Data from Baldwin Locomotive Works Specification for Engines as digitized by the DeGolyer Library of Southern Methodist University Volume 49, p. 131. Martin Coombs, Part 6: Ecuadorian steam locomotive list from his Railways of the Far South series, v.1.24 (March 2026) on the web at [], last accessed 7 March 2026. Works number was 40865 in November 1913.
The Central was incorporated in 1911 to build a line between Manta, a Pacific port and Santa Ana, which lies 44 miles (80 km) inland on a bend in the Rio Portoviejo and about 85 miles north of Guayaquil. According to Baldwin's specs for the wood-burning #21, the construction plans included 3% grades, curves with radii as tight as 196 feet/60 metres (29 1/2 degrees), and rails weighing a mere 35 lb/yard (17.5 kg/metre). Baldwin delivered a cabbage-stacked Mogul trailing a two-bogie tender.
The road reached Portoviejo, about 25 miles (40 km) from Manta and opened through to Santa Ana on 4 May 1913. The C de E later projected a line 70 km (43.5 miles) south to Pajan
The company struggled to find financing for the line, especially after the government defaulted on most of the railway bonds it had issued. A 1918 US Commerce Department report said that the government had lent the C de E 100,000 sucres (US $48,670) "half to clear debts and the other half for completing certain works already in hand."
Coombs reproduces a 1920 report (in Spanish) describing the railway's motive power At the time, the 21 sat idle as it had "lost" (perdida) one of its ruedas centrales (Locobase thinks that means a wheel off the middle driving axle). A replacement had arrived and was being mounted on the axle. The shop's manager reported that the two engines (the other an aged #2) were, "in a word, escasisimo y mal conservado (Locobase translates as "in poor shape and badly maintained". Nor did they own good passenger cars.
| Principal Dimensions by Steve Llanso of Middle Run Media | |
|---|---|
| Class | 21 |
| Locobase ID | 14201 |
| Railroad | Central de Ecuador |
| Country | Ecuador |
| Whyte | 2-6-0 |
| Number in Class | 1 |
| Road Numbers | 21 |
| Gauge | 75 cm |
| Number Built | 1 |
| Builder | Baldwin |
| Year | 1913 |
| Valve Gear | Stephenson |
| Locomotive Length and Weight | |
| Driver Wheelbase (ft / m) | 7 / 2.13 |
| Engine Wheelbase (ft / m) | 14.08 / 4.29 |
| Ratio of driving wheelbase to overall engine wheelbase | 0.50 |
| Overall Wheelbase (engine & tender) (ft / m) | 37.42 / 11.41 |
| Axle Loading (Maximum Weight per Axle) (lbs / kg) | |
| Weight on Drivers (lbs / kg) | 51,000 / 23,133 |
| Engine Weight (lbs / kg) | 59,000 / 26,762 |
| Tender Loaded Weight (lbs / kg) | 44,000 / 19,958 |
| Total Engine and Tender Weight (lbs / kg) | 103,000 / 46,720 |
| Tender Water Capacity (gals / ML) | 2200 / 8.33 |
| Tender Fuel Capacity (oil/coal) (gals/tons / Liters/MT) | |
| Minimum weight of rail (calculated) (lb/yd / kg/m) | 28 / 14 |
| Geometry Relating to Tractive Effort | |
| Driver Diameter (in / mm) | 37 / 940 |
| Boiler Pressure (psi / kPa) | 160 / 1100 |
| High Pressure Cylinders (dia x stroke) (in / mm) | 14" x 18" / 356x457 |
| Tractive Effort (lbs / kg) | 12,968 / 5882.19 |
| Factor of Adhesion (Weight on Drivers/Tractive Effort) | 3.93 |
| Heating Ability | |
| Tubes (number - dia) (in / mm) | 109 - 2" / 51 |
| Flues (number - dia) (in / mm) | |
| Flue/Tube length (ft / m) | 12.08 / 3.68 |
| Firebox Area (sq ft / m2) | 58 / 5.39 |
| Grate Area (sq ft / m2) | 11.80 / 1.10 |
| Evaporative Heating Surface (sq ft / m2) | 743 / 69.03 |
| Superheating Surface (sq ft / m2) | |
| Combined Heating Surface (sq ft / m2) | 743 / 69.03 |
| Evaporative Heating Surface/Cylinder Volume | 231.68 |
| Computations Relating to Power Output (More Information) | |
| Robert LeMassena's Power Computation | 1888 |
| Same as above plus superheater percentage | 1888 |
| Same as above but substitute firebox area for grate area | 9280 |
| Power L1 | 3178 |
| Power MT | 412.13 |