WARNING: NON-PC CONTENT FROM THE 1940s!

I thought I'd copy some of the advertising Porter put out in the 1940s on reasons to operate one of their locos (sorry, there's only 9 reasons, and I'm guessing that top 10 lists just weren't a thing back then). I think these reasons also hold true for a club looking at steam by fired vs fireless engine (except for the non-PC part in #1)

1. Easy to Operate

There are no complex controls or boiler tc fire on a Fireless. New, unskilled labor - even women - can operate it after a few brief instructions. Porter Fireless Locomotives are rugged and cannot be damaged by inexperienced operators.

2. Easy to Maintain

There is no boiler, firebox, electric motor, generator, or internal combustion engine on a Porter Fireless. There are very few working parts. The reservoir never needs replacement. Repairs are few and far between. Thus the cost of maintenance is amazingly low.

3. Costs No More

A Porter Fireless costs no more than any other type of locomotive of equivalent power. The savings in operation and maintenance costs make it the most economical type of locomotive obtainable.

4. Cleanliness

There are no fumes or dirt about a Porter Fireless, an important advantage when operating inside a building or wherever smoke and cinders would be a disadvantage.

5. Long Life

The first Porter Fireless was placed in service in 1914 and is still working efficiently.

6. 99% Availability

Since the Porter Fireless runs on "ready made" steam, it requires no firing-up period. It is instantly available for use as soon as charged, and, since the charging can be done in idle time, the Fireless is available for use during practically 100% of working hours.

7. Costs Less to Operate

A Porter Fireless carries no fuel. It uses low cost steam produced in the plant's stationary boilers. Charging can be done during idle periods. No night or week-end attention is necessary. As there is no handling of fuel or firing, the operator can devote 100% of his time to the actual job of switching.

8. Safety

There is no fire hazard with a Porter Fireless. Since excessive pressures are impossible, there is no danger of an explosion.

9. Quiet Operation

A soft exhaust is the only sound from a Porter

I believe Railstar (Ron Trottier) had a standard gauge fireless in his collection up in Watertown, NY. Last I saw it, back around 2007 give or take, it was in decent condition. It was from the Stanley Works. You may want to track that one down.

Having worked on conventional and fireless 3' gauge steam locomotives, a couple of things popped out at me. In working on the fireless, there was an utter lack of grit as you find on a conventional coal fired engine. It was all fairly clean. The Johnson bar had more notches than any engine I have ever seen. On the fireless, the drifting valves were built into the roof of the slide valve which made an interesting rattle sound when running. As to stepping down the pressure, the throttle was a neat two stepped balanced poppet valve arrangement. At the higher pressure, you generally used the smaller of the two poppets, and as you ran, you would begin to use the second, larger diameter valve as tank pressure dropped. Neat arrangement.

We ran our fireless on air, just because it was easy, but were well on our way to locating a boiler to use to charge it on steam once the tank was overhauled. We sold it before getting to this point, though. It would run about a half hour on air, on steam it would have been good for a couple of hours.

J.R. May

Thanks! I'm still looking (thank you for those providing some leads there), and I did do an initial search for this engine. There's even a modeler kitbashing it in HO scale (http://www.newbritainstation.com/roster ... stanley-s1 ). However, I'm looking for something a little bigger... So I sent Mr. Trottier a letter.

Reviving this thread - any luck, Ted?

liftnerd -

Hope you get an answer to your question.

BTW, thanks for the reference to your organization there in Contoocook, New Hampshire. Never had heard of you and, from the website, it appears to be a very interesting place. Depot with an operational train order semaphore signal, covered railroad bridge, open platform wood coach, section house. NEAT!

Les