Norfolk & Western Class "A" and The Y6B, The Best in Steam!! 

I'd definitely use Class A's, Y6b's and J-Class locos- they were efficient, powerful, and multi-functional. Smooth operation and ease of maintenance were added bonuses. So glad I was able to ride behind each, and shared my love of them with my daughter.

I whole heartedly agree with you about the N&W

To answer that question. If I was to make a railroad in the 1940's and I wanted to use a steam locomotive for it, I would go for some flavor of C&O Kanawha. It's probably the best rendition of the berkshire and would be ready able to do essentially any task fairly well.

For the record, the Illinois Central was running steam into 1960. I think #2613 made its last run in May 1960. N&W steam held out a little longer. Grand Trunk Western was also running steam into early 1960. Roanoke Shops was likely the finest US steam shop but IC's Paducah Shops and PRR's Juniata Shops deserve honorable mentions.

Agreed on the N&W take, they really knew how to build, maintain, and operate steam locomotives, and the "A"s and Y6s are easily top tier steamers. IMO, tho, the J is the pinnacle of steam technology. They were the absolute definition of modern steam. They even managed to cost less to maintain and operate than the diesels at the time. Not to mention the ride was smooth as butter, roller bearings pretty much on all reciprocating parts, very large steaming capacity, quick and easy to maintain, and even with just 70" drivers, they can exceed 100. I didn't even cover it all about the Js, but I didn't want my comment to be crazy long.

USRA Heavy Mikado

Union Pacific FEF-3 844

What locomotive would I choose ?? First you have to tell me where my railroad will run and what type of freight am I going to run... Then I could choose a steam Locomotive ...

i wiold star with the norther pacific bull mose 2-8-8-0

My answer would probably be a mikado or a 2-8-0 then just get bigger and bigger

I have always been a fan of the Allegheny. But I agree with you about the N & W.

The Roanoke shops were by far the best at designing and building steam locomotives. All the others were at best a very very distant second place.

If I was starting a RR with steam power and I had to only pick ONE ,Id pick the Illinois Central Paducah built 2600 series of Mountains ...

Maybe UP Challenger 3985

1. Berkshire 2. Hudson 3. Decapod

How about PRR Q2 duplex for freight and PRR T1 for passanger service.

I wished Steam Locomotives Never retired I wished we were like China.

I start my railroad with SNCF 242 A 1

My top 15 extinct US steam locomotives: 1. N&W Y6B 1.5. SP AC-9 2. NYC Hudson 3. NYC Niagara 4. B&O EM-1 5. UP Fetter Challenger 6. PRR T1 7. C&O T1 and PRR J1 8. Northern Pacific/SP&S Challenger 9. Virginian AG Blue Ridge 10. Western Maryland J1 Potomac 11. N&W K class 12. Every Erie railroad steam locomotive 13. Virginian 2-10-10-2 14. Northern Pacific Z5 Yellowstone 15. Rio Grande L-131

If I where to start a railroad I would name it EASTERN PACIFIC and have a locomotive 4-8-8-4 wheel arrangement and designed like Union Pacific early challengers design with extended pilot deck.

I agree with the Norfolk & Western having some of the best steam locomotives ever to run on any US railroad. And it is great to have three of the best preserved, the A, Y6B and J classes. And all 3 had or have a time being operational as well. Where I had been thinking of a model railroad depicting the Rio Grande or SP in the diesel age, now I know that the N&W in the late forties / early fifties will be my subject. The Appalachians offer great scenery for a model layout as well.

I like to see you do the Southern Pacific AC-9 2-8-8-4 Yellowstone locomotives!

I would have 4 The N&W J 4-8-4 605 with no streamlining and a Yb6 4-6-6-4 with A NYC Hudson 4-6-4 and Last a UP Big boy

N&W 2-8-8-2's had more horsepower than the Big Boy's.

I think the N&W 611 model J is and was the best steam locomotive ever.

The shame is the steam locomotive was being perfected. When Diesel Electric locomotives eventually replaced them. I truly believe that if the steam locomotives had another 10 years. Scrubbers would have been added to the smoke stack and very little water would have been wasted to the outside atmosphere. Through condensers most of the steam would have been cooled back to water. It would still require at least 1 man to stoke the coal or feed the fuel oil on each trailing steam locomotives. Using jumper cables the lead steam locomotive would have control of the traction effort of any trailing Steam Locomotives,creating a multiple unit, single steam locomotive. Just like diesel electric all electric locomotives and control Cab cars do today Diesel Electric locomotives would not have never become the locomotive of today. Except for switching locomotives. Of course the all electric locomotives would still have their place on electrified railroads. The Pennsylvania and New York Central along with some other railroads. Owned their own coal mines. Then again back then. The Pennsylvania Railroad and other railroads actually built their own steam and electric locomotives. Made the majority of the parts. My great grandfather worked at Altoona/Juniata shops and was directly involved in casting the GG-1s articulating trucks for the 12 traction motors. He told me that they were cast in the ground under the shop floors. The GG-1 was way ahead of its time. Then again the GG-1 was a pantograph,to tap switch transformer either a 21 or 22 position throttle, to the AC traction motors. If you ever look at the spoked driver wheels on thf GG-2. There are rubber faced starter motors to get the GG-1 up to speed so the AC traction motors could engage. In LETP we were taught they were tickler motors. Once the AC Traction Motors Engaged. You could easily draw 2,250 amps and have no wheel slip of wheel slip started to occur. You could either turn a valve that dropped sand on the leading drivers. Or push down the automatic brake valve handle that would engage a lever that would drop sand on all sanders. I believe the Automatic Brake valve was either a 24 or 26 RL. It’s been over 40 years since I operated a GG-1. I not once didn’t make it from point A to point B operating a GG-1. No one could just get on a GG-1 and operate it. I had to be taught how to operate the GG-1. It took a few months to know what I needed to know about the locomotive. Just operating the steam generator. You had to know what you were doing. There was 2 water tanks,one on each end of the locomotive if the number 1 water tank was starting to run low. You had to know how to siphon the water from the B water tank. Using steam. Nowadays no railroads that I can of. Don’t even cast their own brake shoes no less spare parts for locomotives.

I heard a story once that someone asked the late Frank Collins (1218 excursion engineer and former regular service steam engineer) out of the N&W’s Big 3 (A, J & Y6) which was his favorite. Allegedly he replied “You tell me what kind of train that I’m going to pull and I’ll tell you which engine that I’ll pick.” It sounds like that he liked them all!

Dual service would be SLSF 1500 4-8-2. Drag USRA 2-10-2. USRA 0-8-0 switcher. Heavy 2-8-2 all other service

probably a mountain type or the up overlands

thay shuld have converted to oil and kept going

Question: Why didn't other railroads use N&W type locomotives? An oil fired Y6b cab forward might have been a better fit for the SP.

Great video! Love the N&W!

If I'm starting a railroad in the 1940's, I'm buying NYC class L3/L4 Mohawks! Best dual purpose steamer ever made!

I want to contribute $20 for a 2-8-0 Connie video. Please send me instructions. 😊

If I'm doing a passenger service the GS-4 from the Southern Pacific and fraight service if I need it moved fast the S-3 from the Milwaukee Road, but there are so many great steam locos out there

I heard that one Y6b was clocked in at 63 MPH

I’m picking a New York central Niagara

If i was to some up the N&W in a short phrase it would be this: A modern Class one but with steam.

I like the smaller N&W steam, like the class M 4-8-0 and the class Z mallet

There is no doubt the Y-6B was the pinnacle of compound design and efficiency, but the Challenger and Big Boy could run fast freights at 70 mph and passenger trains over 80

The y6b hands down one of my favorite locomotive.

A1 Berkshire in Boston and Albany

UP FEF-3

Either a New York Central Hudson or Niagara

I wouldnt mind using a 4-8-4 for dual use for my railroad

UP 844 not retitrd. So UP is yhe last one standing.

The mighty 2-8-4 Berkshire😮

If I were to start a Railroad during the ww2 era, to determine what sort of locomotive would Start, there's a lot of variables and conditions. During that time Railroads designed their locomotives to fit their specific needs. The NW is a fine example. They'd have to be familiar with their customer base, or industry. The terrian you are operating, the type of Railroad itself. Main line short line ect. The type of infrastructure and logistics is going to play a role. Cost and maintenance is another huge factor. This ties in with fuel source. If I'm operating in TX OH or KS and a couple other western states, I'm going to opt for oil. If Im operating in Appalachian region I'm running coal. Since we are a new Railroad, I'm going to opt for a simple S-2 2-8-4 Lima built Berkshire. The Berkshires are versatile. Until roles become more specific. For fast Freight I'm opting for a challenger. For fast passenger service I'm going with a Hudson design. The reason why I didn't include NW locomotives was because they were proprietary built for their Railroad. Otherwise NW did everything right.

The 4.8 .2.mountain train

A western Maryland class M-2

Thanks for doing a video on my favorite steam locomotive. These giants could pull loads that would have required three diesel engines. It's a shame that just when the design and evolution of steam locomotives were reaching the pinnacle of what could be done, the railroads abandoned any further improvements in favor of diesel engines.

If i had to choose one loco to start a railroad company with, itd be a tie between the class j from the n&w or the y6a from the same road. Outside the n&w, id say the fef-3 from the union pacific or the niagara from the nyc. Id say the n&w was the best steam outfit in the country. I might be a bit biased, because im from nc, and live around the southern and n&w's old stomping grounds.

Berkshires and mikados.

Yes, the N&W was for me the best Railway in the US., their Locomotives were second to none.

Please do a video on the L&HR 4-8-2.

In terms of height at the cab roof and length from coupler of pilot to coupler of tender, does anyone know these dimensions of each of these two locomotives.

The valve to allow high pressure steam steam into the low pressure cylinders did not operate at "all" speeds as you stated. They only operated at low starting speeds to increase the starting pull. But as you stated, this could make the Y6 slippery. If left open, it would literally drain the boiler steam into the large low pressure cylinders. The operating procedure was to open the valve when starting to get some extra pull, then close the valve ASAP and operate in compound mode. The Y6 actually had a relatively small boiler for an articulated locomotive, basically the same size as a 4-8-4s boiler.

My dad worked in N&W's Williamson, West Virginia yard from the 50's through the 70's. The last regular run of the Y6B was between Chatteroy and Williamson. Dad took me on one of the steam engines on the yard, but I was too young to know which kind it was. I was 5 yo in '61.

The N&W had an incredibly efficient steam operation. Some of the finest photographs of the dying days of the N&W steam operation were done by O. Winston Link, including many images featuring both the "A" and "Y6" classes. Some rare movie footage of Y6b locomotives hauling a 175 wagon coal load (2 headers, 1 pusher): ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-zV8rA3UE-lc.htmlsi=IE9y9N_vOcM9xrJG

I often wondered why the Allegheny and Big Boy outclassed the Y6b, until now. It has to do with the adhesion factor. I always knew the Y6b was prone to slipping but just never connected the dots until now. I really appreciate your work in these presentations, thank you!!

Chesapeake & Ohio Railway 2-8-4 Kanawha!

the Norfolk and Western to me epitomizes the operation of a steam railway worked out to every minute detail and achieving record after record. The company itself was so rich that they didn't have any hardships during the great depression due to their coal traffic and were so rich they could still get by using their own money, not taxpayer dollars, to keep everything maintained and up to top quality standards from the rails to the roadbed and so on. When I watched the Last of the Giants UP video I thought "ooh those look nice" but when I watched Operation Fast Freight I thought "dang those engines look sweet". Also cause I have the entire 9 N&W herron rail dvd set that has over 7 and a half hours of N&W footage with some additional N&W footage from Pennsy glory volume 4 articulateds americas biggest steam, trains at speed, glory machines volumes 1 and 2, and Cincinnati steam classics.

The Steamengine is the best to go with.!!!!!!!!!!

Bro I agree with this guy more than anyone

The mudracker berks or heavy pacifics

The Loco contest should be interesting!

Pennsylvania Railroad class S2

When did N&W start building it’s own steam locomotives?

Such great locos to watcj in action even if on youtube

*N&W superiority intensifies!*

The big boy.

Union Pacific big boy

You are overstating your case. First of all, that 6300 hp drawbar rating for the A is suspect. A lot of people, including the Norfork and Western historical society, consider that a fluke and think the HP is more like 5300. Second, saying that the alleghenys only advantage over the A is that is has greater steam capacity misses the fact that steam capacity is the main thing that a steam engine needs. The allegheny was, in the best case for the A, 20% more powerful. Could go as fast and had the same tractive effort, but with better adhesion. Its just a flat better locomotive because it was designed to be. As for the Y6b, at one point you say that it could pull 13500 tons at 25 mph, then later say it could do that at 50. Which would give it like 8000 HP when you say that 5500 indicated (not drawbar) is the best it can do. Another run of your script would probably have caught that oops. The N&W was good, but I think nowdays that allows people to overstate how good it was.

NKP S1

UP 4-8-4 is my choice.

Y6 b better than big boy

A Chesapeake and Ohio 2-8-4 Kanawha Berkshire.

Seems like they had a WOOTEN FIREBOX like Reading steam locomotives. The Reading burned hard coal...