GO to http://www.upsteam.com/ for Screenshots of Challenger locomotive
also has history of the steam locomotive
also has history of the steam locomotive
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ALL UNION PACIFIC FANS PLEASE LOOK HERE
- Thread starter gtasa
- Start date
atsfrr3000
New member
Oh, really?
If I recall correctly the Challenger was in California not too many years ago. I was visiting the steam shops shortly after they turned it on the turbtable to orient it to go out that way.
Red_Rattler
Since 09 May 2003
Is it possible for a "higher up" authority to change to lower case, and perhaps a better title?
The reason is that I thought it was an important message about UP & models again due to it being in upper case, especially regarding UP.
The reason is that I thought it was an important message about UP & models again due to it being in upper case, especially regarding UP.
Hi Rob,
The way I hear it, when UP brought thier steam double header to Sacramento for what I think was the 10th aniversery of the opening of the state railroad museum, they got complaints from our state government about the air polution. UP told them to stick it where the sun don't shine and swore never to run steam in California again, or something like that.
I am very glad you liked my site. I hope to expand it "soon".
The way I hear it, when UP brought thier steam double header to Sacramento for what I think was the 10th aniversery of the opening of the state railroad museum, they got complaints from our state government about the air polution. UP told them to stick it where the sun don't shine and swore never to run steam in California again, or something like that.
I am very glad you liked my site. I hope to expand it "soon".
A shame, SuperFudd, it makes me sick actually, the (bovine manure) that hampers preservation efforts.
There's a great little Railroad that's been left in South Australia, but I doubt we'll ever see the steam trains on it again. I shall not name any names; but at first, a bunch of track in the middle of the line was removed after the 80's; because one preservation society didn't like the other getting too close.
They used to run opposite ends of the same line.
Yeah.
Anyway, nowadays, the western end of the line has been restored to the port, and the owners of that aren't too worried about the folks at the southern end of the line I don't suppose. Last I heard however, the preservation society down south there was at an impass with local council over some painfully stringent OH&S business.
Neither party was willing to compromise and so they prefer to cut off their noses...
If anyone has an update please correct me.
So years have passed since trains ran over what's really left of the "preserved" line. At least it's nice to see tracks rather than the disused berm you usually see in SA.
This just tips the iceberg of preservation (mistakes) in SA that I know about so, enough preservation rant, someone will give me a waffle card! Thanks for the reply, and I'll look forward to your website update, SuperFudd, though I understand that for people with so many interests, the time-pie slices can become thin. :wave::hehe:
Cheers!
~R~
There's a great little Railroad that's been left in South Australia, but I doubt we'll ever see the steam trains on it again. I shall not name any names; but at first, a bunch of track in the middle of the line was removed after the 80's; because one preservation society didn't like the other getting too close.
They used to run opposite ends of the same line.
Yeah.
Anyway, nowadays, the western end of the line has been restored to the port, and the owners of that aren't too worried about the folks at the southern end of the line I don't suppose. Last I heard however, the preservation society down south there was at an impass with local council over some painfully stringent OH&S business.
Neither party was willing to compromise and so they prefer to cut off their noses...
If anyone has an update please correct me.
So years have passed since trains ran over what's really left of the "preserved" line. At least it's nice to see tracks rather than the disused berm you usually see in SA.
This just tips the iceberg of preservation (mistakes) in SA that I know about so, enough preservation rant, someone will give me a waffle card! Thanks for the reply, and I'll look forward to your website update, SuperFudd, though I understand that for people with so many interests, the time-pie slices can become thin. :wave::hehe:
Cheers!
~R~
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The 10th aniversery of the CSRM was Railfair '91 (1991). I'm pretty sure both the 844 and 3985 were at Railfair '99 - I got a couple of shots of them as they passed through Reno.
Nice site!!
Curtis
atsfrr3000
New member
The 2008 Schedule of Excursions is looking a little underwhelming this year. Hopefully they just decided to put that up there alone because it's the only one set in stone, and there are others that are being worked out.
I hope I don't have to work the weekend that the 844 will be in town
The Denver Post's CFD train is always a spectacular event when it comes through 
I hope I don't have to work the weekend that the 844 will be in town
The Denver Post's CFD train is always a spectacular event when it comes through
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pencil is right but i was at rail fair when when i guess a fuel oil line burst on the 844 and dumped mass amounts of fuel oil on the crowed and on the return trip from rail fair the 844 was disabled and the challenger towed the passenger cars and the downed loco home.
at lest thats what i remember.
at lest thats what i remember.
Boiler tube failure, I believe - which would explain why she hasn't been out much since then. I guess she was rebuilt after that incident, and just started running again in 2005.
http://utahrails.net/all-time/heritage-fleet.php
Edit: found picture here:
http://haskey.com/johnh/railfair99/12_844.jpg (http://haskey.com/johnh/railfair99/railfair99.html)
http://utahrails.net/all-time/heritage-fleet.php
from http://danger-ahead.railfan.net/reports/rep99/us_heritage_mishaps990703.html
Edit: found picture here:
http://haskey.com/johnh/railfair99/12_844.jpg (http://haskey.com/johnh/railfair99/railfair99.html)
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atsfrr3000
New member
That's correct; after the boiler tube failed, the muckety-mucks at UP got together and eventually (and probably reluctantly) authorized a full mechanical overhaul on the locomotive, with the intent of prepping her for a minimum of 30 more years of excursion service. It was probably one of the most massive steam overhauls ever seen since the end of mainline steam in the US; according to one member of the steam crew "about half of the locomotive will probably be brand-new when it's all finished."
The locomotive was endowed with completely new boiler tubes, a new firebox, a massively overhauled tender (something like 70% of the tender was re-fabricated) and a brand new cab interior. I have photos of the steam crew applying the new finished wood to the 844's interior somewhere around here; I went up to the steam shops often during her rebuilding, so I got to see her in various stages of disrepair and reconstruction.
So what happened? In 1996 (I think) the 844 was given a minor mechanical overhaul, and this minor overhaul included replacements for some of her boiler tubes. Apparently, somehow, the replacement boiler tubes were not fabricated from the correct materials, causing them to be structurally weaker than the rest of the tubes, and below the requirements of the locomotive. You can see the result.
Was it 844 or the Challenger that put out huge amounts of smoke? I think it was the Challenger. I hear it was converted from coal to oil and the fire box was not properly modified. I hope that has been fixed.
The last time she visited the San Francisco bay area I chased her into San Jose and when she left I was waiting for her on the Altamont pass with my camcorder. I then raced ahead and caught her about 1/2 mile after she passed under I-5. Then I went to a near by gas station/ Quiky Mart overlooking and adjacent to I-5. From there I could look across the valley and watch her smoke plume leaving Tracy and all the way to about Galt, north of Lodi. I may have lost view then only because she slowed down.
EDIT: It was the Chalenger, probably 1993 or 1994.
The last time she visited the San Francisco bay area I chased her into San Jose and when she left I was waiting for her on the Altamont pass with my camcorder. I then raced ahead and caught her about 1/2 mile after she passed under I-5. Then I went to a near by gas station/ Quiky Mart overlooking and adjacent to I-5. From there I could look across the valley and watch her smoke plume leaving Tracy and all the way to about Galt, north of Lodi. I may have lost view then only because she slowed down.
EDIT: It was the Chalenger, probably 1993 or 1994.
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atsfrr3000
New member
Actually, I would not be surprised if it was the Challenger that put out that much smoke, because it was converted to burn oil in 1990. Before that, she had a tendency to start a lot of brushfires with her hot ashes (the UP actually kept a crew of fire-extinguishing employees on the payroll to put them out after she passed by), and in the late 80's, the UP officially restricted 3985 to operations between Cheyenne and Laramie, WY...not exactly the most exciting stretch, or photogenic! So the UP steam crew converted the 3985 to burn oil in July of 1990, and I would not be surprised if there were issues with the firebox as this was something not many steamers had undergone since the end of the steam era.