"Mallard 75" An A4 Pacific Steam Locomotive at 126 m.p.h. What did it look like?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 16 ก.ย. 2024
- As a personal tribute to a legendary achievement exactly 75 years ago, I thought it appropriate to indulge in this little demonstration. Using the footage I captured a couple of weeks ago and adjusting replay speed over a measured 1 mile to 28.6 seconds, we can re-create the image of 60009 Union of South Africa running at an apparent 126 m.p.h. As a comparison I have included images of simulated 75 and 90 m.p.h. to demonstrate just how impressive a speed of 125.88 m.p.h. (to be exact) is for a steam locomotive. The removed streamlining of the B.R. form of A4 shows the motion fully exposed and demonstrates that the limiting factors for speed on a conventional steam locomotive are not just that of overcoming drag but (and maybe more importantly) the survival of motion bearings trying to cope with the extreme out-of-balance forces at such high rotational accelerations. In fact, aniseed was mixed in with the bearing lubricating oil on Mallards record run of 3rd July 1938 in order to produce a "nasal" warning if bearings overheated! 126 m.p.h. may not seem to be particularly high in terms of "record" speeds on today's railway but remember that this record was set way back in 1938 and hopefully after viewing this clip you, like me, will appreciate a little more just how exceptional that achievement was.
We love our steam trains here in the U.S. But my what a beautiful rocket you have. Love to see the Mallard run!
Hi Sonny and many thanks for your comment. We in the U.K. are truly blessed with steam running on the mainline but what we would love here is the fantastic access that you have in the U.S. for lineside filming. No fences and highways running along the side of the track for pacing shots..... brilliant! Best regards, Alan
as a boy in the fifties we lived near essendine, and it was a favouorite walk to go to the stretch where the record was set, at the time one of the expresses were coming through. your clip doesn't do justice to the spectacle of power and speed as the train sped past.
Mallard is actually not the fastest steam locomotive its The American PRR T1 thatis the fastest its top speed is 140 mph Mallards top speed is 126 mph
@@anthonynigri8585 nah,no evidence the T1s topped such speeds. Possible? Yeah,but did they actually did it? No
@@davidantoniocamposbarros7528 ข
Holy crap!! can you imagine the forces on the running gear?? All that hardware is very heavy. Scary stuff. The "choo choo" sound was then more like BRRRRRR!
You are right Paul, the forces were enormous and apparently, Mallard was never the same again! Regards, Alan
@@Steamclips Strange how people keep on putting out this tale. If it were true the engine would never have achieved what it did on the down 2:00pm express shortly before it was withdrawn from ordinary service, sustaining 80 mph above Little Bytham with a 415 ton train, an achievement which is viewed as being of a higher standard than the speed record run. The LNER were not happy with the record run and were planning to try again (the infamous TSR imposed through Grantham was one of the main issues and also more had been learned about high speed running) but WW2 came along.
@@DeCasoU1 Who said the LNER wasn't satisfied?
The issue with the inside big end was solved quickly and would not have recurred if the engine had been re-tested at high speed.
At least in theory, the Australian shaft version of conjugated valve gear could have eliminated the overtravel if stiffer larger-diameter gun-drilled or tubular shafts had been used.
Imagine seeing Mallard hit 126 for the first time
+brandos451 Yes i would love to see that
Impossible
Imagine what she could do if they lost the load and covered the tender and the cab (basically cutting the drag) after seeing her myself at the national railway museum im convinced she could have cracked 140
@@thecrocandsweepshow611 I think she would hit 202 MPH with Doc’s Presto Logs.
As an Engineer I simply cannot figure out how it produces the amount of steam required to do this. What a marvel of Engineering these engines are.
Hi and thank you for your interesting comment. As a fellow engineer I appreciate your wonder concerning the apparent alchemy involved in an unfamiliar engineering discipline! Regards, Alan
Man made mechanical beauty..
I'll drink to that Brian! Cheers, Alan
Steamclips this is an awesome video. I looooooooooooooove it. You 've done a great job.
Many thanks for the kind comment Michael, glad you enjoyed the clip. Regards, Alan
Great idea Alan, and like so many good ideas, quite simple to create if you have the correct kind of editing programme. The clip of 125.88 mph really shows what it must have been like, since no-one has ever seen that unique event. Well thought out and thanks for a very enjoyable viewing! Ken
What a wonderful clip, Alan; what an adrenaline-raiser! The speed limit on our narrow gauge (Cape Gauge 3' 6") has always officially been a mere 90 k/hr (55 mph) but it's widely known that rains often exceeded that by a tidy margin! Al though our gauge is narrow compared to yours, our biggest steamers were roughly the same size as yours and were capable of 85 mph on certain sections. A thrill to watch those clips!
Thank you for the great "footage". Frank Graham - Durban, South Africa.
Hello Frankles and thank you for your very kind and interesting comments. Best regards, Alan
Terrific vid. Amazing that it was 75 years ago when this fantastic run was made. These streamlined beauties were clearly made for speed and still look brilliant on today's network when running at the max speed allowed. Many thanks for showing us what it would have looked like. I do think that given the chance UofSA is possibly the one that could comfortably get well above 100mph on an unrestricted run on the ECML. Many thanks for posting, Dave.
Great idea to use technology to show steam at this speed. The A4 looks fantastic and completely appropriate to be at the head of a high speed train.
Hi and many thanks for your kind comment, glad you enjoyed the experiment. Regards, Alan
Good grief, the drive links are going as fast as Mom's old Singer sewing machine. Fantastic film… many thanks for post.
Hi Jim and many thanks for your amusing and kind comment. I think your description is highly appropriate! Best regards, Alan
I bet the fire man is moving just as fast!
@@benlee2765 Ha ha.. Spot on, Ben.
Nice vid. What I find amazing is that Silver Link did 105/110 mph for about 35 miles over slightly undulating track on inaugural run of Silver Jubilee Sept35. I think it was OS Nock who said that he thought that was the natural upper cruising speed for a single chimney A4. The footplate crew - no speedo yet fitted - were worried they were not going fast enough & were only going 90! Yet such sustained high speed has never been repeated by UK steam since due to poor track, signalling etc. Hugh
The speed of the motion does make you think, doesn't it! I sometimes imagine the A4s going flat out when you see HSTs roaring through Slough or Maidenhead at line speed and consider an A4 doing the same. Phenomenal. Thanks for this little cameo of what it might have been like! Tim
Blurred motion, black and white, just as it should be!!! No chance of running a hot main bearing this way! Nicely done Alan.
Glad you enjoyed Bob! Thank you for your valuable feedback. Best regards, Alan
If I had designed that train I'd be watching this just waiting for the linkage to fly off at 2000 mph
Hi and thank you for your kind comments, glad you enjoyed the demonstration. Alan
Hi Daniel: I am so glad you enjoyed the clip and are developing an interest in steam trains. Have fun tomorrow. Best wishes, Alan
Props to camera man travel to 1938 e hope he didn't lost his travels
A great experiment which works remarkably well, thank you. In the early sixties I travelled to Sandy or Hitchin to watch speedy pacifics, but it wasn't a Gresley which gave the most overwhelming impression of speed. That was down to A1 60150 heading north through Sandy at a rate markedly faster then anything else during the rest of that day.
Hello Christopher and thank you for your kind and fascinating comments. Best regards, Alan
It's amazing in the 1930s they could get a train to such a speed
Hi and thank you for your valued input. To be fair, Mallard was never the same after attaining that speed even after a virtual re-build of her motion. Kind regards, Alan
Absolutly great video. I love it. It really shows how fast it is as each individual extention puff went into one solid sound.
Was Mallard always the famous one, or did she just get famous after she set the steam record??
Hi and thank you for your kind comments and question, they are very much appreciated. Mallard was a new locomotive and recently "run-in". She was also fitted with the latest improvements for the class such as double-chimney and Kylchap blastpipes making her ideal for the record attempt. It is true to say however that she only became famous after the record was set. Best regards, Alan
@@Steamclips Thank you so much :)
Mallard became popular before her speed run. She ran the Torbay Express and The Coronation while replacing Silver Link on the Silver Jubilee before it ended. Mallard served along with 70000 Britannia in the 40s making Mallard publically known before her run.
Thank you very much Ken for those kind words, your comments are much appreciated. It is interesting that there seem to be two "official" figures for the record: 125.88 mph published immediately & 126.1 mph later, but I suspect that the latter was much influenced by the L.N.E.R. publicity machine! Regards, Alan
126.1 is almost certainly an artifact, probably surge in the dynamometer hydraulics; the corresponding distance is very short with uncharacteristically high acceleration on either side. Gresley himself only accepted 125, and I think he is the best and wisest authority.
126 tons plus carriages at 125mph. Absolutely awesome 😊
Sure it was glorious to behold this beautiful train at such speed.
Hi and thank you for your valued comment. Glad you enjoyed. Regards, Alan
What can I say?
This was enough to take my breath away.
Black & White is good, but colour is the best,
Better than all the rest.
Now that is a thing of engineering beauty right there. Sure it’s really old technology, but that locomotive could move like a bat out of hell!
Hi and thank you for your informed and valued comment, I agree with every word!. Regards, Alan
When bae says she is home alone
Really amazing speed of the steam engine. Very beautiful video.
Hello Mohammad and thank you for your kind feedback. Best regards, Alan
Wow, that would have been amazing to see. Truly is a beauty. But I wonder if, when the T1 trust is finished building T1 5550, Mallard will have a new rival? ;)
Somehow I think the T1 project will be a flop. I know a lot of people will not accept the T1 as the fastest steam locomotive if it would break the record. With everything they have now it would probably be way easier to make fast steam locomotives.
@@azaabazha wow you really needed to reply to a comment from 4 years ago? Pretty pathetic.
Hi Brandon: thank you for the kind comment and subscription. Welcome aboard and enjoy the Autumn celebrations. Alan
Still my favorite British Steam Locomotive. The A4 was Streamlined for the Art-Deco Period in the mid-20's.
Terrance Fields The A4s were introduced in 1935 and the design had nothing to do with Art Deco. Gresley was inspired by the German high speed diesel unit called The Flying Hamburger which he saw on a visit to Germany in1933.
Wow thank u so much 4 this vid it taught me I shouldn't just be interested in bullet trains or metros or east coasts or more like this even though I've kind of loved the steam train as much as the rest I love them more and tomorrowow coinsadentilly I'm going on a 1hr asking ton steam loco ride thanks for posting , daniel.
Interesting comments as usual Hugh and food for thought! Alan
You are welcome Tim, I am glad that it has provoked some thought. Regards, Alan
So satisfying 😍
oh, i'm impressed enough with 126, and I think the diesel record is not much higher at about 145. very good idea, and thanks for producing this.
Hi Dave and thank you for your kind and interesting comments. I am sure that you are right about 60009. Alan
In all fairness the Germans had a loco clocked at 124.5mph. and it is doubtful I believe that the rotating weight of a steam locos valve and piston gear. would allow a steamer to go much faster than around 130 mph. as Mallard burned out the centre bearing of third cyclinder during run
Mallard's inside big-end failed due to higher thrust of the center cylinder due to valve overtravel. The design was quickly improved.
Both the A4 and the German BR05 were three-cylinder designs, so less overbalance was needed.
We can gauge the 'competition' by looking at the discussion H.T. Cover of the PRR made after a N&W J 4-8-4 achieved over 112mph on test... with 70" drivers. He made note of the same machinery speed for a locomotive with 80" at the same bore and stroke...
I would pay money to see our great 4-8-4s to go that fast once again.
She’s so beautiful, that she’s almost sexy! Just look at the streamline engine casing, the way it just effortlessly glides across the track, and the romance that that era brings back, it truly is a thing of beauty!
Hi and thank you for your kind feedback. Glad to have brought you pleasure. Best regards, Alan
Look at the rods 😮😮😮
If Mallard ever does return one day, how bout take her on a 6 month tour of America, and she can visit her sister Dwight D Eisenhower in Green Bay, and visit her sister Dominion of Canada! Maybe, we can try and persuade as American Railfans saying, these two girls deserve to be in their country, with their own people, and Mallard all steamed up, will take them with her home at the end of her North American tour!
Hello Bruce and thank you for your interesting comments. As Mallard is something of a National Treasure, the chances of her ever returning to steam is extremely remote, but your ideas
are most stimulating! Regards, Alan
Amazing. ............) from north west frontier Pakistan
Mallard's fireman must have had to shovel for his life to make the locomotive go that fast.
They should put Jeremy Clarkson to coal shoveling - he already did that once.
I understood that they carried two firemen for the attempt. It isn't even just shovelling but every shovelful must be precisely placed or the steaming is reduced.
Now try doing that on a bucking engine at speed. Ballet dancing anyone?
Peak engineering
According to figures in "Locomotive Practice and Performance in the 20th Century" by Cecil J Allen (1949), a copy of which I have here, the top speed was barely 125 mph and there's certainly no way 126 can be justified. The driver was told immediately afterwards that he'd done 125. Then they added one just as the LMS did in 1937 with their "114 mph" before Crewe, really 112 or 113.
Mallard had to come off the train at Peterborough as the inside motion was making horrible noises and was in danger of falling apart (literally). I've heard recently that the engine was never quite the same after that - maybe frame distortion..
Hi and thank you for your interesting comment. As has been said many times: " lies!, ...bloody lies!!, ... statistics!!!,...................publicists!!!!!!" and therefore history says 126mph no-matter what the facts! Alan
+Rosie6857
An A4, just like so many Gresley designs, does not have a conventional valve gear for the inside cylinder. At the time of the record run the engine simply suffered from an overheated middle big end. This occurred because steam was shut off at a speed in excess of 120mph which prevented the valuable cushioning steam from being present in the cylinders. This lack of damping of the inside engine unit lead to a failure of the oil film in the bearing concerned. The engine was given due repair and inspection and then returned to work.
4468 was always an outstanding engine being able to produce 2450 edhp 25 years after setting the record and impressing all who came into contact with it when returned to working order in the 1980s.
A4s most certainly achieved far higher speeds, crews admit to it, but these runs were simply not recorded.
+DeCasoU1 I think a far bigger problem was the over-running of the valve for the middle cylinder which gave a later cut-off in that cylinder. This put the slightly dodgy middle big-end under even more strain than normal. The over-run was due to whip and backlash in the derived motion and was a well recognised problem even to the extent that later, four of the A4's had their middle cylinders reduced in diameter from 18½ to 17 inches. I'm not a fan of the derived motion; it's clever but a bit precious and unnecessary. What's so dreadful about three sets of Walschaert's? The Duchesses and Lizzies had four.
+Rosie6857 125.88mph to be exact, but most people round it up to 126. Still the fastest steam locomotive.
+Scottx125Productions - Spiffingly Serious British Gaming! I'd like to know where this figure of 125.88 mph comes from. It's all over the Net, probably copied from one source like rather too much stuff one reads. It's a new estimate, probably made only a few years ago and the degree of precision claimed is ridiculous. It is equivalent to knowing the time over half a mile to the nearest thousandth of a second or alternatively that the dynamometer speedo was accurately calibrated to better than 1 part in 10 thousand - quite impossible in those days. In any case you can't read the chart that accurately.
I'll settle for fractionally below 125 mph - it doesn't detract from Mallard's effort in any way.
Excellent Vid.I'm going to the Autumn Gathering.Liked & Subscribed.=D
Fastest locomotive EVER!
Almost correct - but the exhaust would have been flat along the loco. Photographs taken shortly after show a thick black stain along the side of her boiler casing…
I look at this and think... did they measure the speed accurately in1938... because those wheels and linkages are moving so fast I struggle to believe they could hold up to that kind of speed!
Hi and thank you for your perceptive remarks. The record set by Mallard was almost a scientific experiment conducted with full dynamometer-car recording on the train and therefore the results can be fully substantiated. There have been many claims, especially from Germany and the U.S.A., that certain locomotives they produced could go faster but they never actually achieved verified higher speeds and that is down to, as you rightly suggest, the ability of the unsprung masses and bearings holding together at the claimed speed. In fact, Mallard had to be virtually re-built after setting the record! Now take a look at the massive motion on PRR S-1 Duplex and tell me if you think that that would survive a claimed 156 m.p.h.! Regards, Alan
do it up close and mallard should race an Amtrak train
Mallard is one of Gordon’s cousins.
THIS IS NOT MALLARD. This is the 60009 Union of South Africa. My favorite A4
Thanks for the comment Aiden but maybe you should have watched the video from the beginning before doing so!
@@Steamclips I did. It was the Union the entire time. Mallard does not have the exposed running gear, she has the aero shields. The Union has the open running gear with the conjugated pins outwards of the pistons non exposed. This is the Union no Mallard at all
@@Steamclips I get the video concept but you advertise it's Mallard by turning the video B/W and just changing the clip speed
We have a couple of steam train here is Australia
Happy Mallard Day!! JULY 3RD 2018
I'll break open the bubbly!! Regards, Alan
Powerful and fast 😄
She still holds the British record but has another unofficial record of 128mph but at the time there was already a petition in progress to end steam hence the 1950s diesels and electrics in prototype so the big wigs didn't make the 128 official for fear of never hitting the deadline of ending steam. But any faster than that magic 128mph and she would of destroyed her own boiler.
Probably she would have run out of steam mass-flow (from a still perfectly-workable boiler!) by around 130mph, which I believe is the speed Duddington thought he could get out of her. Absent some critical speed between 125 and 130mph I don't see anything obvious to 'break' before such a speed was reached...
holy shit
Fantastic film. Does anyone know when that run was ??
Hello Keith and thank you for your kind comment and question. For the original record breaking run read this: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LNER_Class_A4_4468_Mallard for the footage used in the presentation see here: th-cam.com/video/s1M2o-FCXKY/w-d-xo.html. Best regards, Alan
@Steamclips Thank Alan for the information. I absolutely love these old engines and really enjoy the video. Hopefully, getting up to York this year
when it’s 1938 and i’m late for work
Thank you for your interesting comment. I am sure your Boss will understand!. Regards, Alan
Hmm yes,interesting
80 year anniversary
I ever win the lottery I swear im buying the mallard and paying to have her put back to working order and then back running. if it takes every penny I have
Hello Tom and thank you for your interesting and enthusiastic comment. I wish you the very best of luck! Regards, Alan
that is not mallard. look on how long the name plate is. it could be dwight d eisenhower. dominion of canada, union of south africa, or sir nigel gresley.
In the beginning of the video it said that the locomotive was Union Of South Africa....they just sped the video clip
Sweet as a nut.
202 kmh waav
Ashington not asking ton sorry auto correct I'm defently turning it of .
that ol girl hicked up her skirt and boogied!
Did this engine have a mechanical stoker like the Big Boys?
Hi and thank you for your question. Mallard was hand fired and it must have been hard and shaky work! Regards, Alan
majority of all british engines are hand fired
Of my! I would love to see it in real life! But I can't. :-(
EverythingFan53 how?
That isn't the Mallard, looks like Sir Nigel Gresley
Thank you for your comment Nick although it would have been better if you had read the description before you did so! where you will see that the footage is of 60009. Mallard is a static exhibit in the National Railway Museum having not run since Easter 1987. Regards, Alan
It looks sped up omg!!!
It looked like a train doing 126 mph.
Thank you for your valued comment Jim. Regards, Alan
We should make another a4 and make it run at 130 mph instead
I agree,but then there's the counter argument of "there's alredy 6 so we don't need of a 7th one"
Very true, and it costs a lot of money. Just a small idea with no intentions
@@piggynice-06 yes,wished more A4s were preserved :\
Yeah
So is that video from 1938?
Hi: Take a look at the description which will explain all. Original footage is 2013. Regards.
Sapevano lavorare i nostri vecchi.....
Ciao e grazie per il tuo prezioso commento. Cordiali saluti, Alan
They could take off the passenger wagons. Would go even faster then
AndreyGaming im pretty sure the first one is used to record the speed...
They needed some carriages for braking. Apparently the engine brakes are not as effective as the carriages. I think they don't have them on the front bogie and rear carrying wheels.
One of the issues of the run was being able to slow down quickly enough when the end of the speed section was reached.
Mallard is very slow compared to TGV.
What???
this is all apple to orange all over again
It doesn't seem that fast on camera really,
Hi and thank you for the interesting comment. I guess that we are conditioned to regular 125 mph running on today's railway and therefore the speed of the A4 doesn't look too special. Alan
Looks hysterically fast to me!.
To shoot the field and train together, cameraman is required to stand at noticeable distance. Speed of moving object at wide scene from distance aren't too noticeable in comparing by standing nearby. Slow moving effect become even more noticeable if camera has large viewing angle. Today's high speed trains also doesn't look fast from large distance. Take any Bullet Train, TGV, ICE or Chinese High Speed train video in TH-cam - you will notice the same even if train is moving in speed around 300 km/h.
This isn’t mallard, mallard was 4468
Hello Eren and thank you for your comment. I did in fact explain in the video description that this is footage of 60009 Union of South Africa speeded up to represent what Mallard would have looked like at 126mph as it was the 75th anniversary year of Mallards record breaking achievement. Mallard has been a museum exhibit since withdrawal in 1963 and even though it was restored to working order in 1986 it was never intended to work the mainline. I hope this explains. Thank you also for your subscription, welcome aboard! Best regards, Alan
Meh, I could run faster.
In all fairness the Germans had a loco clocked at 124.5mph. and it is doubtful I believe that the rotating weight of a steam locos valve and piston gear. would allow a steamer to go much faster than around 130 mph. as Mallard burned out the centre bearing of third cyclinder during run