Hi Lubliner,
It’s an excellent book.
The preface explains that the author primarily sourced his information from several weekly periodicals dating from 1856 -1908 (Railroad Gazette) and Railroad Age Gazette, he was able to research each Gazette which at the time was printing between two thousand and three thousand pages per year. He explains that the densely printed pages covered every imaginable aspect of the American railroad industry in exhaustive detail. The author uses original period writings, comments and opinions of the most eminent engineers and executives of the American locomotive steam industry.
The publisher points out that the present work is a reprint of the illustrated case bound edition of ‘The American Steam locomotive in the Twentieth Century, first published in 2018.
The copyright is standard and covers the usual legal jargon.
The appendix is very well set out and would be helpful for future research as it covers every article page number and the title of each periodical used.
As for the layout of the book it’s incredible, when the author describes for example a ‘truck centering device’ or a ‘Schmidt smoke box superheater’, he includes original period photos with accompanying technical drawings, each has a clear and concise description of the various parts.
The photographs throughout the book (most pages have a photo) are very good and of clear quality. What really makes this book a good read is the fact that the author is an engineer himself and as a result he is able to explain things that anyone with an interest in the subject can understand. It’s technical but not so much that you need a PhD in engineering, it’s aimed at the steam enthusiasts but would equally appeal to those interested in industrial history.
You guys have to trust me on this, it’s an excellent book, I can guarantee that even the most knowledgeable steam nerd would learn something new from this book.
Marks out of 10....it definitely gets a 10+