The Steam in China discussion group notes that the first diesel has arrived at the previously all-steam line at Chengde. Also posted was this photo of a YJ 2-6-2, now dormant at the Fushan Steelworks. Cute little engines.

http://rcswww.urz.tu-dresden.de/~fm765083/2-6-2.jpg
ryarger@rypn.org

> Dear Bob:
It is really too bad about Chengde, without question one of the most spectacular shows in China. Interestingly, the railroad did not want diesels, the local government arranged for them to get three diesels because they didn't like the steam locomotives blasting through the center of the city. Initially the diesels will be used between the interchange with China Railway and the helper station. The helpers will still be steam as will everything at the steel mill. But it will only be a matter of time...
I have heard that the plan is to eliminate all steam, nationwide, prior to the Olympics, and with all the new industrial diesel switchers being built, it should be easily done.
The management of the Ji-Tong would like to keep steam indefinetly, but they say that the decision for issues of this nature are made by the central government.
Of course, as steam locomotives are retired, there is no need for new parts. A lot of the items which I use to import are no longer readily available, and other items which are no longer produced at all, could be, albeit with large minmum quanities.
J. David


jdconrad@snet.net

Yes it is a nice engine, but I thought the IC was the only railroad that used square sand domes with most of these coming for the IC's Paducah shops.

Stuart

Help save the 87
gnufe@apex.net

At one time square and domes, perhaps more accurately called sand boxes, were the norm, and sand domes the exception.
In American practice, square sand boxes seem to have been more common in New England, and sand domes more common out West. (Of the three earliest conventional locomotives in the Museum of Transport's collection, the two from New England, Daniel Nason of the Boston and Providence, and Marmora of the Boston and Albany, later NYC both have boxes. The C&NW locomotive, roughly a contemporary of the NYC locomotive, has a dome.)
In Europe boxes remained common until the end of steam. In the Brittish paralance, the sand dome is traditionaly called the sand box. (Which is somewhat ironic, as Brittain was perhaps the country least likely to have boxlike configurations for their sand storage.)
Sand boxes were generally more common in Germanic and Central European practice, and less so in Southern or Western European practice. And I think even there, they lost favor on newer types, but enough older locomotives remained in service till the end of steam that I think they would hardly have looked out of place.
Sincerely
David Ackerman

> Yes it is a nice engine, but I thought the
> IC was the only railroad that used square
> sand domes with most of these coming for the
> IC's Paducah shops.

> Stuart

IC got the idea from Lima; the 50 2-8-4's were delivered from the factory with square sandboxes.
They weren't really square, but were anything but round.

At any rate, the objective was to have a sandbox that would carry the maximum amount of sand while still adhering to the overall clearance profile of the locomotive, so it sould still go under bridges and train sheds and into an out of shops without problems. The squared, angled, whatever type did that job and did it well.