Aussie steamers

hey all,
i no your mostly American, n i just wanted to say how impressed i was looking at the specs on the Big Boy. i have always known it was the biggest steam loco, but i saw a railway(road) documentary which invloved the big boy and i wanted to investigate further. down here the most powerful steam loco was a British built Beyer Garrat 4-8-4+4-8-4, which i thought (and still do) think is pretty great. anyway i just thought id bring it up and commend you Americans on your ablility to build superior locomotives

Eureka Models in Australia I understand is producing this (I presume the one you're talking about) Garrett locomotive in HO. But BE surprised that it's NOT brass, because the price will be about $800! With a lot of contemporary Australian and USA locos and rolling stock having more in common in appearance rather than British, any American freelance layout could be very well at home with thos model as an "American Garrett" if there was ever such.

Sincerely,
Vytautas B. Radzivanas
Perth, Western Australia

Aussi-trainer,
I don't think it's case of a specfic country's or railroad's locomotives being superior,but rather the equipment fitting the operating requirements of the job it was designed to do. Most every railroad or railway had it's mechanical and engineering departments that was in charge of the company's equipment and in concert with the other departments invovled decided what the motive power requirements were to be. As much as we look at the romantic side of railroading, we must remember that motive power and rolling stock was a big part of the financial health of the company. The objective was and still is, to move the most amount of frieght or passengers at the lowest cost, and returning a profit for the company and the stockholders. When the financial end of railway operations falls down, it don't make any differance how pretty the equipment looks or how well it was supposed to perform. If you're not making money, the wheels stop rolling. The practical point to the large locomotives the steam era was to operate larger trains without double heading and thereby cutting crew ,maintenance,fuel and other operating cost. You're Garratts "Down Under" were no different, they were purchased to do a job for a specific cost, and as you well know, many of them didn't last but a couple years due to arrival of the more cost efficent diesel powered engines. And yes, both the Big Boys and the Garratts were fine looking pieces of machinery.

I hope I'll be forgiven for dredging up an old post! As it happens, the NSWGR had apparently looked at U.S. style mallets but the axle loading was too great-among other things.

Back in the late '40s and '50s the Australian thinking was still very much as an English colony( which we weren't any longer) and the feeling was so strong that when the NSWGR went looking for diesels they were immediately steered towards English designs. It was recognised that they were rubbish in comparison to the U.S designs, so the only way the boffins in power would allow the purchase of American designs was to buy Canadian (another British Commonwealth country!). So there first diesels were MLW built Alcos. I know this is the Steam forum but that kind of explains the thought processes going into the purchase of steam locos at the time.

Wes

DJH has made 'HO' kit for this Aussie B-G . I don't know
what they are up to currently, but since they have dropped the
enormous collection of German prototype kits from their WWWs
it doesn't appear to bode well for steam modellers.
The impact of cheap , acceptable, slave labor built plastic
steam models is causing a decline in kit building.

DJH is apparently offering their various Garratt kits as built
up models , which offers them greater returns. It is ardently
hoped that the largest maker of steam loco kits in the
world will not start concentrating on more profitable activities
related to their other lines. Or for that matter, starts having mass
produced Chinese built plastic models of popular prototypes
made under their Marque. The availability of models with a
limited mass market appeal , and the supporting details
correct to them, was a marvelous gift from DJH (JOCADIS too,
that likewise has an extensive line of similar models),
allowing many of us to have affordable and unique
models.
Good-Luck, PJB

Howdy Mates,

If I remember correctly, the Garrats were narrow gauge, which would explain the difference in size and power.

It probably would not have been possible for the US to ship a Big Boy to Australia due to the weight of the engine and tender, empty. The other possibility would be for a company in Australia to obtain a license to produce a Big Boy there, with the US specifications, engineering drawings etc. That probably would have been the way to go.

Next point; let us say that you now have some of your own Big Boys. Where would you find a train long enough to take advantage of such an engine ??? And remember, Big Boys had restrictions due to their weight and of course, their minimum turning radius. It would have been interesting to see a Big Boy scaled down to fit your narrow gauge, and see how it compared to the Garrats. And yes, I always wondered why a Garrat never became popular in the US. Union Pacific might just have really liked them.

The best looking big NG mallets in North America were the
F de M 2-6-6-2s, but the largest and all around superior
members of this type were the Brazilian meter gauge
Yellowstones(Henschel). One of these was operable in the last ten
years on a Museum line, but I think they have switched to
spending their hard earned cruzeiros on more practical smaller power
(i.e. mikes,pacifics and ten wheelers), which will move around
tourists just as well as a costly giant. The Brazilian model
railroaders had been after FRATESCHI to produce one,
but their experience has indicated that people will buy lots
of smaller power (which is also practical for most model
railway operators as well), and those with deep pockets and
undying need for 2--8-8-4s will buy fabricated brass Orientally
made ones.
Good-Luck, PJB