There are several types of Valve gear on steam locomotives. Some became obsolete quickly, some persisted. There were Southern, Stephenson, Walschaert, Baker and others. Some were easily identifiable from the "hangers" where the reverse links were suspended. Some by the reverse link itself. Some were inside the frame, some outside. Let's put a bunch of photos up and get everyone to comment on the gear. This one belongs to UP 844. What say you? What type? Inside, outside? [ 08. August 2004, 21:21: Message edited by: fitz ]
Hmm, as usual, the response to technical stuff about steam is underwhelming. Undaunted, I shall post a diagram, courtesy of Charlie Dockstader, who really knows this stuff, about how an outside Baker valve gear works. Now I gotta go post it on Railimages. Standby. Well, those are executable files so I can't load them. If you would like to see Charlie's great diagrams, go to his site at Charlie's Valve Gear stuff You can download a number of different kinds of gear from his big selection of files. I'll be baaack. [ 08. August 2004, 02:53: Message edited by: fitz ]
Jim .. that photo you posted of the valve gear is pretty small for my old peepers to see well enough to try and identify. Good thread topic though. Lets keep it going.
It's Stephenson valve gear, not "Stevenson", after the gentleman who was the British locomotive pioneer that built the "Rocket", winner of the Rainhill trials. It was by far the most common valve gear in use in North America for a half century, from 1860-1910.
Bill, sorry about the size of the photo. Thirdrail, do you have a drawing of the Stephenson valve gear to add to the thread? Weren't most of the early ones "inside?"
I checked out Charlie Dockstader's diagrams, and what fun it is! And to think he did it all using DOS format. Quite an accomplishment. Thanks for including it in your post Jim. When you refer to valve gear as inside or outside are you speaking of the valve works either located inside the frame or outside of the drivers respectively?
Bill, yes, that's what I'm referring to, in relation to the frame, as opposed to inside vs. outside admission of steam. That's a whole other subject. To supplement that teeny picture, here is one of Niagara 6024 from Bob Spaugh's collection which should showcase this gear type. Still no identification.......
Gil, glad to see you back and providing us with more thought. OK, guys, there are three different types of valve gear in the photos. I haven't heard any ID yet. I know Bill and Gil know. Which one of those locomotives has this type of valve gear? This image is courtesy of Mr. Bob Booty, who has a whole lot more on his website at Bob Booty's locomotive page
Benny, right! And it's not because of the number of drivewheels. The reverse link on the Walschaert gear is a dead giveaway. OK, now what kind is on the Niagara and the Sierra Railway No. 8? I hope you guys have checked Bob Booty's great technical pages.
Still no answers? In order to keep this going, I am forced to put photos of New York Central Hudsons up here, though it pains me greatly (hehehe). All of these photos are courtesy of the Harold K. Vollrath collection. Hint: Look at the reverser links, and the hangers. One of these has a Walschaert, the other two Baker, with different hardware. This is Big Four 6611, later renumbered into the 5xxx series. 5200, NYC's first Hudson, J-1a class. J-1d, 5312
