Hey all,

First off, I want to give a huge congrats to the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society and the Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum for the success of the 765 trips out of North Judson, IN. This adds to the anticipation, for me, to see the 765 in 2 months in Owosso.

Now to the main parts, I noticed 765's bell and whistle sound different when compared to footage of the engine from the late '80s/early '90s. Has the whistle been tuned, or has a different whistle taken its place (kinda a stupid question now that I think about it)?

1992: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hIz0WEpRgA
2009: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEWQSxWvruA

Also, what came of the bell the 765 previously wore? Seems as if the current bell is barely audible on YouTube videos, but what do I know...?

Thanks,

The whistle does sound differnent but as far as I know its the same whistle she used in her previous excursion career. Maybe a differnet boiler pressure or a crack in the whistle? Kelly Lynch (765 fireman and P.R. man) lurks here alot so maybe he can explain more!

Mike -

Thanks for the kind words. I asked one of the members of the FWRHS today about the bell and he confirmed that it is a cast iron (rather than brass) bell. I believe that a lot of locomotives built during the Second World War received cast iron bells, due to a need for brass for more important reasons. And the current idea of the "look" of the 765 is to make her into her "as-delivered" appearance. Thus also, the "C&O style" numbers in her number boards which the NKP changed later to their own number style. The cast iron bell is apparently part of this "look".

Les Beckman (Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum)

Don't hold me to this, but if I remember correctly...I remember seeing a video on youtube, where a guy was sitting at the throttle of 765 with Rich Melvin sitting behind him, and when asked about the whistle, Mr. Melvin said it was a Nathan 4-chime and that it was the original whistle that was on the first NKP Berkshire #700.

But as I said, I could be wrong....I saw the video awhile ago and could be recalling it incorrectly. I'll try to find it on Youtube again...

I tihnk its a Nathan 6 chime!

Today the 765 ran with the whistle from our C&O 2789.

It is indeed a Nathan six chime whistle from the original Nickel Plate Berkshire no. 700. The locomotive has always carried this whistle, except during periods when guest whistles were used on the steam dome connection (an auxiliary connection sits just ahead of the dome.) The whistle, along with the rest of the machine, has undergone some re-working, which accounts for some slight variations; but remember, steam pressure, water content, and the engineer can all account for differences in the sound. Our crew was fine tuning the water treatment/blow down process with North Judson's water after some brief foaming issues, which is responsible for the sound in the second video.

Some of us joked that with C&O no. 2789's whistle on her yesterday, the locomotive had "hit puberty" to account for it's sudden low tones.

KL

It kind of sounds like the 1225's whistle. Kelly, how did she fire besides the foaming issue?

By all accounts the engine performed wonderfully and the machinery remains sound. It was pretty much the perfect weekend and worth waiting for.

KL

I guess I'll see first hand in July! Too bad I'm graduating college the weekend of the June trips!...........lol

You sure got that right!!! I can't wait until June (and July)

Whatever happened to the original whistle for the 765 -- as in the whistle she used in regular service on the NKP? Does the Fort Wayne group own that piece of hardware?

Just a point of clarification on Kelly's post above.

We did not have any "...foaming issues..." when running the 765 this weekend. We had a couple moments of PRIMING, but that is a completely different thing.

Priming occurs when there is a thin film of contamination on the surface of the water. When a high steam flow device opens, such as the whistle, this film tends to stick together and draw water with it up into the whistle. The result is the whistle doesn't blow very well. If the water level is high when priming occurs, steam flow into the dry pipe can also draw water with it and the engine begins to "work water" in the cylinders.

Foaming is a completely different situation and is VERY dangerous. If a boiler foams, ALL the water turns to bubbles and foam. Needless to say, foam doesn't absorb heat very well and the result is the boiler "feels" like it has no water in it. In this situation, the water glasses are filled with foam and no water is visible in the glass. If feed water cannot be quickly pumped into the boiler to get rid of the foam and replace it with water, you have to dump the fire in order not to melt a crown sheet. Foaming is very rare. The water has to be pretty bad for foaming to occur. In all the time we have run the 765, we have never had a problem with foaming.

As far as how she ran this weekend, the 765 ran like a Swiss watch. We had no mechanical issues with her at all.

The brass bell we used years ago belongs to Tom Stephens. Some of you may remember that Tom and I shared the Engineer's seat on the 765 during her second career, during the 80's and 90's. Tom is not with the crew this time around, and I suspect his gorgeous bell is resting comfortably in his home. The "as outshopped from Lima" look called for the painted steel bell, and that's what we've got on her. It is not as loud as the brass bell, but still gets your attention when needed.

Steel, not cast iron. Thanks for the clarification Rich.

Les

I asked the same question a few years ago and was told it was damaged before restoration in the 70s.

Primed, but not foamingly yours,

KL