The K3 Mountains

Tue Feb 10 10:10:08 EST 2015

Trains Magazine did a 2 part article on the K-3s many years ago by John B. Corns in the February & March 1979 issues. It was pretty much about their use on the W&LE and NKP but there was quite a bit of good technical stuff about the engines and their inception and lives. Lots of photos and information. I believe those railroads used them for drag service so that should have suited them much better than manifest freights. 

Apparently the N&W tried them in a lot of places and different types of service. One of my favorite K-3 photos shows it on the front of a passenger train.

Anyone who can get through Kalmbach's search engine can probably find the back issues. I never can find anything I'm looking for there.
Even if they weren't as great for N&W use as anticipated I think they more than made up for it in looks. Not that the railroad cared much about that! I think they were great looking engines and seem to have a lot of appeal to many folks.
Roger HuberDeer Creek Locomotive Works

      From: NW Mailing List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org>
 To: NW Mailing List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org> 
 Sent: Tuesday, February 10, 2015 6:17 AM
 Subject: Re: The K3 Mountains

#yiv2425833496 v\00003a* {}#yiv2425833496 o\00003a* {}#yiv2425833496 w\00003a* {}#yiv2425833496 .yiv2425833496shape {}#yiv2425833496 #yiv2425833496 -- _filtered #yiv2425833496 {panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4;} _filtered #yiv2425833496 {font-family:Calibri;panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4;} _filtered #yiv2425833496 {font-family:Tahoma;panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4;}#yiv2425833496 #yiv2425833496 p.yiv2425833496MsoNormal, #yiv2425833496 li.yiv2425833496MsoNormal, #yiv2425833496 div.yiv2425833496MsoNormal {margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;font-size:12.0pt;}#yiv2425833496 a:link, #yiv2425833496 span.yiv2425833496MsoHyperlink {color:blue;text-decoration:underline;}#yiv2425833496 a:visited, #yiv2425833496 span.yiv2425833496MsoHyperlinkFollowed {color:purple;text-decoration:underline;}#yiv2425833496 p {margin-right:0in;margin-left:0in;font-size:12.0pt;}#yiv2425833496 span.yiv2425833496EmailStyle18 {color:#1F497D;}#yiv2425833496 .yiv2425833496MsoChpDefault {font-size:10.0pt;} _filtered #yiv2425833496 {margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in;}#yiv2425833496 div.yiv2425833496WordSection1 {}#yiv2425833496 Mason -  Their use on the Buchanan Branch was an effort to find out where they wouldwork without showing their faults; if the crews liked them, it was because theycouldn’t haul the tonnage of a Y and would therefore have to be used inmultiples .   They were built for fast freight service.  They were to be N&W’sanswer to the Super Power Berkshires.  They didn’t do that.  They wereused on the Bristol Line local freight trains, according to material I read atBristol Shop years ago.  They weren’t actually fast enough for that,either. Misused?  No.  Misconceived?  Yes. EdKing 

From: NW Mailing List Sent: Monday, February 09, 2015 9:02 PMTo: 'NW Mailing List' Subject: RE: The K3 Mountains Group, Toadd to the discussion, perhaps the K3s were misused. Before the arrival of theClass A they were used in manifest freight service. Although they were not intended for the type of service following, I remember reading in the N&WMagazine accounts of them being used successfully on the Buchanan branch on theclimb up and over Raitt hill. The crews who used them preferred them to theClass Y mallets.  MasonCooper   From: NW-Mailing-List[mailto:nw-mailing-list-bounces at nwhs.org] On Behalf Of NW MailingList
Sent: Sunday, February 8, 2015 10:29 PM
To: NW MailingList
Subject: Re: The K3 Mountains   adb -   There was a generaldissatisfaction communicated to the MP department, but the boss, Alexander Kearney, stayed put until he was thrown off a horse and met his demise. That was when Russell Henley became Superintendent of MotivePower.   IMHO the K-3 wasmisconceived, but I have the benefit of 90 years of hindsight; it should havebeen a 2-8-4 instead of a 4-8-2 (it could have had a shorter main rod), but myguess is that Kearney didn’t want to go that way.  It was known, too, that63”-drivered Super Power engines elsewhere were not known as particularly goodriders or easy on track (T&P put disc main drivers on its 63” 2-10-4s tomake them good for 60MPH which required a driver RPM of 320).  The K-3 wasa fierce looking machine, though.   Notwithstanding theK-3, N&W’s experience in counterbalancing took a fantastic upturn, so thatthe Class A and the later Y’s were excellent at high driver RPM and there maynever, anywhere, have been a steam locomotive as perfectly balanced as the J,which was completely comfortable at driving wheel RPM of well over 500. The PRR people riding the 610 when it tested between Crestline and Chicago recorded a speed of 111 MPH, at which the drivers were turning at 532 RPM(assuming new tires; if the tires were worn the RPM would have been higher;one-half inch of tire wear, resulting in a driver diameter of  69 inches,would have meant an RPM of 540.5 at 111 MPH).  The PRR people stated (readDave Stephenson’s story in the ARROW) that the only engine PRR ever had thatrode better than the J was their 6-4-4-6, which had 84” Baldwin Disc drivers;the K4 Pacifics, M1 Mountains and even the T1 4-4-4-4s weren’t as good. Not only did the J ride well, its valve gear was so well designed that it couldattain that speed without resorting to the use of poppetvalves.   EdKing     From: NW MailingList  Sent:Sunday, February 08, 2015 6:14 PM To: N&WMailing List  Subject: TheK3 Mountains   Internal politicstend to be covered up and generally linger on only in the fuzzy memories andoften embellished tales of old men.   But is it knownwho, in the Motive Power Department,  took the heat for the design faultsand the generally lackluster performance of the K3 classMountains?   That is to say,was anyone's career "cut short" by the situation with theK3's?   -- abramburnett   ===========================
Sent to Youfrom my Telegraph Key
    ... better than AT&T 4G LTE
=========================== ________________________________________
NW-Mailing-List at nwhs.org
Tochange your subscription goto
http://list.nwhs.org/mailman/options/nw-mailing-list
Browse theNW-Mailing-List archivesat
http://list.nwhs.org/pipermail/nw-mailing-list/   
|   |  This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. 
www.avast.com  |

   ________________________________________
NW-Mailing-List at nwhs.org
To change your subscription goto
http://list.nwhs.org/mailman/options/nw-mailing-list
Browse theNW-Mailing-List archivesat
http://list.nwhs.org/pipermail/nw-mailing-list/

|      |   This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. 
www.avast.com   |

________________________________________
NW-Mailing-List at nwhs.org
To change your subscription go to
http://list.nwhs.org/mailman/options/nw-mailing-list
Browse the NW-Mailing-List archives at
http://list.nwhs.org/pipermail/nw-mailing-list/

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://pairlist6.pair.net/pipermail/nw-mailing-list/attachments/20150210/8e2a18e7/attachment-0001.html>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: not available
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 823 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <https://pairlist6.pair.net/pipermail/nw-mailing-list/attachments/20150210/8e2a18e7/attachment-0001.jpe>