Author Topic: Back when America BUILT stuff (Read 58287 times)

coelacanth · « **Reply #25 on:** May 23, 2013, 12:45:04 pm »

Now that right there was cool, I don't care who ya' are.

No idea how much horsepower just cruised by in that video but it was a LOT.

WeTheArmed.com

aikorob · « **Reply #26 on:** July 25, 2013, 07:20:39 am »

http://www.uprr.com/newsinfo/releases/heritage_and_steam/2013/0723_4014.shtml

coming back from the dead...........like this thread

scarville · « **Reply #27 on:** July 25, 2013, 08:47:15 am »

Quote from: RevDisk on April 08, 2013, 09:03:47 pm

We're Pennsylvanians. We don't need no stinkin' tracks for our steam.

The Besler steam powered airplane. Back when California built stuff.

http://www.rexresearch.com/besler/beslerst.htm

Video:

http://www.flixxy.com/besler-steam-airplane.htm

Raptor · « **Reply #28 on:** July 25, 2013, 09:21:49 am »

Quote from: aikorob on July 25, 2013, 07:20:39 am

http://www.uprr.com/newsinfo/releases/heritage_and_steam/2013/0723_4014.shtml
coming back from the dead...........like this thread

AWESOME!!!

Canthros · « **Reply #29 on:** July 25, 2013, 09:32:35 am »

Quote from: aikorob on July 25, 2013, 07:20:39 am

http://www.uprr.com/newsinfo/releases/heritage_and_steam/2013/0723_4014.shtml
coming back from the dead...........like this thread

Passed that along to my father the railfan. Thanks for posting it!

RevDisk · « **Reply #30 on:** July 26, 2013, 09:42:46 am »

I'll likely be visiting Steamtown with my lady friend over the weekend. Will take plenty of photos.

Oh, and

coelacanth · « **Reply #31 on:** July 27, 2013, 04:01:50 am »

Still one of my favorite threads here.

RevDisk · « **Reply #32 on:** August 09, 2013, 05:05:16 pm »

Complete album: http://revdisk.org/gallery/index.php/Travels/Steamtown

Another interesting fact is Steamtown is in Luzerne County, home of the first and second Pennamite-Yankee Wars. Apologies for delay, ladyfriend and I went to Las Vegas. Now we're sorting out whether to invade Connecticut on the way to the Higgins Armory Museum, or spend the night in an abandoned allegedly haunted insane asylum or go see the Tesla Monument at Niagara Falls.

MTK20 · « **Reply #33 on:** August 09, 2013, 05:33:30 pm »

Quote from: ksuguy on April 07, 2013, 05:23:43 pm

I got to travel on the BNSF employee train almost 20 years ago. They move it around the country and take little excursions for all the employees and their families.. It was pretty cool. We spent part of the trip in the observation car, and then we went to one of the private passenger coaches. I'm guessing it dated from the 1940's or 1950's. I just wish it was feasible to travel by train from here. Unfortunately there is only one Amtrak route here, and I would have to board in the middle of the night and then backtrack all the way to Chicago to go anywhere other than Southern California (blech!).

It's a shame that passenger rail travel had died off here in the United States. I would much rather do that than fly. It's slower, but much more relaxing.

You know we have come a long way from "trip by rail" when I have never even considered it as an option before.....I think I just had my mind blown

. I have heard horror stories from traveling by plane, but there certainly is an attractiveness to "trip by rail". I imagine it would be a more relaxing and positive experience

.

Lupinus · « **Reply #34 on:** August 09, 2013, 05:46:05 pm »

Quote from: MTK20 on August 09, 2013, 05:33:30 pm

You know we have come a long way from "trip by rail" when I have never even considered it as an option before.....I think I just had my mind blown . I have heard horror stories from traveling by plane, but there certainly is an attractiveness to "trip by rail". I imagine it would be a more relaxing and positive experience .

Look up traveling Amtrak sometime. It's an...amusing experience.

Sent via tapatalk

aikorob · « **Reply #35 on:** August 10, 2013, 12:01:19 am »

a long train journey is MUCh more relaxing -- especially if your lady friend is with you.

Seriously---one of the reasons the Europeans and Japanese have such a good rail network that they use and appreciate is because of WWII---you never realize how important something is until you lose it

ksuguy · « **Reply #36 on:** August 10, 2013, 12:10:15 am »

I've only done train trips a few times. The BNSF employee trip I previously mentioned, the Durango & Silverton tourist route out in Colorado when I was a kid, and a train trip between Melbourne and Sydney Australia when I was in college.

Melbourne to Sydney was nice. Took a few hours longer than it would have taken to drive, but it was nice getting to see the countryside. Reminded me a lot of Western Kansas. Did lots of reading too.

Lupinus · « **Reply #37 on:** August 10, 2013, 05:52:18 pm »

Rail is nice when you have a dense enough population for it. In the Northeast, for example, it's awesome.

But when you get into the less populated areas its hard to support the rail infrastructure to anything but major points. And connecting those points sometimes gets a might challenging, odd, and darned expensive.

RevDisk · « **Reply #38 on:** August 12, 2013, 03:15:02 pm »

Quote from: Lupinus on August 10, 2013, 05:52:18 pm

Rail is nice when you have a dense enough population for it. In the Northeast, for example, it's awesome.

But when you get into the less populated areas its hard to support the rail infrastructure to anything but major points. And connecting those points sometimes gets a might challenging, odd, and darned expensive.

*blink*

For passenger service, sure. For everything else, rail. Basically, unless it's super time critical, it gets shipped from one end of the country to the other by rail. All of the coal plants in the boonies are serviced by coal from trains. Majority of foodstuffs get moved by rail. You don't move thousands of tons of corn around by truck.

Coronach · « **Reply #39 on:** August 12, 2013, 04:10:38 pm »

I wish we had good passenger rail in the US. Instead, we have Amtrak.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk 2

aikorob · « **Reply #40 on:** August 12, 2013, 05:51:24 pm »

Quote from: Coronach on August 12, 2013, 04:10:38 pm

I wish we had good passenger rail in the US. Instead, we have Amtrak.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk 2

Blame the horseless carriage

Reminded of a story from back in the late 50's or early 60's:
Railroads wanted to cease local passenger service service to Atlanta, mayors, civic leaders, and business groups went to the capital to get an injunction.
After listening to many speeches about the "death of our way of life", "only passenger trains could serve the people best", etc, etc-----the judge asked "how did you come to this meeting?"
to a man---they drove

Mississippi556 · « **Reply #41 on:** August 12, 2013, 05:59:31 pm »

My last train ride was quite a few years ago. My wife, then young daughter, and I took an AMTRAC from our home town area to Atlanta with return tickets. My daughter had never ridden the rails. The passenger cars were filled with neglectful parents and unruly and wild children running through the cars totally out of control. No one did anything to stop them or make them behave.

Any semblance of elegant rail travel or romance was totally lost. Just like riding in a subway or Greyhound bus. Or a rolling WalMart with nothing to buy except bad food. Very disappointing.

My wife refused to ride the train home. We fought about it. She won. We flew back.

Lupinus · « **Reply #42 on:** August 12, 2013, 07:54:21 pm »

Quote from: RevDisk on August 12, 2013, 03:15:02 pm

*blink*

For passenger service, sure. For everything else, rail. Basically, unless it's super time critical, it gets shipped from one end of the country to the other by rail. All of the coal plants in the boonies are serviced by coal from trains. Majority of foodstuffs get moved by rail. You don't move thousands of tons of corn around by truck.

For freight sure. But I was addressing it in the passenger context.