Adelaide Man Completes 23-Year Handmade Steam Locomotive

Glen Smythe just watched his life's work get craned onto a truck, and after 23 years of sleepless nights and steady determination, his handmade steam locomotive is finally heading to its new home.

The Adelaide Hills engineer started his ambitious project in 2003 with nothing but raw materials, a 1982 design blueprint, and a burning question: Could he really build a working steam train by himself? This week, he got his answer as the massive machine began its 350-kilometer journey to Quorn, where it will join the Pichi Richi Railway fleet to carry passengers through the stunning Flinders Ranges.

Smythe fashioned every single part of the locomotive himself in his Ironbank workshop. "I've been involved in preservation steam maintenance most of my life," he explained, recalling how a UK train-building project inspired him decades ago. "I thought that, given enough time and the equipment to do it, I too could build from scratch."

The project tested more than his engineering skills. Smythe describes waking up in cold sweats, wondering what he'd taken on. "It turned out to be more of a psychological challenge than anything to keep going over such a long period of time," he said. "A lifetime of pressure."

The locomotive chassis is 100 percent complete, but Smythe still needs to build the boiler before passengers can climb aboard. He's self-funded the entire project, investing decades of weekends, evenings, and vacation time into making his dream tangible.

Sunny's Take

What makes this story shine isn't just the impressive engineering feat. It's Smythe's honesty about the emotional journey. He admits feeling nervous and a little sad watching his creation leave its birthplace. "The shed will feel a bit empty," he said, "but it's all part of the journey, and the next phase begins."

His dedication represents something beautifully human: the willingness to pour yourself into something meaningful, even when the finish line seems impossibly far away. While others might scroll through completed projects online and feel intimidated, Smythe's story reminds us that the most extraordinary achievements happen one day at a time.

Soon, families riding the heritage railway will experience the clickety-clack of wheels on tracks, powered by a machine born from one person's refusal to give up. That's not just engineering; that's perseverance you can touch.