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(A modern touch)!
Formula 1 super race cars with Carbon formulated materials to withstand terrific braking heat to be nigh on indestructible, and compounded into a paste to line a boiler and its tubes that see no flame? Of a water that just exceeds boiling point, Would hide/ cover that Iron/ steel content that ages to become the boilers own induced familiar Cancer problem? Why don’t these fancy paint’s work? Or a boiler system of Stainless steel! That might be expensive but not explained to be a waste of effort! And to add another problem in this present weather being the spark that goes to atmosphere! A deflection of 360 degrees to hit the sleepers and bounce to become cooling ash might help? Bit daft, but some bright spark in Heritage might find saturated steam plus Drivers easing down for heavy work of banks / and starting away when hot cinders head to orbit with great vigour might be a partial solution? (Don’t know why i put this on Narrow gauge? It applies to all I would think)?
Michael Kirkton, James Adams and 2 others2 Comments-
I must add (simply between you n me)? That the driver who knew far more than i would ever know said the new addition, being The S/C badge on the smokebox door was self cleaning! That’s fine with me, Plus the ash pan got the same treatment? Clean and drop my fire bars clinker for me to push out the worst with the pricker, (You could never get a long scraper for love nor money on a busy pit)! For the dust n such to vibrate off over the many miles to be never seen! Shame on me but it was nearing the end of steam and engines were not cleaned or looked after! And I got home earlier? Plus the fact nothing can be destroyed, So smokebox ash only built to the effect of the blast, And then was blasted skywards? (So much for trackside fires)? Doh! So the important stuff was perfection! For a bad steamer to simply be your own fault? And trouble from next crews Lol. And two ton of coal dust, and not one single lump, to be attacked in the shed Pay queue! One of my old yarns! (I could run faster back then)!
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Maybe one day we’ll find some miracle material and our struggles with boilers corroding and wasting away on the inside will be a thing of the past. I do worry that the spiralling cost of overhauling our locos will see the number in running order fall in years to come.
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