What do you like about steam locomotives?

What's not to like?

A lot more happening than on a diesel.  It's just more fun for me to see a nice steamer roll by.

They smoked from the get go. It took a long while for diesels to start smoking, I guess they weren't of age. All the moving parts also make them artistically beautiful to the eyes.

Steam engines are alive. The sounds, the movement, the escaping steam. What's not to like about that? 

They were the norm when l grew up, and part of family heritage with railroad employees in ranks.  And then there was so much variety. From weird to monstrous, practically infinite, as once were the number of lines they ran on.  Nothing generic about them... 

gunrunnerjohn posted:

A lot more happening than on a diesel.  It's just more fun for me to see a nice steamer roll by.

I agree with that.

Well it look like I not the only one who like them.

Actually what I like is the variety in appearance of locomotives of the transition era. Late steam locomotives ooze power in their appearance. The variety of creative appearance and colors of first generation diesels is unparalleled.

I like the coexistence of both.

Steamers appeal to me for so many reasons.  The sounds of the drama: The working machinery at rest, compressors, steam releases, the bell, the whistle, the squealing brakes, the thunder as the giants move the track and ties at speed.

Then there is the architecture.  Everything is Huge.  Functional yes, but with personality I don't have the right words to adequately explain.  Certain elements just grab me.  I'm a fan of PRR because I like the belpaire fire box.  On other steamers I am drawn to the elesco feedwater heater on the top front of the smokebox. Exposed tubes, pipes, resevoirs, drive rods and so forth.

But I also am fond of some diesels. S-2 switchers and EMD F units.

The steam locomotive is the closest man has ever come to creating life.

The site, the sounds, the smell of a coal fired steamer, the feeling when it rolls by.....the people that built them and bring them to life.

Steam is, cool. So to speak.  LOL

I have been interested in steam propulsion since I was a kid. Born in '63 I never saw a steam loco, steam roller, or traction engine in revenue service, but all hold an attraction to me. Even steam cars. It's fun to watch videos of Jay Leno driving his steam vehicles around on modern city streets.

As a steam nut and a train nut, steam locomotives are the ultimate for me though. The sight of them working, the sounds... as some have said they seem to be alive. There must be something captivating about steam locos that affects non-train people too. What is the first thing most people say to a baby to describe a train, "Choo Choo." Thomas the Tank Engine has entertained countless numbers of kids over the years. And kid's toy trains? I've never seen a Play School SD45.  I guess Chuggington is the first diesel-centric kids program/merchandise I've seen, but even the name evokes steam power!   LOL

Regarding steam locomotives, I especially like their mechanisms and I am in awe of the power (enthalpy) of steam. I read somewhere that the energy in the expanding steam of the J3 Hudson at 275 psig boiler pressure was so immense that it bent the side rods.

Unlike a diesel, when a steam locomotive moves, there is lots to see. Do you notice that when a steam locomotive passes by, onlookers backup in fear of the mighty engine? Not so with diesels.

A lot of things. So much more interesting than a diesel or electric. Side rods churning, the smokestack (Lionel knew diesels didn't smoke in the 50's and I learned from them), the size, the weight of the die cast model, and lots of other stuff.

And then the beautiful styling on the streamlined art deco steamers of the late 30's. The Dreyfus Hudson, the Daylight, Southern Tennessean, Empire State Express, Blue Goose, B&O Cincinnatian, Reading Crusader, etc.

And lastly, the realization that they really changed the game. Think about the alternatives to the early steamers for transportation. Horse and buggy. And then the Model A on quasi-roads. And when Berkshires, etc. were first being run, cars and trucks went from stoplight to stoplight on the highways (no interstates), with nothing near the speed or capabilities of the trains.

And then came the interstates and airplanes and...........

Gerry

A diesel is kind of like a great big truck. All shiny, with a cool paint job, and it is there to do a job. Make no mistake, I do love trucks.

 A steam locomotive is more like a living, breathing entity. There is just so much going on, so much personality.

Not to say I don't have plenty of diesels, it's just that steam is where the action is.

My chest shaking from the sound, the ground vibrating of my feet, the visual enormity of an approaching monster. the esthetic rhythm of it's smooth passing, the tears on my cheeks, the 1 1/2" pennies it yields.  It's alive!!

All of the above...but as a kid back in the late '40s-early '50s, it was a wave. Standing at the Hollis, Long Island station platform for hours on end, most if not all steam engineers or firemen would return my wave. After diesels took over, maybe half. 

Although it nice to see "tourist RR" steam today, it's not the same as seeing it roaring past at 80 mph with a "Limited" in tow.

It's like asking "What do you like about Miss America"?

Everything???????????

"Deep within the heart of every man lies a steam locomotive."

A quote from a poster I once saw in the 60's.

Rusty

Everything about them.

I have only owned 3 steamers: an MTH railking 2-8-2 and now 2 tin-plate "O" gauge steamers (no diesels that I know of in tin-plate).  I have owned 9 RK diesels.

Not saying I don't like steamers but on my Christmas layout the diesels tracked much more reliably than my steam engines.  The front 2-wheel truck seems to be the occassional culprit.  My diesels glide thru switches, my steamers 'bump' thru them.

BUT.... I love watching my steam engines so much more!!!  Sounds, Smoke, Side-rods, sentiment for me (I;m 70) plays a roll in it too!

- walt

Steam engines are ALIVE!!!

Matt Makens posted:

Steam engines are ALIVE!!!

Very well put Matt. I'll agree, these are living, breathing works of engineering masterpieces for the technology of the times. I often wonder if I were an old steam crewman from the past. Seeing these engines moving down the tracks brings tears to my eyes, knowing we'll never go back to those days. One of my earliest pictures of me at about 8-10 months, was with a windup clock works train set at my grandmas.

The late steam era in the USA is when we were at our best. We had high speed rail back then, many of the late steam era engines routinely ran 100mph or more. When you stand next to one of them today it seems impossible.

Unfortunately I never saw a steam engine in service, I was born in 1963 so watching a NYC Hudson or Northern run on my layout let’s me relive that time.

When you ask kids to draw a train, they will nearly always draw a steam engine, even those who've never seen a real steamer. Nothing else more represents a train.

Guys so many great answers.

the smell of burning coal...

They are regal in stature and a masterpiece of engineering from the fitst engine to the last.  

Yeah, I'm going through a phase right now where diesels bore me, despite their bright colors. Just a motor with a pretty box around it. I don't see myself adding any more diesels or electrics beyond what I have.

Steam Engines are ALIVE - They breathe - hiss - steam - drip 

A diesel engine is an elephant, a steam engine is a DRAGON!

.....because they seem ALIVE.......

Peter

This thread is great and it poses a great question that I myself have wondered. I grew up in the diesel era and they were my introduction to trains. I have begun to add steam to my roster and too am fascinated by them for many of the reasons already stated.

Dave

They exude a visceral power that inspires awe. Especially when you consider that they are powered by fire. 

Steam engines have a personality  each has its own smells sounds and noise 

Hissing of steam the smell of smoke and oil , clang of the rods spinning of the drivers

Always appreciated the side trips to visit steam on our yearly summer vacations to visit family in western Pennsylvania Used to drive my folks crazy if  saw a billboard advertising penn view mountain,wannamaker kempton and sounthern and of course Strasburg 

Everything that has been said so far is the reason I like steam.  Just one more thought, if I may.  To me, just the fact of placing a steam boiler on wheels and engineering it to move.  And then the skill it must have taken to be in the engineer's seat and control this huge moving boiler.  

Pennysnut said it well.

Steam locomotives need water, coal or oil fuel, a wye or turntable to turn them, a roundhouse to service or repair them, frequent stops to water or fuel, and more.  All provide more things to model and operate when running.  When running more valve gear and rods moving, smoke and noise, steam whistles beautiful sounds, coal tenders and trains in their era needed cabooses !
In the age of steam, millions were employed.  It took thousands to repair and service the engines at the roundhouse.  Every 200 miles or so were facilities to water and fuel the trains or provide food for riders of passengers trains or to room the passengers at hotels.  Railroads were the largest employers of the time and almost everyone had a family member working for the railroad or knew someone working for the railroad.

Charlie

Why do I like steam locos?  Because they're big and bad and scary as hell and you know when they were coming..  You could hear the roar, see the steam & smoke and feel the ground shake.  That's how I remember them as an 8 year old kid back in the 50's sitting next to the tracks fishing for catfish.