Guide to North American Steam Locomotives (Railroad Reference Series No. 8)

Very informative book. Another great book for my growing collection on the rails and the history involved.

Guide to North American Steam Locomotives is a must for RAIL FANS & Model Railroaders alike. A book like this does not come along often enough. It is an ideal size for taking to Rail Museums & traveling. I would like a larger version for model railroading for home, with larger photos. The book is well written with so much information packed into it small size. The images are clear showing good detail. I highly recommend this book. You really should have one! You will not be disappointed!

This book is unbelieveable! It has history on the steam locomotives, the railroads who owned them, the manufactures, some of the major loco designers and the list goes on. My copy continues to get worn as I carry it to every Rail Museum I visit and carefully look up and read about each loco I look at. Don't visit any rail museum with out this guide!

I highly recommend this valuable addition to any railfan's library.Not having grown up in the era of these fire-breathing monsters, I can fully appreciate the power and technology of perhaps the greatest machines ever to roam the land. This book is absolutely necessary for any serious rail historian as well as the 'armchair railfan' who is wondering what 'super power' actually once meant.

This is a very complete review of all the major types of steam locomotives in service, from 1880's through 1950's. The archival photos are clear and beautifully detailed, all in sharp black and white. The best feature is the alphabetical format for road names and types of locomotives, as well as interesting detail topics like water usage, superheating, and types of fireboxes.The steam railroad fan will find lots of detail that will add to his knowledge of the type, period, or rail line of his interest. The model train buff will find a lot of information on detailing his models and layouts to look like the exact prototype. If you want to mix lines and engine types, this is a great source to use to make sure you are not far off the historical track. The photos and printing are so good, you will want to use a magnifier to see all the detail.It comes in a handy pocket size, and you can only improve on this book by increasing the size to better see the great photos.