By Chuck Priputin

Author  Bio Steel wheels flashing, smoke billowing, that feeling of immense power barely restrained as the engine roars towards you.

Click for larger picture

Steel wheels flashing, smoke billowing, that feeling of immense power barely restrained as the engine roars towards you. The whistle sounding off, each note fading into the distance, as the locomotive pulls through the crossing. Memories... Diesel horns scream into the night as car after car, tankers, boxcars, bulkhead cars, gondolas, rumble down the track. Vanished roads, Southern, Rutland, Maine Central, appear freshly painted in all their colors in our mind's eye.

Be it that first Lionel or American Flyer set running under the Christmas tree, that HO layout you had in High School, your first train excursion, or just seeing a consist pulling a long string of cars alongside the highway, trains fascinate many of us and I am no exception. I had two small sets growing up, one Lionel, one American Flyer, and I would set them up whenever and wherever I could get away with it. A small house and large family do not allow a permanent layout. I lived in a small town in rural Maine that used to be on an old two-foot gauge line and helped build a snowmobile bridge using some of their abutments when I was a Boy Scout. Our trips to the coast brought me near some major interchanges and I would watch the engines swap cars for hours. I would always ask my dad to slow down so we could get "caught" at the crossing so I could watch and count the cars passing by. Years go by...

Military service overseas allows me to travel by rail in several European countries. Passenger service in Germany, Italy, Spain, England, cheap and fast travel from country to country. I see working steam engines, mostly in yards, where they only exist at tourist areas and museums in the States. I get to "talk" to many engineers, brakemen, switchmen, sign language replacing speech as they show me how things work. I see electric trains, their overhead wires stretching for miles, whistling along at fantastic speeds. I listen to the diesels, engines rumbling, haul heavy loads up and down steep grades. Time passes...

A few years ago, my wife planned a short train excursion on the Tennessee Central for our anniversary. Since we were going to be in Nashville Tennessee, a good friend of mine asked us to come early that morning by a different route and join him in Columbia Tennessee, at Maury County Park , the home of the Mid-South Live Steamers. He explained that since he was about to retire, he had joined the live steam hobby as a way to relax. We had seen some pictures at his house (as well as a 1/8th scale Southern F7!) so this wasn't a complete surprise, but static pictures did not prepare us for what we saw that morning.

Imagine a pretty standard County park, with ball fields and bleachers, park benches, playgrounds, and pathways. And trains, small 1/8th scale trains. Steam locomotives of every shape and size, diesel locomotives (okay, gas or electric powered, but they look right and many sound right too!), electric locomotives, and even a hand pump car. The yards were full, smoke was everywhere, and people lined the tracks watching car after car pass by, many loaded with passengers.

Click for larger picture

The club gave rides to the public for free (donations gladly accepted!) and there was a long line already formed. My wife threatened our friend with dire consequences if I got hooked as he gave me my first ride on his train. Thankfully, she never carried them out.

For I was hooked, from that first ride, and ever since. The feeling of riding the big trains is great, but restricted in area, time, and money. Here was a hobby where you could buy or build your own locomotive, whatever the power source, and then build your own railroad on just a small piece of land. True, it might only be a loop, but that is only a limitation of the space available and your imagination. Well, physics and other principles apply as well, but for the most part, railroads have been and continue to be built on, over, under, and through, just about every type of terrain.

Click for larger picture Click for larger picture Click for larger picture

Helping my friend build his own mountain railroad has been fun. Hot, sweaty, dirty fun. I have relearned many skills dormant for many years. Surveying, logging, excavation, masonry, welding, all are skills I haven't used in years but improve each time I use them. Friends have taught me how to drive diesel, steam, and electric locomotives. I just recently purchased an old abused and neglected Cli-Shay that had suffered a firebox burn-through. Although my wife insists on referring to it as a "cliche", a friend has helped me have it just about restored. I hope to have it running by spring. I have built a work car for hauling ballast, a masonry wall, wood trestles and abutments, and lots of track panels. The old grain hopper I bought, modified, and installed at the track is used to load our ballast trains. I've learned how to mill parts, plan and maintain right-of-ways, and why grades are VERY important. All part of the Live Steam hobby. I love the feeling of accomplishment that comes from working on the railroad. Here is a hobby that has a number of measurable ways to record progress. Every foot of right-of-way cleared, every section of track laid and ballasted, every obstacle overcome, is a clear sign of progress. Many jobs I have held had little or no way to show forward progress and so gave me little satisfaction. But working on the railroad is only part of the fun, the best part is the trains themselves!

Click for larger picture Click for larger picture

There are many reasons trains fascinate me. The complexity of a steam locomotive, the raw power of a diesel, these are replicated in our smaller versions. Riding on, or even better, being the engineer of a steam locomotive is fun and exciting. Keeping the fire hot, but not too hot, maintaining the water level, applying and releasing the brakes, and maintaining a steady speed and comfortable ride for your passengers, are skills that take time to learn and perfect. Learning how to operate your equipment safely is paramount. But it's all fun! Two or three miles per hour in a full scale train seems extremely slow, but when you are sitting just six inches above the gravel, you feel like you're flying!

While many locomotives are capable of 8 mph or more, most engineers stay between 2-5 mph and the track configuration and rules vary from location to location. With the number of clubs and tracks growing every year, it's very possible to go coast-to-coast and visit a local track in just about every state.

Live Steam railroading is fun! Every other statement I have made returns to that short sentence. While there is hard work associated with building a track, locomotive, or rolling stock, there are people around to teach, assist, and encourage us. From beginner to old veteran, Live Steam means something different to each of us. Each person contributes to the hobby different things, be it new ideas, tried and true techniques, or raw enthusiasm. I have found that there are always new things to learn, new techniques to practice, and new people to meet in this hobby. My wife has always said I've never met a stranger and, in this hobby, she's definitely right. I enjoy this hobby for the things it can teach me and the fun I have, no matter what it is!

Top of Page