I attended the Waushakem Live Steamers (Mass.) meet this past weekend and witnessed numerous model/replica live steam, Diesel and electric locomotives in operation. Three locomotives grabbed my attention and I thought I'd share them with readers in this group. There is a bit of irony in this posting.





Pat Murphy's NYC Hudson. This beautiful locomotive would have charmed the heart of any steam fan. She run like a clock, except for the occasional steam noises that verifie the life in the machinery. In my admiration of the locomotive, I grieve the absolute loss of all her prototype sisters.

Dave Sclavi's K4s was widely regarded as the most beautiful and intricately detailed at the steam up. Dave told me he examined 1361 when she was running, so he could create this impeccable, live K4s. Would that 1361 might look as good as Dave's replica does, today.









I don't know who owns Southern PS4 1408, but she ran all day, and well into Saturday night, sometimes double-headed with Dave Sclavi's K4s, #1361. She is a perfect Apple-Green locomotive, which did so well to recreate her class.



In discussion with the other live steamers at the event, the opinion developed that each operable engine at the meet was, indeed, a real locomotive, but in smaller scale. I would say that each I presented here go further than that, in that they restore the sensation of viewing what was once common place at trackside, but is no more.

Hudson and K4 are works of art, but the K4 is too clean for a PRR engine. Should have a nice sooty look to her. Hudson could stand a little "schmutz" also.
Excellent craftsmanship!
Too many live steamers look like they were built by a committee, but there are some real beauties out threre.

As I said, these were just three of the outstanding locomotives that ran this past weekend. There are always some "hybrids", and once in awhile, some real monsters. The object is to have fun, of course, and each person uses his/her locomotive as an extension of that interest. Being a steam purist myself, those locomotive that emulate a specific prototype in detail, grab me.

HI All

The Southern PS-4 is owned by Mr. Joe Tanski , Joe builds in all three scales, and always atents our big annual meet, here in Mass. The correct spelling of the club is Waushakum Live Steamers. for more information on the club, either go too web site, or search the name. Pat member of WLS.

One of RMEO's early members, the late Stan Galloway, built a gorgeous 7 1/2" gauge live steam CNR Northern (#6275). Like the models shown in the original post, Stan's engine was highly detailed and perfectly proportioned.

He sold it in the late 1980s when the maintenance and operation became too much as old age set in. We would have loved to buy the engine for display and outreach programs, but finances didn't allow it.

Stan was an electrical engineer working for the CNR in Montreal. Many of the larger parts, including castings, were fabricated for him at CN's Point St Charles shops. Of course, original drawings were easy for him to access!

Stan did all the detailed design, fabrication of all the smaller parts, and assembly himself. The engine ran on the live steam club at Les Cedres (Cedars), Quebec until his retirement, then came with him to his retirement home in Brockville, Ontario. Stan built a nice big loop of track in his back yard for this magnificent beast to roam.

I believe Stan told me it went to a buyer in the Toronto area, but I lost track of the engine when he sold it. Has anybody seen this engine since?

Steve Hunter
Cardinal, Ontario

If that Northern is in Toronto, maybe one day it will show up at John Street.

More images from the Waushakum meet. Enjoy!

http://s33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/A ... 0%2008_10/

P.S. A locomotive like the CNR Northern, mentioned above, should be operated on a regular basis, and never become a static exhibit. Boilers are replaced all the time. We are merely custodians of these artifacts in our lifetimes.

Check out what appears to be a spectacular 1" scale CV 2-10-4 in the linked photos above. Truly remarkable craftsmanship by a number of builders there. There really should be closer ties between more full-size museums and the live steam and smaller-scale model community. I'm thinking of the Colo. RR Museum specifically, which has an HO club layout in the basement, and a NG garden railway display on the grounds. Given the gaps in preservation, it's a way to represent what was and is no longer. Before the flood and relocation, the Blue Ridge Live Steamers used to be on the grounds of the VMT in Roanoke.