Seaboard Air Line 2-6-6-4 Type Locomotives

Class R-1/R-2 (Locobase 302)

See Trains Magazine (August 1979) for an account of how these engines ran. They were well-liked with many engineers feeling that they were capable of higher speeds than the road would let them reach.

The R-2s (2505-2509; delivered in 1937) had slightly fewer tubes for a total EHS of 5,429 sq ft, a cleaner-looking Walschaerts valve motion, single crosshead guides, and Elesco feedwater heaters replaced by Worthingtons, but otherwise varied little from the earlier R-1s. Data in specs from the 1947 SAL locomotive diagram supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive collection.

These engines later (1947) went on to the B&O as KB-1 and KB-1a 7700-7709, where the slip joints in the piping to the front engine unit (which leaked frequently) were replaced by ball joints. They were slippery on grades and not as well liked as the Big Sixes (2-10-2), although a later relocation of the air pumps to the pilot on one engine reduced the slipping.

Specifications
ClassR-1/R-2
Locobase ID302
RailroadSeaboard Air Line (SAL)
Whyte2-6-6-4
Road Numbers2500-2509
GaugeStd
BuilderBaldwin
Year1935
Valve GearBaker or Walschaert
Locomotive Length and Weight
Driver Wheelbase12'
Engine Wheelbase67.42'
Ratio of driving wheelbase to overall engine wheebase 0.18
Overall Wheelbase (engine & tender)97.75'
Axle Loading (Maximum Weight per Axle)55000 lbs
Weight on Drivers330000 lbs
Engine Weight480000 lbs
Tender Light Weight310200 lbs
Total Engine and Tender Weight790200 lbs
Tender Water Capacity16000 gals
Tender Fuel Capacity (oil/coal)24 tons
Minimum weight per yard of rail on which locomotive could run91.67 lb rail
Geometry Relating to Tractive Effort
Driver Diameter69"
Boiler Pressure230 psi
Cylinders (dia x stroke)22" x 30" (4)
Tractive Effort82280 lbs
Factor of Adhesion (Weight on Drivers/Tractive Effort) 4.01
Heating Ability
Firebox Area516 sq. ft
Grate Area96.30 sq. ft
Evaporative Heating Surface5513
Superheating Surface2397
Combined Heating Surface7910
Evaporative Heating Surface/Cylinder Volume208.84
Computations Relating to Power Output (More Information)
Robert LeMassena's Power Computation22149
Same as above plus superheater percentage28860.90
Same as above but substitute firebox area for grate area154644.09
Power L129724.32
Power MT1191.47

Credits

Introduction and specifications provided by Steve Llanso of Sweat House Media.