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If you are someone who is interested in the more technical side of running a steam engine this book is a must have. Focusing on British steam this book takes you through the history, mechanics, firing, and driving of a steam locomotive. Not only is this book full of very good descriptions and helpful information it also has a wealth of images to aid in comprehension.
The “brief” history section still manages to effectively capture all the important pieces of locomotive history. Starting with the early engines like The Stephenson Rocket up through the famous Flying Dutchman. The manual also takes time to talk about the live steam hobby as well in the history of locomotives. All of this information provides a great opening foundation to the more in depth mechanics of the next section.
The next and arguably most in depth section is on the locomotive mechanics. This section walks the reader through the boiler, valve gear, firebox, injector, and other pieces of the locomotive. While not discussing every type of every mechanism it does a good job getting the reader to a working knowledge of the most common type of each mechanism. Where this section really shines is in the diagrams. Not only are these diagrams done in great detail they are printed quite large and in an engineering style with multiple views.
Up next is the first section on the operation of the locomotive. This section discusses the role of the fireman. The fireman is presented before the driver because when working with a locomotive it is the first job you are likely to have in the cab, or on the footplate as the book calls it. The tasks of the fireman go beyond just shoveling coal, and this book goes through them as well as the reasoning for why the job is needed.
Now we get to the section most people want to know the most about, the engineer. Like the section for the fireman the engineer section walks the reader through all of the jobs and responsibilities of the engineer. The list and complexity of these jobs may surprise those who are only mildly interested in steam engines. Jobs such as knowing the various signals either on the line, or presented as lamps or hand signals. At the end of the day the engine is the responsibility of the engineer and the jobs reflect that.
Finally the book ends with the shutdown procedure. A nice way to wrap up such a comprehensive book.