Although rooted firmly in the Turn-of-the-Century saturated-boiler style (and destined not to be superheated), this sextet still won marks for size. The boiler was big, the adhesion weight topped 227,000 lb. Only the grate remained small for 1900 when Pittsburgh delivered the first 4 and downright puny when Baldwin contributed 2 more (works 33370-33371) in 1909.
A small grate and slide valves actuated by Stephenson motion were antiquated features and contributed to a relatively early retirement in 1936-1943 for the Pittsburgh engines. The two Baldwins ran until the end of steam and 154 wound up in the Illinois Railway Museum.
The earlier entrants in the C-3 class of Consolidations used surprisingly small grates, a feature that undoubtedly led to their static configuration and early retirement. Two years after Baldwin delivered a brace of C-3Bs, they produced 2 more (36560-36561) with much larger grates; the firebox area was a bit smaller and included 31 sq ft of arch tubes. This pair was superheated later on and in the process received 9" piston valves in a universal steam chest as well as Baker valve gear.
So equipped, the pair continued in service until the end of steam in 1951-1954.
The last two Bessemer & Lake Erie Consolidations, these were of a piece with the other low-speed, low-drivered ore & coal haulers of this line. Although possessing a relatively small boiler, they were delivered with superheaters and had large piston valves (14" diameter) to ensure that the cylinders would be served. Firebox heating surface area included 25 sq ft of arch tubes.
They were retired in 1951 & 1954.
| Specifications | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | C-3A/C-3B | C-3D | C-4A |
| Locobase ID | 9031 | 9032 | 3294 |
| Railroad | Bessemer & Lake Erie | Bessemer & Lake Erie | Bessemer & Lake Erie |
| Whyte | 2-8-0 | 2-8-0 | 2-8-0 |
| Road Numbers | 150-155 | 156-157 | 158-159 |
| Gauge | Std | Std | Std |
| Builder | several | Baldwin | Baldwin |
| Year | 1900 | 1911 | 1913 |
| Valve Gear | Stephenson | Baker | Baker |
| Locomotive Length and Weight | |||
| Driver Wheelbase | 15.59' | 15.58' | 15.58' |
| Engine Wheelbase | 24.33' | 24.33' | 24.33' |
| Ratio of driving wheelbase to overall engine wheebase | 0.64 | 0.64 | 0.64 |
| Overall Wheelbase (engine & tender) | 61.33' | 61.33' | 61.33' |
| Axle Loading (Maximum Weight per Axle) | 60075 lbs | 63500 lbs | 67200 lbs |
| Weight on Drivers | 227125 lbs | 230500 lbs | 248140 lbs |
| Engine Weight | 252225 lbs | 261000 lbs | 268140 lbs |
| Tender Light Weight | 140268 lbs | 158500 lbs | 151966 lbs |
| Total Engine and Tender Weight | 392493 lbs | 419500 lbs | 420106 lbs |
| Tender Water Capacity | 6900 gals | 7850 gals | 7850 gals |
| Tender Fuel Capacity (oil/coal) | 14 tons | 15 tons | 15 tons |
| Minimum weight per yard of rail on which locomotive could run | 94.64 lb rail | 96.04 lb rail | 103.39 lb rail |
| Geometry Relating to Tractive Effort | |||
| Driver Diameter | 54" | 54" | 54" |
| Boiler Pressure | 225 psi | 220 psi | 190 psi |
| Cylinders (dia x stroke) | 24" x 32" | 24" x 32" | 26" x 30" |
| Tractive Effort | 65280 lbs | 63829 lbs | 60652 lbs |
| Factor of Adhesion (Weight on Drivers/Tractive Effort) | 3.48 | 3.61 | 4.09 |
| Heating Ability | |||
| Firebox Area | 260 sq. ft | 231 sq. ft | 233 sq. ft |
| Grate Area | 36.80 sq. ft | 58.70 sq. ft | 58.60 sq. ft |
| Evaporative Heating Surface | 3665 | 2563 | 2769 |
| Superheating Surface | 680 | 623 | |
| Combined Heating Surface | 3665 | 3243 | 3392 |
| Evaporative Heating Surface/Cylinder Volume | 218.74 | 152.97 | 150.20 |
| Computations Relating to Power Output (More Information) | |||
| Robert LeMassena's Power Computation | 8280 | 12914 | 11134 |
| Same as above plus superheater percentage | 8280 | 15621.84 | 13178.95 |
| Same as above but substitute firebox area for grate area | 58500 | 61476.06 | 52400.96 |
| Power L1 | 6000.61 | 11625.82 | 8850.05 |
| Power MT | 232.98 | 444.78 | 314.52 |
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