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Union Pacific’s “Big Boy”

Saw #4014 many times as a kid when it was parked at the fairplex rail museum in Pomona... never thought it would run again.

I went and saw it in 2019 on the first excursion trip after the restoration. They did a fantastic job on the restoration, and it's very, very impressive in person under steam.

Also very cool seeing how many people turned out to see it and chase it between stops, many of them were actually visiting from Europe to see it on the first public trip! If it makes a trip near you, I highly recommend going to check it out. Look at the route maps and plan it so you can catch it at a stop and walk around it, then try to find roads that parallel the tracks to try chase it for a bit or at least get up ahead and stand near the tracks when it passes by. Watch out though, as a lot of people keep their eyes on the train rather than the road...

Here's one of the pics from their first west coast run in 2019... it was going by about 30mph coming up to a public stop, and I may have been a bit too close the tracks to get some other spectators out of my shot, and I may or may not have been talked to by a nice UP rail policeman about keeping a safe distance from the tracks... LOL

40141.jpg



Another pic from later in the day as it was rolling to a station to pick up passengers for an passenger excursion trip...

40142.jpg



Kind of disappointing UP took #3985 off their roster once #4014 was up and running, but I can see trying to maintain 3 steamers being a labor and money pit (or more likely: "it wouldn't look good explaining the growing budget for the steam shop in our quarterly shareholders meetings when our freight keeps running behind schedule.") The good news is #3985 has now been donated to another organization who say they're going to restore it back to running order. Be interesting to see how much work it takes, UP's Steam Shop said #3985 is in need of another complete overhaul after all the miles put on it since they got it back on the rails in 1981. Be nice if the new caretakers get #3985 back up and running and arrange a double header with #4014.

Bender said:
They keep it here in Cheyenne, see it every summer. Use to have a buddy who worked in the steam shop working on it. Welder. It’s so old obviously, they still fab thier own parts for it to keep it going.
Click to expand...

If I lived in the Cheyenne area, I would probably see if they were taking volunteers to help in the steam shop... but they probably run a pretty tight crew.
 
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Kiba said:
Saw #4014 many times as a kid when it was parked at the fairplex rail museum in Pomona... never thought it would run again.

I went and saw it in 2019 on the first excursion trip after the restoration. They did a fantastic job on the restoration, and it's very, very impressive in person under steam.

Also very cool seeing how many people turned out to see it and chase it between stops, many of them were actually visiting from Europe to see it on the first public trip! If it makes a trip near you, I highly recommend going to check it out. Look at the route maps and plan it so you can catch it at a stop and walk around it, then try to find roads that parallel the tracks to try chase it for a bit or at least get up ahead and stand near the tracks when it passes by. Watch out though, as a lot of people keep their eyes on the train rather than the road...

Here's one of the pics from their first west coast run in 2019... it was going by about 30mph coming up to a public stop, and I may have been a bit too close the tracks to get some other spectators out of my shot, and I may or may not have been talked to by a nice UP rail policeman about keeping a safe distance from the tracks... LOL

View attachment 8145744


Another pic from later in the day as it was rolling to a station to pick up passengers for an passenger excursion trip...

View attachment 8145746


Kind of disappointing UP took #3985 off their roster once #4014 was up and running, but I can see trying to maintain 3 steamers being a labor and money pit (or more likely: "it wouldn't look good explaining the growing budget for the steam shop in our quarterly shareholders meetings when our freight keeps running behind schedule.") The good news is #3985 has now been donated to another organization who say they're going to restore it back to running order. Be interesting to see how much work it takes, UP's Steam Shop said #3985 is in need of another complete overhaul after all the miles put on it since they got it back on the rails in 1981. Be nice if the new caretakers get #3985 back up and running and arrange a double header with #4014.



If I lived in the Cheyenne area, I would probably see if they were taking volunteers to help in the steam shop... but they probably run a pretty tight crew.
Click to expand...
They have steam ride tickets for local sponsors and people of renown. They get traded or shared around. I see groups of the train lovers with cameras set up on tripods for many miles in different locations all summer. X10 when it’s steam season.
 
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I would like to see this one in action, it would bookend the steam era pretty well. I’ve been on the Durango to Silverton train a few times which is an awesome trip if you are ever in that part of the country.

Also used to live in the Snoqualmie valley in Washington and they had a little railroad museum there from the logging days. They would run a diesel engine with a few cars between Snoqualmie and North Bend (only a couple of miles). About 6 or 7 years ago they finished restoration on one of the old steam engines and ran that a few times. They had converted it to propane. Pretty cool driving by the old hulks of engines on the siding as you pass through town.
 
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Thumper580 said:
Not sure how it compares in size, but I was at the Ford Museum and saw the Lima Alleghany locomotive on display. That is one monstrous piece of equipment.😲
Click to expand...
Size and performance wise, they're pretty comparable. The Big Boy class has eight drive wheel sets (4-8-8-4) as it was built to handle a steeper grade out of the Wasatch versus the Allegheny having six sets (2-6-6-6) for West Virginia runs, but each made fairly similar power. With tender car, each tip the scales just shy of 1.2 million pounds and both were kings of their day.
 
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They have one at the Forney Museum in Denver.

Forney Museum of Transportation

The Forney Museum of Transportation is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization which exists to collect, preserve, and exhibit items of artistic, historical and technological interest relating to transportation for the purposes of education and personal enrichment.
www.forneymuseum.org


I got video/audio of at the horn a few years ago when they were taking one up to Cheyenne.

 
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Bender said:
They keep it here in Cheyenne, see it every summer. Use to have a buddy who worked in the steam shop working on it. Welder. It’s so old obviously, they still fab thier own parts for it to keep it going.
Click to expand...

#4014 had about 1 million and 31 thousand miles on its wheels when it was retired in 1961.
 
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I've been lucky to be able to see 4014 (and 844) a few times during their various excursion trips. It's particularly fun to set up near the tracks and have these fire breathing monsters come by at full steam. The UP Steam website provides all the info on their website at www.up.com/heritage/steam/index.htm for their trips if you are interested.
 
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Foul Mike said:
@Bender What is the loco down in the park in Chey.? It is big too.
Click to expand...
Yep. It's a big boy also. I believe it's 4004. They repainted it a few years ago. Fucking vandals won't leave it alone.

www.cheyenne.org

Big Boy Steam Engine

Even in retirement, ol' Number 4004 remains an imposing sight. The world's largest steam locomotive, this powerful coal-fired engine was designed to pull a 3600-ton train over steep grades between Cheyenne, WY, and Ogden, Utah. The 4004 is one of the eight remaining Big Boys throughout the...
www.cheyenne.org
 
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The local train museum is St. Louis has a big boy in non running condition. Saw it a clog times

How do I find if the 4014 will be in my area?
 
Animal357 said:
The local train museum is St. Louis has a big boy in non running condition. Saw it a clog times

How do I find if the 4014 will be in my area?
Click to expand...
www.up.com

Union Pacific Steam Schedule

Union Pacific's famed Big Boy No. 4014, the world's largest steam locomotive still in operation, departed on June 7, 2023 for its Home Run Express Tour to Omaha, Nebraska, where it will be on display for 11 days during the college baseball championship.
www.up.com
 
One of the more interesting tidbits of history. In WWII, German spies reported the existence of the Big Boy and the reports were dismissed as false. The idea that war materials were being hauled in mile long trains by one single massive locomotive were not considered true. The refused to believe reports or pictures.

Joe Biden says we can use them to haul stuff across the new Indian Ocean railroad when it gets finished. Since the ocean is full of water, they can ditch the water tenders and haul more cargo. 🤣
 
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