Y Class, Etc

[NW Mailing List]

Dave - 

There were almost as many places to measure steam locomotive horsepower as there were people who measured it.

The only really meaningful place was at the rear drawbar.  That’s where the rubber met the road, so to speak.

EdK

From: NW Mailing List 
Sent: Saturday, June 29, 2013 7:38 AM
To: nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org 
Subject: Re: Y Class, Etc

Ed:

I'm confident Pete will clarify in his own right, but for my part I read his posting as meaning the boiler horsepower capability as a "steam generator", not the drawbar horsepower that you're citing.

Dave Phelps

In a message dated 6/29/2013 6:55:44 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time, nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org writes:
  Pete -

  Where do you get your horsepower figures?  The rating for the Y-6 was worked 
  out using train resistance formulae and the actual topography of the 
  territory by Dave Stephenson and published in the Arrow.  There was never a 
  7000 horsepower figure put out for the A.  The first test was 6300 which 
  Engineer of Tests Bob Pilcher felt was too high.  He felt the A was actually 
  in the 5300 horsepower range and that the dynamometer car's recording 
  mechanism was in error.  The A was not a Y "modded for speed".  The only 
  feature the A shared with the Y was the tender (and maybe the electical 
  system, and stuff like that).

  One has to be careful tossing "facts" around among folks who don't know much 
  about the N&W.  They're like football players who pick up a fumble and run 
  with it.

  EdKing

  -----Original Message----- 
  From: NW Mailing List
  Sent: Friday, June 28, 2013 4:17 PM
  To: NW Mailing List
  Subject: Re: Y Class, Etc

  Query:  "Again the A class was essentially a Y modded for speed . . ."   The 
  boilers (the most important part of a steam loco, I'm finally beginning to 
  realize) were very different - 5500 HP or so for a Y6 and 7000 HP or so for 
  an A; also very different in design, particularly, the fireboxes.

  pete groom
  On Jun 27, 2013, at 7:19 PM, NW Mailing List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org> 
  wrote:

  > There was purpose behind designs, the Big Boy was meant to tackle Sherman 
  > Hill, it has larger drivers for speed not to just get over the grades but 
  > out west is a lot of land to cover and get over it as fast as possible.
  >
  > N&W had numerous tough grades and perhaps harder curves, speed was not 
  > exactly the big handle to get over its grades than to get as much tonnage 
  > over as possible, double heading and pushers a common scene on the N&W.
  > Again the A class was essentially a Y modded for speed and larger drivers 
  > for the not so mountaneous and level routes for speed, but they were put 
  > on the plodding Y6 runs as well.
  >
  > The railroads had their engines made -their- way for -their- purposes.
  >
  > The DM&IR had their yellowstones and were more powerful than the big boys, 
  > why...heavy ore trains, which can be far heavier than any coal train.
  >
  > -Lynn-

  > . . .

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