At the Dobwalls Adventure Park in the UK. There are at least two others here in the US, built to 1/8 size. Part of the Sherman Hill route in this amusement park was recently dismantled to make way for income housing for the park and the park is said to be closed this season.

http://abpr.railfan.net/abprphoto.cgi?s ... -06-30.jpg

They also have a slightly less accurate UP 4-8-4 and a D&RGW K-36, built in a larger scale to fit the same track.

http://abpr.railfan.net/abprphoto.cgi?s ... -06-30.jpg

Queen of Nebraska! LOL!

One of the members of the CALS live steam club in Baltimore is building a Big Boy in 1.6" scale. He's a great mechanic and machinist, and I fully expect him to complete it. The really amazing thing is he's a paraplegic and is doing all the work while wheelchair bound!

BTW, and this is especially for Ross, the member of the CALS who built the B&O P-7 Pacifics and C&O 614, R. Bruce Hamilton, Jr., died on Feb. 23 (same day as Bob Richardson) at 90. Talk about a master machinist! If you go to the CALS forum on railfan.net there are a couple of pictures of the Greenbrier running on the club track. It runs as good as it looks, I've had the honor.

The story of the paraplegic building a Big Boy should probably become a documentary for TV. To the general public, and often the media, live steam enthusiasts appear to be eccentric old geezers who never grew up, riding around on their little trains, not much different than a grown man on a tricycle. What they seldom see is all the knowledge and craftsmanship needed to complete such a locomotive. Very few persons today have the skills required to build one. Of all the persons involved in rail avocation, they are just about the top of the heap.

I'm sorry to hear the Bruce Hamilton passed away. I remember when he was building the B&O Pacifics (not one, but two, simultaneously). Whenever he needed to confirm a dimension, he would go down to the B&O Museum and measure the real thing. He was a man of extraordinary talent and generosity.

Alan Maples

Alan,

I had been hoping to get to Baltimore to meet Bruce in person and gain some wisdom for the building of my 1.6" Greenbrier, just like his, but alas, I was a couple weeks too late.

Regarding Big Boys in 7.5" gauge, I believe there is an almost-complete Big Boy in the Chicago area started yearst ago by Dave Boyd who was a mechanical engineer. About 15 years ago there was an article in Modeltec showing a fellow club member winching the Big Boy out of Dave's basement window at a fairly steep angle onto a roll-back car-hauling truck. I haven't been able to learn anything more about the engine since Dave has now passed away.

Tom Miller's Big Boy in Oregon was custom built by Severn-Lamb in England to 1.6" scale. It is a one-of-a-kind locomotive. Severn-Lamb built the one operating in England. It and the FEF class 4-8-4's were all built to 1.85" scale, much larger than 1.6" scale and operating on 7-1/4" gauge track.

Almost as impressive are the UP Challengers that have also been built in 7.5" gauge. Paul Culp from SE PA built one from scratch years ago and now Roger Goldmann from CA offers a kit for the UP Challenger. Bruno Platzer from Las Vegas has built one complete and it's a real show stopper. Paul Hunter, also from CA, has a Big Boy built from Roger's castings. I know there at least a few more under construction at this time as well.

On a sidebar, I think we would all be pretty surprised at how many awesome examples of miniature scale steam power sit in basements and garages having been inherited by the builder's children who don't operate their father's locomotives.

Rob Gardner