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Wild West Loco, Polish Style
https://www.rypn.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=33232
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Author:  Alexander D. Mitchell IV [ Wed May 02, 2012 10:26 pm ]
Post subject:  Wild West Loco, Polish Style

No, this is not a set-up for a "Pollack" joke.

Those of us with enough history or experience will know how steam locos in the 1950s and 1960s were "tarted up" to be given a "Wild West" appearance during the Davy Crockett/Daniel Boone/Bonanza/etc. days.

They're still doing it in Poland, apparently, inspired by "3:10 to Yuma":

www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=396718

Author:  Bob Davis [ Wed May 02, 2012 11:20 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Wild West Loco, Polish Style

There are apparently quite a few "Wild West" buffs in Europe, especially in Germany. Just as railfans go to England and the Isle of Man for vintage railroading, their idea of a dream vacation is to visit places like Tombstone, Arizona. One can consider this Polish tourist attraction a "tribute" to early days in western America.

Author:  Tom Parkins [ Thu May 03, 2012 9:36 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Wild West Loco, Polish Style

That is a PKP (Polish National RR) Tkt-48 (2-8-2 tank, designed in 1948) and a fun engine to operate. Still a few operational, but no longer on the main line. Only in museums.

Image

Author:  J3a-614 [ Thu May 03, 2012 10:34 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Wild West Loco, Polish Style

Pink and gold and a goofy cow-catcher, oh, oh, my eyes, my eyes. . .at least she wasn't scrapped. . .shades of Sergio Leone and others with those spaghetti westerns. . .

Author:  Mike Swanson [ Fri May 04, 2012 11:00 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Wild West Loco, Polish Style

Yeah, but at least the locomotives in those westerns looked somewhat like they could have been used in the late 1800s; a Tkt-48, on the other hand, does not look even remotely like an American locomotive (except for some of the commuter locomotives NYC, New Haven, and a few other Northeastern roads had), much less one that could have run in the Old West. (And especially not with that God-awful paint job! Blech...) One can only hope that a museum/preservation group rescues the old gal and restores her to a more proper (and dignified!) appearance, if not to full operation; that would be a far better fate than being relegated to the railroad equivalent of a clown or sideshow freak. Oh, the horror of it all...

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