Can anyone tell me where exactly do you see “firebox flicker”?
Is it in the cab only, where the coal goes in or under the loco’s firebox visible from outside the loco?
With any modern locomotive that has high ashpan sides, the only place where firebox glow will be visible will be in the cab (or on the firing deck of a Mother Hubbard) when the fire door is open.
Incidentally, there is no ‘flicker.’ A proper fire will have a clear, overall glow, only dimmed momentarily when a scoop of fresh coal is added.
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964 - with coal-burning steam locos)
On some engines you would be able to see a glow from the sides of the firebox. John Allen years back used to put a red bulb inside his engines so simulate the red glow of the fire.
You could see the fireglow around the ash pans on some locomotives and certainly on air inlets for the firebox. I have used both an orange and a red bulb in the firebox to create the bright orange red glow from a coal burning locomotive. If you drill out small holes in the fire box door, the holes will let some of the orange glow into the cab if the bulbs are placed correctly.
On an oil fired locomotive, I use an orange bulb to allow the glow to be seen from below the firebox. If you are using a Tsunami, there is a function with the flicker mode that can be synced to the exhaust giving a nice impression of the burner.
CZ
Agreed. I have seen several videos about UP 3985 and the FEF #844, both of which flicker out of the air inlets and former ashpan areas fairly often…mostly when at very low throttle settings and just creeping along in a yard.
-Crandell