ABILENE, Kan. — In commemoration of the Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad’s 30th anniversary, steam locomotive No. 3415 was in full operation on June 17 and 18. The Pacific was sidelined the previous Sunday due to feedwater issues with repairs completed last week in preparation for the Father’s Day weekend.
“The feedwater issue last week was an injector misbehaving,” President and General Manager Ross Boelling said. “It was disassembled, and the culprit part was tightened up and then reassembled.”
The locomotive performed very well, according to Boelling. A total of 279 passengers rode behind the 4-6-2 between Abilene and Enterprise, he said. Sunday’s 30th Anniversary Special departed at 2:10 p.m. for the Hoffman Grist Mill in Enterprise where food and entertainment were provided.
“Several former and current volunteers were included in the attendance,” said Boelling. “We served about 150 folks, including the 98 that were on the train.”
No. 3415 will head both the regular excursion and dinner trains on the A&SV this upcoming weekend. A few minor tweaks will be performed on the locomotive with no major maintenance expected for the week, according to Boelling.
For more information and tickets, visit the Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad website.
No. 3415 was built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in June 1919 as the sixteenth member of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway’s fifty 3400 class locomotives. The 3400 class was designed by John Purcell, and this was also the last class of 4-6-2s bought by the Santa Fe. The class was similar to the United States Railroad Administration’s (USRA) Heavy Pacifics in its tube and flue counts, but it was also fitted with a grate area similar in size to the USRA’s Light Pacifics, and it was delivered with driving wheels close in size to the latter. The first forty locomotives initially burned coal, but were later converted to burn oil while being rebuilt between 1936 and 1947.
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