The Steam Locomotive

An Examination of Steam Propulsion Engineering on CD-ROM

This project looks at steam locomotives, those magical machines that can still transform grown men into little boys. Right now I'm about half way through it. When finished it will illustrate the entire steam propulsion cycle, from firebox to smokestack, and especially the hypnotic motion of the valve gear.

The locomotive used for this project is Engine 765 of the Nickel Plate Road, a 2-8-4 freight engine built by the Lima Locomotive Works in 1944 and kept in running shape today by the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society in Indiana. Here are some of the parts modeled so far:

                                  
                          Rear cylinder head                                      Superheaters                                           Trailing truck