Class 801/2565 (Locobase 466)

Data for this version originally taken from Santa Fe drawings (aka Kansas City, Mexico, & Orient 801-805) preserved at [], last accessed 13 January 2010; that site ceased to exist. Data in the specification shown above from Santa Fe diagram on 186 at Kansas Memories Digital Archives at [], dated 15 January 1929, last accessed 8 December 2014 and DeGolyer, Volume 76, pp. 112+. See also E D Worley, Iron Horses of the Santa Fe (Dallas: Southwest Railroad Historical Society, 1976), p. 199. (Thanks to Chris Hohl for his 1 December 2021 email reporting the original tender capacity and weight.) Works numbers were 58571-58575 in July 1925.

These five engines used the Baldwin's standard catalog light 2-10-0 design developed in the 1920s to put engines with this tractive effort on relatively light rails; see Locobase 1399 for the sixteen Gulf, Mobile & Northern built to the same design in the same year . E D Worley wrote a delightful turn of phrase when he characterized this design as derived from the earlier Decapods meant for Russia, but "a different cup from the same samovar."

Piston valve diameter measured a relatively expansive 14" (356 mm). Baldwin estimated the superheater area as 721 sq ft (67.0 sq m), but the area appeared as 693 sq ft (64.4 sq m) in 1929. Locobase notes that Baldwin measured the flue length as 17 ft 6 in (5.33 m), an outside length, while the Santa Fe calculated the length between tube sheets an inch shorter. An often-inserted supplement to Baldwin specs required "engine springs to be 10% heavier than customary". The leading truck used a renewable centering device "arranged for constant resistance." Baldwin acknowledged a ruling grade of 1 1/4%, 11 1/2 deg curves on KCM&O wyes

Maintenance received some attention too as the piston rods were to be long enough "so that by disconnecting front end of main rod, crosshead can be advanced far enought to expose piston head for inspection and renewal of packing without having to take piston rod out of crosshead.

Chris Hohl noted that the original tender specs showed 3,000 US gallons (11,355 litres) of oil fuel capacity and loaded weight estimated to be 182,400 lb (82,735 kg). Fuel oil gravity measured 24 to 26 at 60 deg F (15.5 C), falling into the range of medium oils. (Should the railroad wish to use coal instead of oil, the tender was rated to carry 14 tons (12.7 metric tons).

There was no mention of thermic syphons in the 1925 specs and the firebox's surface area was given as 203 sq ft (18.85 sq m). By the time the Santa Fe prepared a diagram dated 15 January 1929, however, firebox heating surface included 59.5 sq ft (5.5 sq m) in two syphons.

The KCM & O was absorbed by the Santa Fe in 1929.

Retired in 1953-55.

Class 987 (Locobase 5364)

Data from DeGolyer, Volume 24, pp. 258; and ATSF 7 - 1901 Locomotive Diagrams supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive Rail Data Exchange collection. (Thanks to Chris Hohl for his 22 March 2018 email supplying the link to the 1902 AERJ article and for noting the original spec for the boiler pressure and the engine's valve gear.) Works number was 20326 in April 1902.

At the time of its introduction several months after Alco's two decapods (Locobase 465), this four-cylinder tandem compound was the largest locomotive in the world. (The Santa Fe would break its own record within a year.).

It differed from Alco's design in several respects. Although the specification called for a similar 225 psi setting in the boiler, the Santa Fe had dropped this Baldwin's setting to 210 psi by 1903. Shorter strokes but larger cylinder diameters combined to supply slightly more overall cylinder volume. Fifty more tubes of similar diameter and more firebox heating surface area yielded 708 more sq ft (66.78 sq m) of evaporative heating surface, but a slightly smaller grate generated a higher than usual heating surface/grate area ratio. On the other hand, tandem compounds, like Baldwin or Alco's other four-cylinder designs, always had high compounding ratios than usually recommended (and achieved) in European compound designs.

One 13" (330 mm) piston valve served both ends of the long cylinder on each side of the smokebox. Some of the ratios strayed from the preferred band, most notably the relatively small amount of firebox heating surface area.

Tender water capacity later increased to 8,500 US gallons (32,173 litres) and 14 tons (12.7 metric tons) of coal.

987 saw service for less than a decade as a compound; she was simpled in 1911. The design was then superheated in 1917; see Locobase 8259 for the final result.

Class 987 - superheated (Locobase 8259)

Data from AT&SF 9 -1920 locomotive diagrams supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive Rail Data Exchange. Information about how many, when, and by whom this class was supplied from [] (accessed 6 Feb 2006), the Santa Fe All-Time Steam Roster maintained by Evan Werkema.

Locobase 5364 shows this decapod as originally delivered in a Vauclain tandem-compound arrangement. In August 1911, the railroad deleted the HP cylinders and bushed the LP cylinders to created a two-cylinder, simple-expansion layout. A few years later they added a superheater and shortened tubes and flues by several inches. A notation in later diagrams shows the 987's tender carrying 2,515 US gallons (9,519 litres) of oil as an alternative.

In this configuration, the 987 persisted in its pusher work until cut up for scrap in August 1933.

Class 988 (Locobase 465)

Data from "Tandem Compound Decapod for the Santa Fe", Railway Age, Volume 33, No. 5 (31 January 1902), pp. 145-147. See also E D Worley, Iron Horses of the Santa Fe (Dallas: Southwest Railroad Historical Society, 1976); ATSF 7 - 1901 Locomotive Diagrams supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive Rail Data Exchange collectio; and [] (visited 23 July 2004), collection of newspaper clippings gathered by Ellington -- author of Steam Locomotives of the Santa Fe, A Former Shopman's Scrapbook --. (Thanks to Chris Hohl for his 18 June 2018 email noting the correct valve gear ID.) Works numbers were 25340-25341 in December 1901.

Four-cylinder tandem compounds, with each long cylinder's pair of LP and HP chambers being supplied by the same long piston valve. These two Alcos preceded the single example from Baldwin (Locobase 5364) and briefly claimed the title of heaviest engines with the most heating surface area of any yet built.

Simpled in 1911, superheated in 1917 (Locobase 8264), retired in 1938.

Ellington quotes from the "TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL 2/24/1902:

New decapod work. One of the Santa Fe's new decapod engines, which are the heaviest engines in the world, made a record haul yesterday, says a Chicago paper. The engine pulled 703 tons up a grade 6 1/2 miles long, 158' to the mile. The track upon which the performance was made is known as the Cajon Pass, just west of the Sierra Nevada mountains. The load is the largest ever hauled by an engine up a 3% grade, but Vice President Kendrick expects to break this record. The management of the company is so pleased with the work of the decapod, that orders have been given for 75 of them at a cost of over $1,500,000 to be delivered by the latter part of August. Report of a test being made with the engines show that the wear upon the track is not so great as it is by many other, lighter engines. This is accounted for by the fact that the decapods have a rigid wheelbase of 20' and five sets of drivers, but while there are 232,000 lbs on the drivers, total, there are only 46,000 lbs. upon each set. This is less than that resting on the drivers of many passenger engines."

Ellington note: Only three of these decapods were ultimately acquired, derailing difficulties when backing, (among other operating problems), signalled the cancellation of the order for 75 additional copies from Baldwin, and served to introduce the following 2-10-2 type wheel arrangement; addition of a final pair of 'trailing' wheels largely solved the backing difficulties."

Class 988 - superheated (Locobase 8264)

Data from AT&SF 9 -1920 locomotive diagrams supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive Rail Data Exchange collection. Information about how many, when, and by whom this class was supplied from [] (accessed 6 February 2006), the Santa Fe All-Time Steam Roster maintained by Evan Werkema. (Thanks to Chris Hohl for his 2 February 2023 email correcting the tube length.)

Locobase 465 describes the delivery of these four-cylinder tandem compounds and notes that procurement of the remainder of a large order was cut off because these decapods derailed easily when backing up.

Even though the pair were now orphans together with 987 (Locobase 463), the Santa Fe went ahead with simpling and superheating. 989 was simpled in 1911, 988 in 1915. Note that although the railroad dropped the 988-class's boiler pressure considerably when they superheated the boiler (a frequent tradeoff for such conversions), they managed to retain almost all of the combined heating surface area.

In their altered states, this pair carried on until 1938 -- probably going forward most of the time.