Hi Alex,
Sorry for the delay but I just got home from work. I guess the
specialness of these UP locomotives to me is just that. They are UP
specific brass steam locomotives in S scale.....the first to be done
in decades and the first to be done by RRM to my knowledge.
We know if they are RRM imports they will be correctly detailed, they
will be beautifully painted and have tons of correct details. Add to
this the fact that they will run like swiss watches and you have
something very special for UP modelers or anyone else collecting or
running nice S scale steam locomotives.
As far as what roads operated these engines I'm afraid it was pretty
much the Union Pacific or their subsideraries like the OSL, OWR&N and
LA&SL. But you would see them on most western roads (SP, WP and SF)
mainlines as well as in the yards of these roads. I'm sure on
occasion they were seen on other roads trackage as well.
The UP 2-8-2's were first delivered in 1911 with 57" drivers which
were later called "light mikes" to be used for passenger and freight
service but proved too slow for passenger service. A second run came
in 1911 with 63" drivers (and were called "heavy mikes" and were used
for passenger service from Cheyenne and Denver to Ogden, Utah. They
were the king of the road for the UP until replaced by the 2-10-2's
and 4-8-2's. As with all Union Pacific engines they were modified
over the years by the UP with the unique sweeney smoke stack, larger
steam and sand domes, road specific plumbing, water heaters, pilots
and snowplows that will all look great in "S" scale. They operated
with several different sizes and styles of tenders and it sounds like
RRM is going to offer some of these variations as well. The operated
a long time and in 1955 18 2-8-2's were still in operation on the UP
lines.
The 2-10-2 was a 63" drivered locomotive that came about in the
summer of 1917 for heavy freight operation. They were able to operate
without help service on the 1.14% grade of the Wasatach division
something the 2-8-2's could not do. The SP operated a very similar 2-
10-2 engine at the same time. Through out the depression years they
were the standard power for the UP in Nebraska eastbound to KC and
Council Bluffs until replaced by the 4-12-2's. 25 of these engines
operated into the mid 50's. They had numerous modifications by the UP
through-out there lifetime and used a multitude of tender
configurations.
So, yes I'm excited. The first brass UP steamer to be offered in S in
almost two decades. You east road guys can appreciate what I'm
talking about. All the previous brass UP engines have had serious
problems in operation, scale or details except the OMI FEF-3 and they
were built with 1980's technology. We've come a long way since then.
I hope these offerings do well for RRM as I'd love to see a RRM
BigBoy some day. So I think it is incredibly important that we
support these UP engines. It sounds like Jim and Dan are sticking
there collective necks out a mile so lets support them the best we
can.
Butch Holtgrieve
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