Steam & Excursion > Unstreamlined I.C. Pacific 1146 on a Bad Day

Illinois Central 4-6-2 #1146 was built by Brooks in 1916, and was noted for being the railroad's only attempt at streamlining.  Here's her other claim to fame... or infamy.

From the Paducah Sun Democrat.

Mary McPherson
Dongola, IL
Diverging Clear Productions



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/01/24 14:29 by MaryMcPherson.

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What a helpless feeling!  Or maybe it lessened the expense of tearing down the round house.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/01/24 14:55 by tomstp.

Thanks for sharing,.

"The engine burst through the wall directly across Kentucky Avenue from the I.C. Cafe".

Does that mean there were a lot of spectators or someone spilled their coffee? I can picture the super waltzing out of the cafe, wondering what the hell is going on.

Victor Baird



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 02/01/24 15:10 by wabash2800.

This is why the roundhouse walls are all glass at head end 
of pit tracks.

Something in the way the story was written is confusing 
with the respect to the condition of the air brakes.
And it's not clear to me how the valve gear is operated, i.e.,
is the engine equipped with an air operated 'power reverse'?

With Reading T-1 locos, their lay-shaft connecting the R&L 
valve gear reversing links is not equipped with a balancing spring,
or counterweight.

When compressed air is not available, T-1s' valve gear falls into
full-forward motion.....if steam were to be applied to the cylinders,
the engine will be moved, with no brake pressure.

So, be careful around T-1s when they're fired-up, and with no
main reservoir air pressure.

Oh, well.  it's why roundhouse pit tracks have glass walls...
so that when struck, the structure is not materially affected.

W.

I should defer to Wes’ “trove of steam knowledge” here, but am thinking that roundhouse bays had glass windows to let light in so workers could actually see what they were doing, and not so that engines could “crash through” to the other side.
Simply put, you have to “wait” for air pressure to build up on engines and cannot release hand brakes and “go” before that happens. Sounds like this is exactly what occurred with predictable results and was pure human error, here.
Again, “predictable, but not preventable!”

Yes,

The PRIMARY purpose is to get in the daylight sunshine..
It's dark in those pits..under 200 tons of power.

W.


 

wcamp1472 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> This is why the roundhouse walls are all glass at
> head end 
> of pit tracks.

The original drive-thru window?

Mary McPherson
Dongola, IL
Diverging Clear Productions

Very interesting, thanks for sharing Mary!

Maybe that is how we got the phrase, "That's the pits!"
SR2

Better than "down the tubes". (You have to see George Carland's take on that...)

Victor Baird

SR2 Wrote:
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> Maybe that is how we got the phrase, "That's the
> pits!"
> SR2

I agree with Wes. Yes, the primary reason was illumination inside the house, but the strategic placement surely would have had some thought behind it.

Regards

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