RELIC ON DISPLAY

If you ever visit one of the old train stations on the outskirts of the city, you might find a bright blue steam locomotive on display across the street. It's probably the oldest surviving machine in the city, originating from a much older railway that was here long before the modern company was formed. How did something so old survive to this day?

Back when it was new, this one-of-a-kind steamer was a fancy express engine. Thanks to its enormous driving wheels, it could run at over 50mph over long distances. That doesn't seem very fast compared to today's trains, but it was the fastest machine of its time. On top of that, the bright blue paint job and brass detailing made this engine look particularly beautiful. So although other engines of similar age and design were scrapped and superseded by newer iron horses, this lucky one continued to be the railway's favorite. Even after the formation of the modern rail company, this old steamer continued to persist, and was even kept in good running condition for special occasions and private trains.

Now even those days are long gone, but the locomotive still remains. It no longer pulls anything, and sometimes birds build their nests on it, but it's still standing in one piece. Perhaps that's why they decided to write ENDURANCE on the plaque when putting it up on display.

DESIGN PROCESS

This build is loosely based on a really old and unique Scottish steam locomotive with 7-foot-tall driving wheels. Locomotives of this type are often called "Singles" in reference to the single powered axle. The prototype is currently on display at a museum, further inspiring the build to feature the locomotive on display instead of operating.

The large driving wheels presented a challenge when building with official parts, because there's only a few train wheel sizes available. Initially, I was going to use round plates or dishes to represent the driving wheels, with only the front and rear wheels would be actually carrying the locomotive. This is a trick I've seen before on other MOCs, some of which have static faux wheels while others have spinning faux wheels. However, I eventually decided to use another trick I've seen before: Construct a wheel out of a 40-tooth gear and chain links. This method proved to be more economical despite requiring 20 chain links for each wheel, and is much simpler, slimmer, and more stable than the previous method. It also works on rails just fine, just a little bumpy on switches.

The locomotive can be motorized by putting a battery hub and train motor in the tender. This is the only way to make this model work, as the engine lacks sufficient space for a motor and/or gear mechanisms.

BUILD STATS:

Parts:
- Engine = 397
- Tender = 196
- Display Base = 68
Lengths:
- Engine = 23.5 studs
- Tender = 13.5 studs
- Engine + Tender = 40 studs
- Display Base = 48 studs
Widths: Mostly 8 studs, 8.4 studs at the coal walls
Heights: 12.6 studs from rail to chimney, 13 studs overall
Functions and Features:
- Working brick-built driving wheels
- Runs on R40 curves
- Fully decorated interior for engine cab
- Removable coal load
- Powered-Up Requirements: Tender + 1 Hub + 1 Train Motor
  - May require a different coal cover to completely hide the battery