Grand Canyon Ry. Displays Manitou & Pikes Peak Steamer

Alexander D. Mitchell IV · **Posted:** Mon Jul 01, 2019 5:14 pm

http://trn.trains.com/news/news-wire/20 ... in-arizona

Quote:

The [Grand Canyon Railway] took delivery of Manitou & Pikes Peak Cog Railway steam rack locomotive No. 4 on Friday, and placed it on display on an isolated section of display track behind the railroad's Fred Harvey Restaurant at its Williams terminal. The locomotive will remain on the property for two years, until the complete rebuilding of the M&PP. The Grand Canyon Railway plans on creating an interpretive sign to go with it to explain its origin and significance.

The Manitou & Pikes Peak Railway is owned by the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, which is owned by the Oklahoma Publishing Co, which is owned by Anshutz Group, which also owns Xanterra, the western National Parks concessionaire that is also owner of the Grand Canyon Railway.

The loco will be on display at Williams until the M&PP renovation is complete in 2021.

Bowmore · **Joined:** Tue Jul 12, 2016 6:12 pm **Posts:** 195

I lookes back at the photo I had taken back in 2005. It was of No. 5, not No. 4

Brian Norden · **Posted:** Mon Jul 01, 2019 9:26 pm

Number 5 has been on display at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs.

Number 4 is the one that has been on the property of the Manitou & Pike's Peak Railway since the railroad traded number 1 for it. The railroad stored the #4 inside its storage/shop buildings.

cdaspit · **Joined:** Wed May 02, 2018 9:22 am **Posts:** 11

#4 is also fully operational and is the only operational Vauclain compound locomotive in the world. Let's hope we see it operate again on the MPP once the track rebuild is complete.

Bobharbison · **Joined:** Fri Dec 03, 2004 9:42 pm **Posts:** 3011

cdaspit wrote:

#4 is also fully operational and is the only operational Vauclain compound locomotive in the world. Let's hope we see it operate again on the MPP once the track rebuild is complete.

About that... I had gotten the impression that they were installing a different type of rack system during the rebuild. If so, I don’t know if it could be made compatible with it?

Also, I’m curious as to how much it operated previously. I didn’t see much at all about it running, but maybe it was more often than I realized.

softwerkslex · **Posted:** Wed Jul 03, 2019 9:42 am

Bobharbison wrote:

About that... I had gotten the impression that they were installing a different type of rack system during the rebuild. If so, I don’t know if it could be made compatible with it?

The racks are just different enough to require new pinions. That costs a little time and money, which they did not feel worthwhile for the various diesel trainsets they sent to CRM. This is a summary of the various news items I read over the winter.

Alexander D. Mitchell IV · **Posted:** Wed Jul 03, 2019 11:15 am

softwerkslex wrote:

The racks are just different enough to require new pinions. That costs a little time and money, which they did not feel worthwhile for the various diesel trainsets they sent to CRM. This is a summary of the various news items I read over the winter.

Please note that I DID NOT raise the question with the GCRY officials.......

...... BUT it's entirely POSSIBLE that the delivery of M&PP 4 to Williams COULD involve, before return to Colorado, either routine overhaul of the boiler, a full 1472 (is that necessary if the RR doesn't fall under FRA?), and/or rebuild of the rack pinion for the new track. The shop at the GCRY is fully capable of such machine work, I'm sure.

Note also that we're dealing with a railroad here that barely schedules steam running already, though it has 29 coming up due for a 1472 and it has diesels and passenger cars to keep in tip-top condition.

KevinM · **Posted:** Wed Jul 03, 2019 2:11 pm

Alexander D. Mitchell IV wrote:

softwerkslex wrote:

Note also that we're dealing with a railroad here that barely schedules steam running already, though it has 29 coming up due for a 1472 and it has diesels and passenger cars to keep in tip-top condition.

Multiple charter operators have reported that the Grand Canyon Ry. has informed them that when the 29's Form 4 expires, they have no immediate plans to do the 1,472 SDI. For the foreseeable future, the 4960 will be the only operational steam locomotive at the Grand Canyon Ry.

/Kevin Madore