What Is Your Procedure For Starting A Steam Locomotive?

[Brakeman Hal]

1: I would check with the Fireman to see if he's satisfied with his Gauge Readings.

2: Then I would make a Visual Check uptrack for clearance.

3: Then I would open the Cylinder Cocks to let the residual water vapor escape.

4: Then I would release the Train Brake.

5: Then I would release the Engine Brake.

6: Then I would put the Johnson Bar in the full forward position.

7: Then I would give 2 short blasts of the Whistle,

8: Then I would crack the Throttle.

9: After moving a short distance, I would shut off the Cylinder Cocks.

10: Then I would Widen on the throttle.

Brakeman Hal

 

[Burlington Bob]

With my ConCor Great Northern 4-8-4 S2, I'll put it on the track with a rerailer and check to make sure all the wheels are on the track. Select its road number with my Digitrax Zephyr, select either forward or reverse, turn the headlight on, give correct number of blasts on the whistle, start the bell ringing and slowly advance the throttle.

There's one in every crowd!

 

[migalyto]

If I had a steamer (modern era modeler here) I would do exactly the same way Bob would do his.

 

[dave1905]

Turn the knob.

 

[bob]

Hal, there’s a long list of stuff the engineer does before you ever move the locomotive. Servicing and inspection etc. Unless you have a hostler getting the engine ready, or you switch out with another crew you have plenty of work.
But let’s make it easy. You’re a relief engineer. The other crew has done all the inspections and filled out the daily inspection reports etc. Filled the lubricator, tested the air brakes for maximum train line leakage etc. etc.
When you get on the engine, you’ll do a couple things. Yes, you’ll ask your fireman if he/she is happy. Pressure, fuel, water in the boiler, water in the tender or tank.
Then you’ll check your water glass by blowing it down and testing the tri-cocks. It doesn’t matter if your fireman says it fine. You check it too. You treat this as if your life depends on it. It does. Low water can mean a boiler explosion.
You confer with your conductor, check orders, hold a job briefing. Then you do an air test to verify brake operations.
Then, if the conductor has authority to move, you can get underway.
Oh, and I’ve left out more than I wrote up, lol!

 

[Selector]

Walk-around inspection, tapping, and getting lubes done if the engine is already hostled...hot.

If it isn't hot, I would see if I had water in the try cock, and if it was okay, get compressed air or a fan generating Venturi Effect to evacuate the smokebox....then start a small fire in the firebox. If it was warm, and I could get oil to a burner, I would do that, but I suspect I'd have to get the boiler hot enough with a wood/coal fire to heat the oil bunker with cool steam before I could get oil flowing well enough to fire with oil.

With the fan working, or air to the blower ring, and a fire building, I would check oil depth in the tender and water depth so I would know if I can continue to build heat without running out of fuel or water (the crown sheet must never have less than one full inch of water above it).

With boiler pressure slowly beginning to rise, I would lube the running gear, place steam lube in the hydrostatic lubricator, and top up the mechanical lubricator. I would check stuffing boxes and bearing boxes for security and lube.

I would get back into the cab and wipe down things if they were grimy, although the hostler and fireman would have done some/all of that.

I would check pressure, check and build the fire, and eventually I would be able to pass steam to the blower. I would remove the fan on top of the stack, or remove compressed air if such a fitting were available and I had attached a hose to the blower. Now the engine is warming and generating its own steam by bringing hot gases through the flues.

Sight glass blowdown to make sure there's no lock or blockage and that it reads the boiler water level correctly.

Check injectors for operation once minimum pressure for the type is achieved, and also open up the feedwater pump to check its operation.

Once steam pressure had built to about 60 pounds, and if it is an oil-fired boiler, I would switch to oil after passing steam through the tender oil to heat it so that it would flow to the burner and get atomized. It would be noisy doing this. From there, wait for steam to creep toward max pressure.

At some point, open the valves to get steam to the turret, open the steam lines to the cross compound pumps and generator, and to the lubricators.

Get clearance from the ground crew to move the locomotive to a designated place, perhaps to hook up to a train of cars. I'd have had my orders by then.

Toot acknowledgement of ground signals to move the locomotive. Ring the bell, open cylinder cocks, close snifters, place the reverser in full forward position, crack open the throttle, and release the independent.

 

[bob]

What he said, covered it well... I didn't feel like typing all that up.

And I'm sure there's still more we've left out, LOL. As an example, he mentions the lubricator, which is a complex little bugger. Not only do you have to open the steam to it, you have to fill it, and set the feed rate etc.

It's a very long and complex project.

 

[tootnkumin]

Would a comparison be like trying to teach your Dragon?

 

[bob]

Would a comparison be like trying to teach your Dragon?

Very much so, lots of similarities.

 

[bob]

This looks like a pretty thorough video on how to "cold boot" a coal burning steam locomotive.

 

[Brakeman Hal]

I wasn't referring to "cold starting" a steam locomotive!

I was referring to starting it after it has paused for a water stop, where all the lubing and blowing down the glass wasn't necessary.

Yowzah!

Walk-around inspection, tapping, and getting lubes done if the engine is already hostled...hot.

If it isn't hot, I would see if I had water in the try cock, and if it was okay, get compressed air or a fan generating Venturi Effect to evacuate the smokebox....then start a small fire in the firebox. If it was warm, and I could get oil to a burner, I would do that, but I suspect I'd have to get the boiler hot enough with a wood/coal fire to heat the oil bunker with cool steam before I could get oil flowing well enough to fire with oil.

With the fan working, or air to the blower ring, and a fire building, I would check oil depth in the tender and water depth so I would know if I can continue to build heat without running out of fuel or water (the crown sheet must never have less than one full inch of water above it).

With boiler pressure slowly beginning to rise, I would lube the running gear, place steam lube in the hydrostatic lubricator, and top up the mechanical lubricator. I would check stuffing boxes and bearing boxes for security and lube.

I would get back into the cab and wipe down things if they were grimy, although the hostler and fireman would have done some/all of that.

I would check pressure, check and build the fire, and eventually I would be able to pass steam to the blower. I would remove the fan on top of the stack, or remove compressed air if such a fitting were available and I had attached a hose to the blower. Now the engine is warming and generating its own steam by bringing hot gases through the flues.

Sight glass blowdown to make sure there's no lock or blockage and that it reads the boiler water level correctly.

Check injectors for operation once minimum pressure for the type is achieved, and also open up the feedwater pump to check its operation.

Once steam pressure had built to about 60 pounds, and if it is an oil-fired boiler, I would switch to oil after passing steam through the tender oil to heat it so that it would flow to the burner and get atomized. It would be noisy doing this. From there, wait for steam to creep toward max pressure.

At some point, open the valves to get steam to the turret, open the steam lines to the cross compound pumps and generator, and to the lubricators.

Get clearance from the ground crew to move the locomotive to a designated place, perhaps to hook up to a train of cars. I'd have had my orders by then.

Toot acknowledgement of ground signals to move the locomotive. Ring the bell, open cylinder cocks, close snifters, place the reverser in full forward position, crack open the throttle, and release the independent.

Walk-around inspection, tapping, and getting lubes done if the engine is already hostled...hot.

If it isn't hot, I would see if I had water in the try cock, and if it was okay, get compressed air or a fan generating Venturi Effect to evacuate the smokebox....then start a small fire in the firebox. If it was warm, and I could get oil to a burner, I would do that, but I suspect I'd have to get the boiler hot enough with a wood/coal fire to heat the oil bunker with cool steam before I could get oil flowing well enough to fire with oil.

With the fan working, or air to the blower ring, and a fire building, I would check oil depth in the tender and water depth so I would know if I can continue to build heat without running out of fuel or water (the crown sheet must never have less than one full inch of water above it).

With boiler pressure slowly beginning to rise, I would lube the running gear, place steam lube in the hydrostatic lubricator, and top up the mechanical lubricator. I would check stuffing boxes and bearing boxes for security and lube.

I would get back into the cab and wipe down things if they were grimy, although the hostler and fireman would have done some/all of that.

I would check pressure, check and build the fire, and eventually I would be able to pass steam to the blower. I would remove the fan on top of the stack, or remove compressed air if such a fitting were available and I had attached a hose to the blower. Now the engine is warming and generating its own steam by bringing hot gases through the flues.

Sight glass blowdown to make sure there's no lock or blockage and that it reads the boiler water level correctly.

Check injectors for operation once minimum pressure for the type is achieved, and also open up the feedwater pump to check its operation.

Once steam pressure had built to about 60 pounds, and if it is an oil-fired boiler, I would switch to oil after passing steam through the tender oil to heat it so that it would flow to the burner and get atomized. It would be noisy doing this. From there, wait for steam to creep toward max pressure.

At some point, open the valves to get steam to the turret, open the steam lines to the cross compound pumps and generator, and to the lubricators.

Get clearance from the ground crew to move the locomotive to a designated place, perhaps to hook up to a train of cars. I'd have had my orders by then.

Toot acknowledgement of ground signals to move the locomotive. Ring the bell, open cylinder cocks, close snifters, place the reverser in full forward position, crack open the throttle, and release the independent.

Very thorough essay, Bob!

Hal