Roy O. Disney Steam Locomotive Broken Down (repaired) and Liberty Belle News

[DisAl]

Didn't know if they went by mph or fps like they do on the DLRR.

I think what I was told was MPH, but it could be FPS which would equate to 9.5 MPH. I do know that the "red line" setting on the gauge is "14" whether it is MPH or FPS. First time exceeding the limit for an engineer, be careful. Second time, don't to that again. Third time, look for a new job....

 

[EricsBiscuit]

The WDWRR goes by FPS

 

[DisAl]

The speed gauge is on the upper right of the cab. If you can zoom in you will see that it is marked "Miles Per Hour". This photo was made in 2009, so there could have been upgrades or changes in the safety systems since then. For the purposes of this thread note that the Johnson bar on the right is in the full forward position. The throttle bar (the horizontal bar on top of the boiler) is in the stop position in this photo. FYI I have been trying for years to get a ride in the locomotive but the answer is always NO. The only way to get in the cab is to do the "Magic Behind Our Steam Trains" tour. They will usually (at least when I did it) let you get in the cab during the part of the tour back in the maintenance area while the train is parked. The standard warning is "Everything that is painted is hot. Everything that is not painted is VERY hot."

 

[Captain Barbossa]

The speed gauge is on the upper right of the cab. If you can zoom in you will see that it is marked "Miles Per Hour". This photo was made in 2009, so there could have been upgrades or changes in the safety systems since then. For the purposes of this thread note that the Johnson bar on the right is in the full forward position. The throttle bar (the horizontal bar on top of the boiler) is in the stop position in this photo. FYI I have been trying for years to get a ride in the locomotive but the answer is always NO. The only way to get in the cab is to do the "Magic Behind Our Steam Trains" tour. They will usually (at least when I did it) let you get in the cab during the part of the tour back in the maintenance area while the train is parked. The standard warning is "Everything that is painted is hot. Everything that is not painted is VERY hot."
View attachment 199234

Which locomotive was this?

 

[EricsBiscuit]

The speed gauge is on the upper right of the cab. If you can zoom in you will see that it is marked "Miles Per Hour". This photo was made in 2009, so there could have been upgrades or changes in the safety systems since then. For the purposes of this thread note that the Johnson bar on the right is in the full forward position. The throttle bar (the horizontal bar on top of the boiler) is in the stop position in this photo. FYI I have been trying for years to get a ride in the locomotive but the answer is always NO. The only way to get in the cab is to do the "Magic Behind Our Steam Trains" tour. They will usually (at least when I did it) let you get in the cab during the part of the tour back in the maintenance area while the train is parked. The standard warning is "Everything that is painted is hot. Everything that is not painted is VERY hot."
View attachment 199234

Then it's the DLRR that goes by FPS. It makes more sense that it's mph here because they were actually used in Mexico.

Which locomotive was this?

The cab is red so I'm guessing Walter.

 

[DisAl]

Then it's the DLRR that goes by FPS. It makes more sense that it's mph here because they were actually used in Mexico.

The cab is red so I'm guessing Walter.

Yes sir, both by the color and the adjacent photos in my files this is Walter. And you could still be right on the FPS; I understand the safety systems have been upgraded since this photo was made in 2009 so they could have changed over.

 

[Disney-Trains]

Then it's the DLRR that goes by FPS. It makes more sense that it's mph here because they were actually used in Mexico.

3 of the 5 steam locomotives at Disneyland were "actually used" in regular service as well. That makes no difference.

I can confirm I've been told by disneyland enginneer that the Disneyland Railroad operates on feet not miles.

 

[Cloujshe]

It seems Lilly is definitely not a crew favorite especially after she's returned from Strasburg with all the updates they've done on her, she's become a very challenging engine to operate. An ongoing problem she has is keeping her fire going, I've heard that she will appear to have a fire when there's actually none and has been sucked out, then it's difficult to get it started again. (Unlike the others, she now has electronic ignition in her firebox.) Plus her lettering and graphics are all decaled now. She still looks and sounds beautiful though.

 

[Disney-Trains]

To be fair... Strasburg just did what Disney asked them to do.

I'm not a fan of the changes but I'll take them over losing steam altogether!

 

[Captain Barbossa]

I'm not a fan of the changes but I'll take them over losing steam altogether!

Watch what you say. Don't want to give iger any ideas

 

[elisatonks]

Just some insight from someone who used to ride the rails daily.

The speed limit is actually 10mph. There is actually a alarm that goes off if you go much higher and it's very loud and obnoxious, so you avoid setting it off at all costs.

Also, Lilly's lantern never left WDW, it was removed from the train before shipping and stored in the roundhouse. I used to walk past it daily.

I left trains before Lilly came back due to medical reasons but I could clear these up!

 

[Cloujshe]

Yeah definitely it's better to have the changes as long as they're still steam, but to be honest I'm hoping that Walter, and the others for that matter, don't have the same changes done to them and Lilly is eventually sent back to be de-computerized and restored to how she used to operate. Unfortunately it's unlikely this will happen though given that Disney invested a lot of time and money on the new system, and I also heard one of the higher-ups had a fit when they saw how the locomotives were traditionally fired up by hand using a lit ball of fabric waste dowsed in oil and thrown into the firebox and using the atomizer and blower to get the fire started which gave way to the electronic ignition as well. Lilly happened to be the test subject for all this and I'm not sure if the crews' laments of her changes and how she operates now will make a difference; but it simply boils down to the fact that computers and steam just don't mix, and Lilly is an example of that. Her crosshead pump now only serves for asthetics as it doesn't have any water going to it, she now gets all her water via injectors.

 

[DisAl]

I wonder why they disabled the pump? That normally supplied all the water needed as long as the train was in motion. Now they will have to do it all manually with the injector, and sometimes the injectors can be quite balky if the water from the tender is too warm for the physics of the injector to work properly.
I can sort of understand them trying the electronic ignition. They used to say you could identify the firemen because they were the ones with all the hair singed off their forearms.
Sounds like Disney may have hired the Pointy Haired Boss from Dilbert......

 

[Cloujshe]

I wonder why they disabled the pump? That normally supplied all the water needed as long as the train was in motion. .

They also gutted it, the feed pipe to it is not hooked up to anything and the pipe leading up and into the boiler is capped internally. It was disappointing because it has been a part of the engines even before Disney acquired them when they worked on the United Railways of Yucatan in Mexico. Having that 1870's locomotive technology still functioning on them made them all the more special. I did find it kind of odd when I saw Lilly just delivered back to the roundhouse last summer and the feed water heater had been removed and the crosshead pump's water hammer piping running directly to the check valve on the boiler like how it used to be before the feed water heaters were installed. I think it actually looks better that way even though the water heater had improved fuel efficiency which is why George Britton came up with the idea and secretly had them installed sometime in the late '90s Albeit Lilly Belle was the first to have the feed water heater.

 

[EricsBiscuit]

I can confirm that Roy is back. Pics from today. Pro tip: you can get great pictures from the wheelchair loading areas (even if you don't have a wheelchair you can access them for photos). I was pushing my grandmother around also and you can get great shots of the cab from the wheelchair part of the front car (when you're in the station of course).

Edit: cool fact: the reason Roy's whistle is so loud is because it came from one of the old steamboats from the Seven Seas Lagoon and Bay Lake.

 

[larryz]

The Johnson bar is also known as the reverser. It controls the valve gear.

The throttle controls the steam flow.

Aha! So that's what they mean when they say one of the flay rods has gone out of skew on the treadle?

 

[Captain Barbossa]

I can confirm that Roy is back. Pics from today. Pro tip: you can get great pictures from the wheelchair loading areas (even if you don't have a wheelchair you can access them for photos). I was pushing my grandmother around also and you can get great shots of the cab from the wheelchair part of the front car (when you're in the station of course).

Edit: cool fact: the reason Roy's whistle is so loud is because it came from one of the old steamboats from the Seven Seas Lagoon and Bay Lake.

Thank you so much for sharing these pictures!! That's one of the reasons why the Roy is my favorite.

 

[Cloujshe]

Edit: cool fact: the reason Roy's whistle is so loud is because it came from one of the old steamboats from the Seven Seas Lagoon and Bay Lake.

Great shots and I believe her whistle actually came from a former steam river boat of the Rivers of America in Frontierland, the Joe Fowler which was damaged beyond repair in 1980. Legend has it that the whistle was slapped on Roy to keep a part of the ill-fated river boat alive and heard in the park. For decades it sounded unusually low pitched and bassy because one of the chambers was clogged. This was eventually rectified in the summer of 2015 and it was restored to its true sound ever since and it does sound different than before, for one it's not as low pitched, but it is still the lowest pitched whistle of the four locomotives.

 

[EricsBiscuit]

Great shots and I believe her whistle actually came from a former steam river boat of the Rivers of America in Frontierland, the Joe Fowler which was damaged beyond repair in 1980. Legend has it that the whistle was slapped on Roy to keep a part of the ill-fated river boat alive and heard in the park. For decades it sounded unusually low pitched and bassy because one of the chambers was clogged. This was eventually rectified in the summer of 2015 and it was restored to its true sound ever since and it does sound different than before, for one it's not as low pitched, but it is still the lowest pitched whistle of the four locomotives.

Interesting! I heard it was from one of the other steamboats (one of the two on the SSL, not AJF). Interesting nonetheless.

 

[Disneyrailfan1996]

It's been a while since the last post regarding the railroad. And I thought I may shed a little light on the subject. Roy is still running, but he apparently is in rotation with lilly and Roger, one week they'll run Roger and roy, then Roger and lilly, then lilly and roy. Whichever is not a primary for the week runs during the weekend as the 3rd train. This is what I noticed for the past 2 weeks and this week once peak time ended. I have taken the tour about 2 weeks ago, and roy was indoors, BUT he did have some steam (probably so it's easier if he's needed). Last week, Roy's blue train was removed from service and Walter's recently refurbished Red train was brought back into service and is pulled by lilly, so I guess they're refurbishing it at the moment (paint touch ups, new wood running boards like Walter's train has, maintenance, etc.). Side note: Lilly's speedometer was replaced this week and is now digital. May not be very antique, but regardless I think it looks cool and perhaps may provide more accuracy for the speed of the train.