Behind him an elderly man’s dreamy stare overlays the scene
with romanticized memories.
This steed is just a pony compared to the iron horse
that conquered this fledgling nation
by the sweat of a Hogger’s brow.
Images flood his mind as he flashes back to his boyhood,
standing with his grandfather,
as a "Big Boy" thunders by
with a mile of cars obediently in tow.
One million pounds of steel harnessed to the steam from a voracious coal fire.
At 132 feet long,
the "Big Boy" was a giant,
the apex of railroad engineering design,
but its reign was cut short as the twilight of the steam era approached.
With a boyish grin
and a chuckle,
he pats his grandson on the shoulder and asks if he wants to go for a ride.

"I always had a great love for steam,"
says Lloyd Thompson, an employee with CN for 40 years.
"I was in train dispatching, not the mechanical end, but on my days off I’d go out and spend it with the boys."

The "boys" that Lloyd is referring to are the Hoggers or Hogheads (engineers) on the steam locomotives. He remembers that many of them were eager to change over to diesel engines.

"One of the beauties of these [steam] engines was that you’d be going along and all of a sudden, something would happen to it. The Hoghead would go out and he’d take a chunk out of the right-of-way fence and he’d haywire it together, and away they’d go. Now you don’t do that with diesel."

As we speak, Lloyd is standing beside a scale model of a steam locomotive. This isn’t just a plastic replica, it’s a fully operational steam engine built to a scale of 1 ½" to the foot.

Pennsylvania

"It was hard work and they would shovel tons of coal on their working shift"

John makes a few adjustments to his steam engine, which makes a considerable noise for a scale model. He’s using compressed air to run the atomizing burner, which he says "works very similar to the old perfume bottles with the bulb on them, except instead of a bulb to blow air, it uses steam pressure. Right now I’m using pressurized air until I get 50 pounds in the boiler, then I’ll switch over to steam and it’ll be self-regulating."

John goes on to explain that steam engines are classified according to wheel arrangement. The 4-6-2 classification means there are four small wheels in the front of the engine called pilot wheels. They help the engine steer around corners and over switches. The six larger drive wheels in the middle are connected to the cylinders where steam acts on pistons to drive the engine. The two smaller trailing wheels give additional support for the cab and boiler. John's engine is a 4-6-2, or "Pacific" class.

The pilot wheels (left) are in front of the larger drive wheels (right)













the trailing wheels (left) and view showing the tender (right)

"The prototype for this engine [the prototype is the original, full size engine that this one was modeled after] was built in 1925 and there were about 423 of them made.
It’s one of the oldest engine designs of those modeled here today. They were a very successful high speed passenger engine and would do upwards of 100 miles per hour in passenger service; which I think would be very exciting;
boy, at that speed you’d know you were moving."

John's engine looks very stately as it awaits more passengers (left) and coming off the bridge John blows the whistle (right)

These engines are certainly not toys. John points to two valves on the top of the boiler. "These two safety valves are set at 130 and 135 pounds [respectively]. In the full size prototype they ran at 205 pounds pressure. In the models here they predominately run at 100 pounds boiler pressure with the safety valves set at around 125 to 130 pounds."

When asked what the top speed his engine will run at, John says with a chuckle, "It’ll go a lot faster than I care to be on. The fellow who designed it estimated that it would do in excess of 35 miles per hour. I have no doubt in my mind that it would do that, but it won’t do it with me on it."

The fire glows hot (left) and 3 engines pulling together (triple-header) (right)

At 1670 lbs. dry (no water or fuel included), it’s very heavy.
"They call it hernia scale," says John.
"If an engine this size goes onto the ground or derails
it can be very hard to get it back [up]." As he touches the handrail around the boiler he explains that "everything’s hot and because it’s a model, most of this stuff is decorative and doesn’t have the structural integrity to use for lifting the engine up with."

John oils the engine before his run (left) and leads a triple-header (right)

John has a routine of checking and oiling the numerous moveable parts of his steam engine as the boiler builds up steam pressure. The engine sits in what is called a 'steaming bay" where it’s at waist height for ease of working on. This is also where the engineers shut down the engines at the end of the run. The fire is put out, steam released, and as the engine cools, maintenance and service checks can be performed.

A hydraulic hoist lifts #5303 and the skytrain up to the steaming bay (left) and then #5303 gives everyone a steam bath as it releases its steam after a good run

John belongs to the Vancouver Island Model Engineers (VIME) located on the Saanich peninsula near Victoria, British Columbia. Started in the fall of 1972, the VIME attracts members who enjoy the hobby of engineering in miniature. The club’s mandate encompasses all forms of engineering subjects, not just steam locomotives.

Not all members must own or build an engine to belong to the club. In 1983, over 30 members participated in the construction of the BC Rail electric locomotive #6000 (left). This is a replica of an actual 6000 series locomotive that pulls coal from Tumbler Ridge to Prince George in northern British Columbia. On the days when the club meets to run the engines (the private and public runs), #6000 is available for approved engineers to operate.

CPR 2335

"We spent 8 years building this locomotive and it was a wonderful experience. In the process he passed on his skills [to me]"

Clifford’s engine is painted Tuscan Red with gold leaf trim, a color scheme that was used by the CP for passenger service.

"This type of locomotive ended its day in Montreal pulling commuter trains to the lakeshore. So when I had to choose a type of locomotive to make, I chose the type that brought my dad home [after work]."

The front of #2335 with its paint scheme for passenger service (left) and Cliff getting ready for the run (right)

Clifford’s locomotive is powered by propane which he stores behind him in the tender. It has a 9-inch diameter boiler and runs at a maximum of 120-psi (pounds per square inch). The cylinders that power the wheels are only 2 ½ inches in diameter, but the estimated pull of the engine is close to 200 lbs. The locomotive weighs 660 lbs. and the tender is over 300 lbs. with a full tank of water. "It’s given us good service since 1994," he says with a smile.

A side view of the running gear (left) and Cliff pulls into the station (right)

Smiles certainly abound wherever these engines are happily puffing along with a full load of passengers. Ever since the fall of 1975, the VIME have had a common track to run the engines on. That’s when they finished the Pheasant & Quayle (P&Q) Railway, a 680 foot loop of 7 ½" track with 3 trestles and 2 bridges. It was constructed on one of the member’s property in Saanich. The club had use of the P&Q one weekend a month in exchange for upkeep labour on the track, and it was here that the VIME held their first fall meet.

A diesel engine pulls a full load of passengers (left) while some young engineers putter around the track on their own engine (right)

Sasquatch Valley

"These are man’s most life-like invention," he says of his sparkling clean engine. "I have a dream to build a big one someday in this scale. This particular one was built for me by a friend and I’ve added a few little things to it; it’s been a great engine so far."

"I’ve had it for 5 years and it’s had a fair bit of running in that time. It’s modeled after a Baldwin product but quite a few manufacturers made this wheel arrangement of engine. It’s fired by oil like many of the engines of the CN and CP in the latter days of steam."

The running gear is kept clean and well lubricated (left) and the hand rails around the boiler look just like the prototype (right)

On the side is a working air pump that isn’t used on this engine since boiler pressure operates the brakes. Although the fittings, valves and other apparatus on these models look like decorations, all of them actually work and perform functions just like the full size locomotives.

Air pumps use steam to provide pressurized air for the brakes (left) while boiler checks let water in and won't let the steam pressure out (right)

"These are boiler checks and the basic function of them is to allow feed water into the boiler but not allow steam pressure out; they’re a one way valve basically."
"On top of the boiler, between the domes, is a steam operated bell. I still haven’t hooked up all the plumbing for it, but when I do it will operate this simple oscillating mechanism here that rings the bell. There's also a working turbine generator on this locomotive. It uses steam to turn a generator which supplies electricity to the headlight and anything else that requires power."

The steam operated bell (left) and a steam turbine for generating electricity for lights (right)

This engine has a full head of steam and is ready to go. After doing some checks and oiling the moving parts, he’ll re-light the fire and take her out onto the track. These engines, like any piece of machinery, require constant attention to keep them in top running condition.

The engineer oils the moving parts before taking the engine for a run (left) and blowing the whistle after crossing the bridge (right)

"They’re very fascinating machines and have been described as man’s most human invention, and I agree with that. They have their good days and bad days; sometimes they can be quite demanding, sometimes infuriating; but when you have a good day it’s all worth it--all the effort is worth it."

The club in Vancouver that he’s from has almost 3 times as much track as the VIME, but "this is a very nice track and I enjoy coming over here; it’s becoming an annual event for me."

John's Pacific and Steve's Mikado wait at the station (left) while Bill Southworth's Mikado sits patiently on a siding (right)

Over the years the VIME have expanded their track from the P&Q. In 1976, arrangements were made to use a portion of property recently acquired by the Saanich Historical Artifacts Society (SHAS). This 29-acre property was the new home of the SHAS, which collects, restores, displays and demonstrates artifacts from life in the past. These artifacts include farm machinery, household items, heritage buildings and much more. The two societies compliment each other nicely and co-operate to provide a first class heritage park. For some time, the VIME ran their engines at both locations, but eventually they moved the complete operation to Heritage Acres (as the SHAS property is commonly called).

Steve pulls into the station with his Mikado #5303 (left) while Bill Southworth is in the middle of the triple-header with his Mikado

Since then, the VIME have built almost a mile of 7 1\2" track with a bridge, dual main line tracks, passing track and sidings. In the summer of 2000, the VIME hosted a jamboree in conjunction with the International Brotherhood of Live Steamers (IBLS) Celebration. The Burnaby Central RR Club hosted the main IBLS event and locomotives from England, New Zealand and the United States participated.

Iron Horse or Galloping Goose?

"The prototype for this is a #2 Galloping Goose in Golden Colorado. The Galloping Goose was the salvation of the Rio Grande Southern Railway. Back in the latter part of the 20’s, early 30’s, the Rio Grande Southern was about to go into receivership.
Someone in the engineering department got the idea of taking a Pierce Arrow car, putting a freight body on the back end of it and running it off distilled whatever--distilled potatoes, distilled beets--whatever was available. They had the mail contract at that point in time and they didn’t want to lose it. So by the time they managed to put this together, they basically saved the railroad.
The railroad stayed somewhat solvent, on the verge of bankruptcy up until 1955 when it did go under."

"If you go to Golden, Colorado, you can ride behind the real prototype."

When asked if she drives this herself she replies with an enthusiastic, "Oh yes!"

An electric motor and two deep cell marine batteries power the Galloping Goose. It has a built in charger and will run for about eight hours on a full charge. Marie’s husband built the Galloping Goose from scratch, starting in 1994; and she’s been driving it for a couple of years now.

"It’s still under construction as there’s a few things left to do."

Unlike production steam engines, there aren’t any plans available to scale down for a model like the Galloping Goose. "[We’ve] been all over the original because there aren’t any patterns for this. It was strictly done by going over the original, measuring everything, taking photographs, and then manufacturing things to match the original."

Having difficulty matching the original is a common remark from others who’ve built their own engines.
If plans and photographs are available, it makes the job somewhat easier; the rest boils down to pure craftsmanship. Converting a plan for a full size locomotive to scale isn’t an easy task; no wonder it takes many years to build one of these masterpieces. Locomotives like the ones featured here are built to a scale of 1 ½" to the foot, and run on 7 ½" ground level track.
There are smaller gauge locomotives as well that run on 1 ¼", 3 ½", 4 ¾", and 5" elevated track on the same property.

A smaller scale engine builds up steam pressure (left) while another one pulls its owner around the elevated track (right)

Hobby engineering in miniature is more than just riding trains around a dogbone shaped track (two loops connected with two straight tracks). This is about keeping a much-loved part of our history alive. There are very few full-size steam engines left today; they are expensive to rebuild and costly to maintain. Hobby engineering is helping to keep the spirit of steam alive in a more practical way, and people from all generations come to enjoy the magic of the steam era here at Heritage Acres.

It’s clubs like the VIME that keep the steam era alive in the minds of grandsons and grandfathers alike. Their steeds glide past, huffing and puffing and whistling up smiles on everyone’s faces. You may never witness the immense power of a "Big Boy" thundering past you at 80 miles per hour, but this is still the most fun you can have without losing your hat.

They swallowed up the lonely miles
faster than any wagon train could at a full gallop,
but their heyday came to an end
when they too were considered old and dirty and too much work to keep.
And so the Iron Horse became scrap iron
until modern men could no longer ignore
what they had always loved about them.
Fire was their heartbeat,
and steam was their life,
and it was this life that rescued the remaining few
from melting away in the scrapyard.
The twilight never quite made darkness over the steam era
as the lamplight from thousands of fond memories grew stronger on the horizon.
Now they proudly prance down the lines
where their kin ran wild with a raging fury inside,
and fate won’t pull back on their reign ever again.
Now that they gracefully gallop
in the hearts of men.