Historical Accuracy of Trains & Train Robberies in RDR2

Please support the channel on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/ManvsHistory?...

Visit the MvH Outfitters Shop: https://shop.spreadshirt.com/man-vs-h...

Follow me on Twitch!:   / manvshistory  

Don't forget to follow me on Twitter for the latest updates!   / themanvshistory  

'The Innocents' Red Dead Online Posse: https://linktr.ee/the_innocents

'The Innocents' Discord:   / discord  

Today we're looking at the historical accuracy of Trains & Train Robberies in Red Dead Redemption II. For this week I used the Library of Congress Archives, which allowed me to acquire an abundance of primary source material from the period, particularly about train robberies at the turn of the century. For help with the train components, I consulted Kevin Wilcomb, the company historian for the Georgetown Loop Railroad in Georgetown, Colorado, and a steam locomotive engineer for over 35 years. Thank you for all your help, Kevin!

Music:
Track: Horses & Trains - Jesse Gallagher. Available on YouTube Audio Library
Track: Covid Come Not Near - Nat Keefe & Hot Buttered Rum. Available on YouTube Audio Library.

Fair Use Disclaimer: The fair use doctrine in U.S. copyright law allows individuals to use copyrighted material to create original works. It includes criticism, news reporting, research, and derivative works. Many YouTube videos may use music or other snippets of other creations.

Train Inaccuracies:
(Note: Some of these apply to one train & not the other, some apply to both)

1) The beam that the cow catcher is affixed to is not wide enough. This is called the Pilot Beam and they generally, were the same width as the locomotive.

2) The headlight is an electric light which should be powered by a steam driven Dynamo mounted either behind the light or on top of the Boiler directly in front of the cab roof. the Dynamo is missing. If it was not an electric light, by the 1890s Kerosene Headlamps were still in use as well as Carbide Gas Lamps.

3) The locomotive has an Air Compressor but no visible Air Brake Equipment ie Brake shoes, brake rigging visible between the driving wheels, the Equalizing Tank under the cab is missing, there are no air brake controls or gauges visible in the cab from what I could see.

4) The Bell Chord is on the wrong side. Ringing the Bell was the Fireman's responsibility not the Engineer

5) The Coal space on the tender is too large. On a horseshoe tender like those shown in the game, fuel was stored in the front half to third, depending on the builder, of the tender, the rest was water storage.

6) The all brass sand dome is incorrect. Central Pacific Locomotives did have all brass Steam Dome covers, but they flared out at the top while the sand dome was made of sheet iron with cast iron , fluted, tops and bases.

7) Locomotive hand rails generally did not bend down like that. They usually stop at the end of the boiler jackets. This depends on the builder.

8) The brass band at the very front of the boiler should not be there, they were only used to hide the seams of the boiler jacketing.

9) The traction sand delivery pipe in front of the lead drive wheel is missing.

10) The locomotive is carrying an air compressor on each side, this is incorrect. Single Stage Air Compressors like these were carried on one side or the other not on both.

11) The front facing hand hold ( grab iron) would not be all brass. They were tube steel held in place with cast iron fittings

12) The train uses what are called Strap Brass Bearings and the bearing itself is in 2 pieces, split vertically and held in place on the crank pins by the strap and the wedge on the main and side rods of the locomotive. The model in the game does not have a split in the bearing and the strap is missing. in the game it is set up like a Bushing, but still has all the add-ons for a Strap Brass arrangement which is pointless if you have a bushing type bearing.

13) The Cab of the Thatcher Perkins model that I was watching on YouTube shows a, mostly, standard arrangement from the early days of steam locomotives in the US, but if this engine was still in service in 1899 it would have been modified with a Hydro-static lubricator, air powered Sanding valves and air brakes for the train behind it. None of these are present in the cab from what I can see of it which , by 1899, would have been in violation of I.C.C. regulations for engines in passenger and freight service.

14) Both locomotives are missing their front cab doors they are shown as windows in the game.

15) The Thatcher Perkins is missing the air hoses that are supposed to be on the pilot.