Actually 2 slightly different sub-classes: J-3 (600-604) and J-3a (605-606); 5 more J-3a delivered in 1948 with BoxPok drivers.. The specifications are for the J-3a. Known as Greenbriers on the C&O, these were among the largest 4-8-4s built. According to Drury (1993), the design was based on the earlier 2-10-4.
In their January 1981 Railfan and Railroad article "The Last Greenbrier", Jim Boyd & Tom Dixon say the J3's ran between Charlottesville, VA over the mountains to Hinton West Virginia, 175 miles with a ruling grade of 1.52% pullling up to 13 heavy passenger cars.
The authors note that the first 5 had the steam dome mounted well forward to be closer to the front-end throttle and thus be more efficient. They comment, however, "The theory worked fine on flat-land engines like the T-1s and the Berks [], but when its long boiler tipped downhill from the top of a mountain, the C&O J3s had a nasty habit of drowning their dry pipes if the crew was carrying the water a little too high." Boyd & Dixon record that the latter two J3s, delivered in 1942 J-3s had the steam dome situated behind the sand dome. They also used Baker valve gear.
Boyd & Dixon also say that the 1948 batch were "fully roller-bearing equipped, including lightweight rods with rollers on the cranks." This quintet was highly regarded, but their service career was inevitably short-lived
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Class | J-3 |
| Locobase ID | 246 |
| Railroad | Chesapeake & Ohio (C & O) |
| Whyte | 4-8-4 |
| Road Numbers | 600-606, 610-614 |
| Gauge | Std |
| Builder | Lima |
| Year | 1936 |
| Valve Gear | Baker or Walschaert |
| Locomotive Length and Weight | |
| Driver Wheelbase | 19.25' |
| Engine Wheelbase | 46.87' |
| Ratio of driving wheelbase to overall engine wheebase | 0.41 |
| Overall Wheelbase (engine & tender) | |
| Axle Loading (Maximum Weight per Axle) | |
| Weight on Drivers | 290000 lbs |
| Engine Weight | 503500 lbs |
| Tender Light Weight | 309700 lbs |
| Total Engine and Tender Weight | 813200 lbs |
| Tender Water Capacity | 22000 gals |
| Tender Fuel Capacity (oil/coal) | 25 tons |
| Minimum weight per yard of rail on which locomotive could run | 120.83 lb rail |
| Geometry Relating to Tractive Effort | |
| Driver Diameter | 72" |
| Boiler Pressure | 255 psi |
| Cylinders (dia x stroke) | 27.5" x 30" |
| Tractive Effort | 68299 lbs |
| Factor of Adhesion (Weight on Drivers/Tractive Effort) | 4.25 |
| Heating Ability | |
| Firebox Area | 520 sq. ft |
| Grate Area | 100.30 sq. ft |
| Evaporative Heating Surface | 5495 |
| Superheating Surface | 2305 |
| Combined Heating Surface | 7800 |
| Evaporative Heating Surface/Cylinder Volume | 266.44 |
| Computations Relating to Power Output (More Information) | |
| Robert LeMassena's Power Computation | 25576.50 |
| Same as above plus superheater percentage | 33134.68 |
| Same as above but substitute firebox area for grate area | 171785 |
| Power L1 | 42791.14 |
| Power MT | 1301.22 |
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