Apparently 2816 is out of service with a cracked axle. Not good.

Not good? I don't think so. Why? It's the cost of doing business. If you want to play then you have to pay. They are machines they will break and there is no way to stop that unless you stuff and mount them.

I for one am glad to get the news by seeing this post. And no, it is not good. Repairable but not good.

Here's a link from the CPR website: http://www.cpr.ca/en/in-your-community/ ... fault.aspx

"Monday, July 4, 2011: Due to unforeseen circumstances, the CP 2816 Empress steam engine will not be available to travel for community events in the coming weeks. Our Heritage fleet will still travel to Vancouver for the 125 celebrations on July 9-10 and for public train rides across British Columbia and Alberta July 13-18."

Well, there are several other H-class Hudsons around, both in the USA and Canada.

So assuming that a cracked axle is okay under a display locomotive, a swap would be possible - yes?

Better to make a new axle...safer and easier!

Stephen

Borrowing another wheel set would present a problem as the tire size may not be the same as currently on 2816, due to reprofiling over years of use. You would still have to set the tram on the running gear. I'm with Stephen, might as well repair the exisiting wheel set.

Mike Stillwell
Buena Vista, VA.

I wouldn't expect a replacement axle to be a big deal for a major road like CP. It'll just take some time since replacement driving wheelsets won't be sitting around in the shop.

CP will do this right. 2816 is their flagship engine, and they treat her very well. She's come a long way since she sat in Vermont, rusting away with moss growing from every crevice.

Steve Hunter
Cardinal, Ontario

To echo both Steve and Stephen's thoughts, Cass had a similar problem some years ago. They broke an axle on one of the Shays, and wound up reworking a diesel axle (GP-30 or GP-40) as a replacement. CP is a big company, with shops, machinists, wheel lathes and wheel presses, and I'd bet they replace the axle with a new one. It's just steel, although very good steel-

A shay axle is a much easier proposition than a rod engine axle as the crankpins must be quartered at 90 degrees. My suspicion is that this work will find its way to Strasburg or the D & S. We here at the MRSR have made new axles for rod engines such as Polson 70 without the use of quartering machines with good results, but this is a process which is time consuming and may not be within CP's schedule.

Best,

Stathi

Hollow-bored forged axles to RR specs can be bought on special order. We had one made in USA for 4-6-2 S.P. 2472 - a very similar-sized locomotive, slightly lighter on the drivers (181,000 lbs) than a CPR 4-6-4. The axle forging arrived heat-treated and rough-machined. It was 11"+ O.D. (i.e. for the #1 driving axle), IIRC. Cost was a few thousand $US, about 10+ years ago. (In the event, the original axle cleaned up OK in a lathe and the new axle wasn't needed.) So buying a replacement axle isn't tremendously difficult.

The bigger job is dropping the bad wheelset, removing the tires with a gas ring, pressing off the wheel centers, pressing off the crankpins (probably), inspecting and machining wheel centers & axle, pressing wheel centers onto new axle, pressing new crankpins in, finish-machining wheel centers if necessary, sending the wheelset to Strasburg RR to have the new crankpins quartered, and reapplying the tires.

- Doug Debs

Apologies for muddy-ing the thread, but Cass Shay 4 runs an axle from long O-O-S MRLCo Shay 7, as the modified diesel axle did not work out. I have asked different Cass shop employees for details, but they all just said it didn't work, so a vintage part was used.

Mike Stillwell
Buena Vista, VA.

I was merely 'remembering' what I had read on the Cass website about their number 4. But upon looking at the site this morning, it seems that the GP-30 axles lasted from 1965 to 1985, when one broke and was replaced with a real Shay axle from number 7.
I'll ask around down there tomorrow, while making my annual pilgrimage.

Or to TVRM where 2816's wheels were refurbished in the initial restoration. I am curious to know whether the axle is actually cracked, as all wheel centers and axles were x-rayed and ultrasounded to find any defects. There were several in the wheel centers, which were all properly repaired and post-repair tested to ensure no flaws. All work was completed at TVRM except for final wheel profiling. CPR had their own special profile for passenger locomotive wheels that allegedly enhanced ride quality at higher speeds better than a standard AAR locomotive profile. I believe Angus Shops did the final profiling using an in-floor wheel grinder.

Mike,
Cornelius Beaver Country, Indiana

Any mechanical test shows only what conditions are at the time of the test. Failures arise anytime thereafter on their own schedule sometimes due to overstressing, sometimes fatigue, molecular changes in the metal, or the general perversity of the universe. TVRR is deservedly reputed to have one of the finest heavy wheel shops for steam in the Americas, and no doubt all work was done to their usual high standard and tested perfectly when they were done.

I just inspected a bunch of drive belts for July monthly PM at the plant last night. No surprise if some are cracked or loose by the time August rolls around. Things break.

Axles are not swiss watchmaking. Good quality big bars of the right grade of steel and a lathe and press will get one changed. Quartering is the most difficult part of the process, easier if you have keyed axles and can match the relative keyway locations from old axle to new. Let's not make this into something dramatic and impossible. Axles are replaced every day.

dave

Absolutely Dave! It's not the end of life as we know it. If the drivers are keyed, it's a matter of the correct fit. TVRM is an excellent driver shop as is Strasburg.
Could have been something a lot worse than an axle crack. Wonder how they found it?