left-hand lead/left-hand drive/left-hand running

[NW Mailing List]

Ed's comments reminds me of a valve setting anecdote told to me years 
ago by a veteran of Roanoke Shops from the steam days.  He said that 
Roanoke Shops had a particular machinist who was an expert in the 
esoteric practice of proper setting of the cylinder valves (like 
"timing" an automobile) on N&W engines with their right hand valve 
lead.  One day the first N&W E3 (ex-Pennsylvania) engine with its left 
hand valve lead was in Roanoke Shops for some work including valve 
setting.  It is said that the right hand valve lead specialist machinist 
almost went nuts trying to set the valves on the left hand lead ex PRR 
engine

Gordon Hamilton

On 4/1/2023 9:38 AM, NW Mailing List wrote:
> There seems to be some confusion here,
> By left hand drive I assume you mean having the engineer sitting on 
> the left  hand side of the cab.  AFAIK The North Western was the only
> American road that ran left-handed on double track  I don't know about 
> their steam locomotives but they bought diesels with the engineer on 
> the right side.
> Left hand lead is another matter.  Normally the piston on the right 
> side started its stroke before the one on the l.eft  - right hand lead
>
> The PRR was the only road I know of that used left-hand lead.
> Ed King
>
>
> On Sat, Apr 1, 2023 at 7:01 AM NW Mailing List 
> <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org> wrote:
>
>     Well, this has definitely sparked some interest and I have perhaps
>     learned something. Jimmy Lisle reminds us the C&NW was a left-hand
>     running road and that I knew, but if I have mistaken that for the
>     left-hand drive as it may, then I stand corrected. However, are we
>     sure that no other roads may have been left-hand drive per se? As
>     I have thunked about it, no one chimed in on the NY Central and as
>     I am starting to recall they were right-hand drive but used a
>     screw type mechanism for their power-reverse at least on some if
>     not all of their Huidson types. Anyone care to chime in on that
>     one, but still unanswered, were any American RR's left-hand drive.
>
>     As for left-lead/right-hand lead and I presume you meant for the
>     power reverse, Ken, my apologies but that wasn't my intent here.
>     This may spark some additional comments but I seem to recall
>     reading the Pennsy at one time was different than other roads in
>     that regard; am I correct on this one?
>
>     Bob Cohen
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