have to admit that I could feel the rails reading the story. Yeah, I have no train exp. It's cool to experience it through stories like this. I didn't know until recently, how much trains struggle on rail conditions. I used to think ice was the only enemy. I figured water was no match for that much weight. I watched a video describing Ross Rowland's* abilities a while back and realized there's much more going on in those cabs.

 (spelling?)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SiV1hb4PYGA

Arthur, that video is way too shaky to suit me.

Hi Rich,

Got my copy in the mail today and I have to echo the thoughts and sentiments of the rest of the guys, what a great article and as usual the rest of the magazine wasn't bad either although I haven't really looked at the rest that closely. : )  After reading your article I just glanced thru the rest as my better half was on my case to get to the dinner table.  Thanks for a truly great article, and I really enjoyed my cab ride on the 765 thru your story.  We have an SP C-19 (2-8-0) here in El Paso, I've run it a few times and it was the thrill of a life time but pails in comparison to your adventures.  Thanks so much for sharing your wonderful story with us.

Rich, I know the trip around the curve had to be one of the highlights in your long career with 765. I have not read the article yet, and you may have commented on this, but I was wondering how Mr. Moorman liked his ride!

 

Ed

Argh! My copy came Saturday but I haven't had time to do more than just flip through it.

Ed, I got the impression that he was very pleased, not only with his ride in the 765, but also with the overall results of the 21st Century Steam Program. We'll be back on the curve again in 2013 - several times.

 

By the way, something I did not mention in the article was that he ran the 765 from Cresson to Latrobe, where he had to get off the train and head back to Norfolk. I hear he did a very good job.

I only get the On-Line version(save a tree or two), so haven't read it yet, but am looking forward to the 1st of Nov.

Just what I hoped to hear, Rich! Maybe I'll get lucky and be at one of those runs around the big curve next year.

I would imagine that a good bit of the reason Mr. Moorman was pleased is how well the 765, which is in near perfect shape, performs.

But I'm thinking that a large part of what made 765's travels on NS so well received are the operating and support crews of the 765's organization.

As a railfan, I'd like to thank you, and all of 765's men and women (and Mr Moorman and NS) for what all of you have done for railfanning.

 

Ed

Thanks for your kind words, Ed. They are truly appreciated.

 

Much of what you have said is true in that NS was very pleased with the performance of both the 765 and the performance of her crew.

 

The 765's crew is a wonderful team of people who share a common interest in steam locomotives and the history that they represent. I end up getting a lot of the attention given to our organization because I'm often in the right-hand seat running the 765. But the fact is that we are a TEAM and every person on the team has a position to play. And every person on the team plays their position very well.

 

We owe a lot to the late Glenn Brendel, who was project manager for the 765's overhaul. Glenn was the guy who had the original idea to get the 765 out of the park back in 1972. Glenn devoted his entire adult life to the society, as an officer, board member, 765 crewman, project manager and president. He insisted on high standards and professionalism from everyone, but he didn't just bark orders and expect everyone to jump at his commands. He did so with the quiet confidence of a born leader. He skillfully instilled a culture among the crew that made everyone on the crew WANT to do well. Glenn's legacy lives on today and we would not THINK of tarnishing that legacy with slipshod standards of performance.

 

As for 2013 and 765 on Horseshoe Curve again, we will be selling PUBLIC TICKETS for those trips! When the time comes, you'll know about it here and on the 765's web site. They will probably run in May or June of 2013. I have a meeting with NS in mid-November to finalize the 765's 2013 schedule.

 

VERY cool, and a well deserved round of congratulations.  It couldn't have happened to a better group.  I'm sure you guys made a lot of friends this summer.  I still don't think the town of Fostoria, OH has forgotten the barnstorming appearance on the first day's ferry move to Bellevue.  We ran into a bunch of people who went investigating because they heard that whistle.  Here's hoping NS lifts the closed vestibule rule for that trip.  The sound will be awesome and it's just wrong to isolate all the passengers from that experience through a pane of glass.

 

Now, we just have to convince NS to let you trade places with the 630/4501 one year to make the southern tour.  It's been WAY too long since the 765 visited the south.

Kevin

Sounds like a wonderful story. I think I'm the last guy in the country to get my magazine so I'll just have to wait. Don

I would like to echo Ed's sentiments. I think I might be able to speak for most of my NS coworkers, that we all enjoyed this year's operations. Many who did not know ahead of time were pleasantly surprised when they gazed upon the 765, many of whom never have seen a steam locomotive before. Though I still have a long way's to go to be a intergral part of the steam crew (being one of the newer volunteers), I have a tremendous respect for the experts in steam, including those who taught me some of the basics.

Rich, it was great to work alongside you and the other volunteers while at Conway, however small the tasks were asked of me. Hope to repeat the same things next year!

Mike, we appreciated your help. We'll be spending some time at Conway again in 2013. Probably just an overnight layover on a deadhead move, but we'll likely be there again.

 

We may also go through Conway a couple times on a trip from somewhere in Ohio to Pittsburgh and back.

I really enjoyed the story about the trip on Horseshoe Curve as well.  Great job Rich!  Thanks.

 

Happy Model Railroading,

Mark Boyce

Butler, Pennsylvania

So Rich, knowing where the greasers are, do you take precautionary action like nothing back the throttle or opening the sanders?  Which also has me thinking: are the sanders on/off or are they variable?  Do you keep the sand on all the way up the hill, or just give it a shot when you slip?  I understand all the theoretical basics of how a steam locomotive works (although I still can't quite grasp the physics of how the reverse works) but book learning doesn't really tell me anything about what it's *like* to run that steel lady.  Kind of like you can teach someone exactly what the steering wheel and pedals on a car do and how, and even how it all works, but that doesn't mean they can drive.

Your article is just AWESOME, I wish I was with you enjoying the ride.

On this particular day, using sand at the greasers was enough...most of the time. If you watch the various YouTube videos, you'll hear that the engine slipped once east of the curve and again just west of the curve.

 

The sanding valve can be set to put sand only in front of the lead driver or in front of all the drivers. I used the sand sparingly, turning it on and off as I thought it was needed. In retrospect, I should have left the lead driver sand on all the way up the hill. We probably would not have slipped at all if I had done that.

 

The 765 is also equipped with Rail Washers. This is a jet of water directed to the top of the rail right behind the fourth driver axle. This jet of water washes the sand off the rail after it has been used. This minimizes the drag of the train because you don't have to drag it through the sand.

This MIGHT work as an analogy.  In automotive terms, think of the throttle as the gas pedal, and the reverse as a 30-speed manual transmission.

 

The throttle is controlling the amount of steam you are allowing to the cylinders, similar to the way the gas pedal controls the amount of gas to the engine.  Wide open throttle gives a lot of steam, same as mashing down on the gas pedal.

 

The reverser is controlling the cutoff--or specifically how much of the full stroke of the piston that steam is allowed to be admitted into the cylinders.  Think of it in terms of rpms in your car engine.  In pulling a big hill on a car, you have to have the rpms high enough so that you have the necessary torque to do the required work.  At the same time, the faster you go, you have to shift into a higher gear to lower the rpms before you red-line the transmission.

 

The reverse/cutoff works the same way--generally.  If you are working hard, you want as much steam as possible in there per piston stroke.  That way, when you compress the steam as the piston nears the end of it's stroke, you are transferring a lot of potential energy to kinetic energy to push the piston back the opposite direction.  That translates to a long cutoff, and combined with a wide open throttle, will give you maximum power.  As your speed builds/strain on coupler decreases, you don't need as much steam per piston stroke, so you shorten the cutoff, similar to changing to a higher gear.

 

Obviously, it's a relationship between throttle and reverse setting that makes for smooth operation without beating the machine to death.  Remember, you can control speed two different ways.  One would be with a wide open throttle and varying the reverse to control speed--which would tend to beat the machine to death.  The other way is by setting the reverse and using the throttle to control speed.  Same type of situation as running 65mph in your car in 3rd gear with the gas pedal on the floor vs. 5/6 gear with gas as needed.  Both will get you there, but there are advantages to the 2nd method.

 

That's an incredibly simplistic view, but it might work to demystify the physics.  Of course, just like a car, reading will only get you so far.  To get the rest, you have to be there to feel how it responds under different scenarios.

Kevin

Congrats to you and the entire 765 crew, what great news.  You all sure put on a fine display and clearly NS took notice.  Much success next year and every year to all of you and of course the 765 herself......

I understand how the cutoff works, what I don't understand is the physics of how you get the locomotive starting in the right direction.

Rich, this is such a fabulous tribute to you and your team.  It is the living embodiment of what is so great about our railroad history and the herculean efforts you and your team bring to bear for all of us in this country.  Thanks so much for your great work and continuing dedication to the preservation and operation of the 765.

 

Also, have you considered contacting Lionel or MTH to do another special run of the 765 as you did some years ago?  I have a strong feeling it would be a tremendous hit with all of us. 

 

Thank you again for giving us so much enjoyment!!! 

 

Jim