BLOWING OFF STEAM ON THE JOB

Once most of us get off work, we're ready to blow off a little steam but for Lee Strickland, blowing off steam is a major part of his job.

In addition to maintaining the St. Louis Iron Mountain and Southern Railway's 18 1/2 miles of track, its depot at Jackson as well as a diesel locomotive and three passenger cars, Strickland has the privilege of maintaining the railroad's steam engine, known as "No. 5."

It is a rare privilege indeed. Although any number of steam-powered tractors and sawmills remain in existence, Strickland estimates that only about six steam locomotives are still operating in the United States and adds that he feels very fortunate to be able to work on No. 5.

"I feel very lucky to be able to do this because I enjoy it," said Strickland.

The Oak Ridge man started working with the railroad early in 1993 as one of the numerous volunteers -- numbering nearly 70 and known as "Friends of Steam Railroading" -- who help operate the train during its regularly scheduled and chartered tourist excursions.

While some volunteers help attend to those riding in passenger cars, Strickland opted to help run the engine. Like many of those who volunteer to work on the railroad, Strickland is a past railroad employee, having worked as a brakeman, engineer and conductor for freight lines.

After a few months of volunteering, Strickland was asked to work as the railroad's full-time maintenance man, maintaining its entire physical plant including the engine and rolling stock. Although he had past rail experience, the steam engine was a bit new to him. His only past experience with a steam-operated motor was dabbling with those on the few antique steam tractors he'd seen.

However, he was working at the time as a maintenance man at Midwest Sterilization at Jackson and says that having a good mechanical aptitude was all he needed to work on the fairly simple steam engine.

"Anyone who is fairly mechanically inclined and can pick up on this sort of thing can work on a steam engine," he said. "You just have to be interested in the work."

The engine was built in 1946 by H.K. Porter Company of Pittsburgh, Pa. For the first 30 years of its life, it was used to tow coal cars at an Illinois power plant. Later it was employed as a tourist engine on the Crab Orchard and Egyptian Railroad in Southern Illinois. It came to Jackson about 10 years ago.

Keeping the engine in top working order can at times be a high-maintenance operation. From April through October, the railway employs the steam engine in all of its tours. From the start of November until the following April, a diesel locomotive is used.

During the summer months when the steam engine is used fairly frequently both through the week and on weekends, the motor must be cleaned and lubricated after each use.

Strickland said petroleum oils and greases of the type used in most automobiles are used on the majority of the train engine's moving parts. However, many of the parts come in contact with steam, which carbonizes petroleum lubricants. On these parts, Strickland applies a good coating of a special animal fat-based grease. The grease provides adequate protection for the bearings to which it is applied, but does not gum up as a petroleum grease would because the animal grease is slowly washed away by the steam.

Despite No. 5's relative age, Strickland has no trouble obtaining parts to keep the engine in working order. Although factory parts are no longer available, most can be made in local machine shops. Strickland employs a Jackson machinist to do most of his machine work although a larger shop is sometimes used. For instance, a complete cylinder head was fabricated last summer in a Cape Girardeau machine shop.

When the engine heads out on one of its summer excursions to Gordonville, Dutchtown or Delta, Strickland can often be found at the controls.

"Not only do I get to work on it, I get to operate it," he said of the engine.

"I also try to give some of the volunteers the opportunity to operate the engine," he added. "I enjoy having the volunteers around because they're nice to talk to and they're in this because they enjoy the same things and because after you operate something all week, it takes some of the fun away from it."

Once on the tracks, the engine cruises at a top speed of 10 Mph. Strickland said the engine is capable of higher speeds but was truly built for its brawn and not for speed. The engine's powering wheels are not balanced properly to allow for high speed operation. Because of this and other factors, the Federal Railroad Administration dictates that the lower speed limit be followed.

From April to October, the steam engine burns between $1,500 and $1,800 per month in hard, low sulfur coal trucked in from Alabama. The fire in No. 5's boiler must be built four to five hours in advance of departure to allow time for an adequate head of steam to gather.

Because the water which is used to make steam in the engine is apt to freeze and rupture the tank of the coal and water tender towed behind the engine, No. 5 is left idle for the winter and its tender is drained. The diesel locomotive is used during the remaining months.

Also interesting are the railroad's three passenger cars. Two of the cars are former electric passenger cars built in the 1920s and used by the Illinois Central Commuter service in the city of Chicago. They were powered by electric motors which drew electricity from overhead lines and propelled the cars at speeds as high as 70 Mph. Now the cars have normal wheels and railroad fittings.

Strickland has worked for the past several seasons to restore and improve the cars.

A third car, with a stainless steel skin, was built in the 1930s and is leased from a Denver, Colo. man who bought the car in Tennessee, restored it and wanted to see it put to use.

The railroad also owns two cabooses, one of which is a 1929 cupola caboose, and Strickland takes care of both.