BigBoy4014 the Furnouse

Big Boy No. 4014 is the world's largest operating steam locomotive, at 133 feet long, over 16 feet tall, and weighing 1.2 million pounds! Of the eight remaining Big Boys in existence today, 4014 is the only one still in operation, with the others being museum displays.

When Union Pacific delivered Big Boy 4014 in December 1941, it was designed and operated as a coal‑fired steam locomotive. It carried roughly 56,000 pounds of coal for each run, and its coal consumption rate was about 22,000 pounds per hour. In the 2010s, during its restoration, 4014 was converted from a coal burner to an oil burner using No. 5 fuel oil (a thick residual petroleum-based oil).

Twenty-five Big Boys total were commissioned exclusively for Union Pacific Railroad, the first of which was delivered in 1941. These massive locomotives were built to haul heavy equipment without a secondary helper engine at the end of the train. Due to their great length, the frames of the Big Boys are hinged, or articulated, to allow them to negotiate curves. 4014 was retired in December 1961 after traveling 1,031,205 miles. Union Pacific reacquired it from California's RailGiants Train Museum in 2013 and relocated it back to Wyoming for a multi-year restoration. It returned to service in May 2019 to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of the Transcontinental Railroad's Completion.
Learn more: https://www.up.com/about-us/history/steam/big-boy-4014

4014 passed through Illinois June 2026 and I planned to see him, but ended up deep in a migraine that day. :-/

When we were kids, my dad built an amazing electric train set on a big piece of wood for me and my two brothers, with three tracks, miniature trees, micro machine cars, roads, epoxy resin water, and more. It sat on top of our pool table in the basement. The burning electric smell of running our trains for a while (and fast lol) is so nostalgic to me.
https://ibb.co/yFrBpNDN
Photo by my dad 2004, brother on left me on right, redacted lol

I went to see the Nickel Plate steam loco 765 with my parents in June 2016.
https://ibb.co/RGpj5T4D
Photo by my dad.
Learn more: http://fortwaynerailroad.org/nickel-plate-road-no-765/