All i gota say is wow if your ever in il.,please goto the train museum in union,il. i was there 2 years ago and there inventory is amazing,the up steamer they have there, the wheels were like 20 feet high i never knew these thing were this big,it was humbling to see it,it was like seeing a giant dinosaur skeleton like sue or something amazing place.

I agree. The Illinois Railway Museum is one of the
greatest in the country: Steam, diesel, traction...both
interurbans and streetcars. And their mainline is so
long and in such good shape that they can really open
them up!

http://www.irm.org

Lee

Been to IRM many many times over the last 35 years! What UP steam locomotive are you referring to? Unless you are only 6 to 10 years old, I know of no very large UP steam locomotive at IRM.

The "big" UP engines at IRM are DDA40x, 6922 (IIRC) and #18, 8500GTEL, both with more
sauce than a Big Boy!

jaygee,

He specifically said "steamer" in his opening post!!

The only UP Steam locomotive on their roster is 2-8-0 number 428.

http://www.irm.org/cgi-bin/rse...Pacific+Railroad=428

It appears they recently test fired the boiler. Here's a video compilation of the event. Pretty neat - about half way through they show you some of the leaks that developed during this initial test firing. Makes me wonder how (or if) it passed a hydro test before this? Finishes with them "playing" with the whistle - pretty nice!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v..._FbE&feature=related

Sorry it wasnt a u-p it was the santa fe,the one they moved over to the museum,theres also a few other large ones there i didnt get the names though.

I love the place, I have been going there since I was a kid. Now I take my 2 boys out there and they love it. Definetly a treat!