Well it’s really a throttle control,but it looks like a steering wheel [:D]
There’s also a crew alerter similar to what we use here in America.
Click the link to watch,pretty neat.
It that a stick or an automatic? [swg]
Couldn’t really see whether the wheel’s capable of more than 360 degrees. It could be direct operation of a rheostat directly beneath it. Scary!
I had often seen similar control wheels in photos and movies and had assumed they were accelerator-brake controls.
Those photos and movies were all European. In the US, some subway cars had a single handle goosneck, actually smaller than goose sized, maybe you’d say duckneck, controller. Center pointing at the motoman’s crotch for coasting, turn one way to accelerate, turn the other direction to apply brake.
I’ve also seen similar single handle, PATCO Philly PA to Lindenwold NJ, as well as Boston’s Boeing SLRV trolleys, push the lever forward to brake, pull back to accelerate.
Am I on the wrong forum? Where are the scathing epitaths about posting a cab ride on the internet? Apparently, he’s not too worried about his job.
Only thing that bothers me is what is that poor truckdriver going to do when he climbs in his cab and finds his steering wheel missing and he has to make his delivery by 9:00 AM.
Al - in - Stockton
Oh! I thought it was the manual override for self guiding trucks for when you drive a train over very sharp curves! And here I thought those Europeans were technically way ahead of us. Darn!
The article about the Royal Hudsons in the new issue of Classic Trains includes a picture of an engineer with a wheel in front of him. It controlled the power reverse. Common American practice was to use a lever for that purpose.
IIRC, a wheel for reverse control is common on European steamers as well.
Have no idea what the controls actually do - however, the operation of the lever just above and to the left of the wheel makes it seem like this engine is making a manual traction motor electrical transistion…therefore, I think this engine would have to be classified as a ‘stick’ as opposed to an automatic.
I thought that was the turn signal?
Well, now that I’ve actually seen the video (can’t watch them at work) - My vote is for “throttle.”
I think it’s a throttle, because if you notice when he turns the wheel the train speeds up. Anybody agree with me?
no, it’s just that this equipment has a good railfan window.
The Wheel is the throttle control/reostatic brake control. You want to see and hear some fancy Throttle work watch and listen to a good Engineer operating the throttle and transition on a former NS (Dutch Railways) 1200 class electric built by Baldwin-Westinghouse. It sounds like a staccato barking with two slightly different tones, one when he moves the throttle and a different one for the transition. With a light passenger train accelerating quickly, its almost a steady rachetting up or down. It takes good cooridination to move the two levers in the correct order quickly. The mechanism is probably similar to that used in a GG1, albeit this one is in a DC locomotive.
I have been on a locomotive where the engineer actually had to use a gear shift, it wasn’t a really big engine but still fun to watch. And yes the cab ride was legal.
On the original subject of this thread, a friend of mine used to actually think trains really were steered. I pointed out to him the basic impossibility of this and explained that whole wheel and flange thing.
Once, on an “off” day on the railroad, I set up my GPS with an outside antenna in our “open air” (baggage) car so I could record the data on some mileposts and elevations.
One passenger asked, with a straight face, if I was steering the train…
It was hard to keep a straight face as I answered…
I honestly got my wife and her best friend on that question once .
Both on separate occasions asked me “how I steered a train”
WOW,golden opportunity.
So I explained “Well I’m lucky with these newer engines,we have a small wheel and power steering.The older ones have a real big steel wheel”.
So then I told them the reason why in steam days they had an Engineer and a Fireman.So both could turn the wheel .
Needless to say when they found out how I had just owned them,uh,they weren’t to happy [}:)][(-D]
Great. Now when a car or person gets hit, the’ll be idiots saying “so why couldn’t you swerve to avoid hitting that person on the track?”[banghead]
Naaah… They will just blame the railfans. After all, isn’t everything our fault?