These locomotives were essentially copies of the Nickel Plate Road's Class S "Berkshires". They had 69" diameter drivers, 25" x 34" cylinders, and they exerted 64,135 pounds of tractive effort under 245 psi of boiler pressure and weighed between 413,170 pounds and 415,000 pounds.
There are no surviving W&LE 2-8-4 "Berkshire" type locomotives
Class | Qty. | Road Numbers | Year Built | Builder | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
K-1 | 10 | 6401-6410 | 1937 | ALCO | 1 |
K-1 | 2 | 6411-6412 | 1938 | ALCO | 2 |
K-1 | 3 | 6413-6415 | 1939 | ALCO | 3 |
K-1 | 7 | 6416-6422 | 1941 | ALCO | 4 |
K-1 | 10 | 6423-6432 | 1942 | ALCO | 5 |
Data from tables and diagrams in 1947 Locomotive Cyclopedia, supplemented and clarified by W&LE 10 - 1948 Locomotive Diagram book supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive Rail Data Exchange. (Thanks to Chris Hohl, whose query about the valve gear led to a rewrite of the entry and for his 22 September 2017 email reporting unlikely boiler pressure values for 177 entries. A Locobase macro caused the error .) Works numbers were as follows: Alco supplied the first 10 in a batch in 1937 (builder's numbers 68829-68838). Five more -- 6411-6415 -- arrived in 1939 (69121-69125) and 7 more in 1941 (69429-69435); these were road numbers 6411-6422. This sizable order of Berks was completed in 1942 with 10 more (70021-70030) finishing off the class.
Firebox had 119 sq (11.05 sq m) of thermic syphons and arch tubes.
Locobase found a data conflict in the 1947 Locomotive Cyclopedia entry. The illustration gave the superheater area as 2,450 sq ft; table records smaller superheater of 1,924 sq ft. Locobase had suspected that the area represented a superheater refit, but the later acquisition of the -- prompted another thought. The Locomotive Cyclopedia illustration may have listed "equivalent superheater area" or some other enhanced superheater measurement designed to indicate the effect of superheating on the boiler's basic steaming ability.
In any event, Locobase decided to adopt the information shown on the diagram. This includes weights that reflect a rebuilding of the first fifteen to the later standard. 6416-6432, delivered later, were only slightly heavier.
The 2-8-4s also finished off the I-2 2-6-6-2 compound Mallets (see Locobase 7897).
These represented Superpower design at its peak - big boilers and grates, long-stroke cylinders, lots of superheat, and relatively tall drivers to deliver the freight at speeds only dreamt of 25 years earlier.
Principal Dimensions by Steve Llanso of Middle Run Media | |
---|---|
Class | K-1 |
Locobase ID | 64 |
Railroad | Wheeling & Lake Erie |
Country | USA |
Whyte | 2-8-4 |
Number in Class | 32 |
Road Numbers | 6401-6432 |
Gauge | Std |
Number Built | 32 |
Builder | Alco-Schenectady |
Year | 1937 |
Valve Gear | Baker |
Locomotive Length and Weight | |
Driver Wheelbase (ft / m) | 18.20 / 5.55 |
Engine Wheelbase (ft / m) | 42 / 12.80 |
Ratio of driving wheelbase to overall engine wheelbase | 0.43 |
Overall Wheelbase (engine & tender) (ft / m) | 88 / 26.82 |
Axle Loading (Maximum Weight per Axle) (lbs / kg) | 65,892 / 29,888 |
Weight on Drivers (lbs / kg) | 263,045 / 119,315 |
Engine Weight (lbs / kg) | 413,170 / 187,411 |
Tender Loaded Weight (lbs / kg) | 364,500 / 165,335 |
Total Engine and Tender Weight (lbs / kg) | 777,670 / 352,746 |
Tender Water Capacity (gals / ML) | 22,000 / 83.33 |
Tender Fuel Capacity (oil/coal) (gals/tons / Liters/MT) | 22 / 20 |
Minimum weight of rail (calculated) (lb/yd / kg/m) | 110 / 55 |
Geometry Relating to Tractive Effort | |
Driver Diameter (in / mm) | 69 / 1753 |
Boiler Pressure (psi / kPa) | 245 / 1690 |
High Pressure Cylinders (dia x stroke) (in / mm) | 25" x 34" / 635x864 |
Tractive Effort (lbs / kg) | 64,135 / 29091.18 |
Factor of Adhesion (Weight on Drivers/Tractive Effort) | 4.10 |
Heating Ability | |
Tubes (number - dia) (in / mm) | 67 - 2.25" / 57 |
Flues (number - dia) (in / mm) | 202 - 3.5" / 89 |
Flue/Tube length (ft / m) | 19 / 5.79 |
Firebox Area (sq ft / m2) | 462 / 42.92 |
Grate Area (sq ft / m2) | 90.30 / 8.39 |
Evaporative Heating Surface (sq ft / m2) | 4708 / 437.55 |
Superheating Surface (sq ft / m2) | 1924 / 178.81 |
Combined Heating Surface (sq ft / m2) | 6632 / 616.36 |
Evaporative Heating Surface/Cylinder Volume | 243.69 |
Computations Relating to Power Output (More Information) | |
Robert LeMassena's Power Computation | 22,124 |
Same as above plus superheater percentage | 28,539 |
Same as above but substitute firebox area for grate area | 146,015 |
Power L1 | 35,487 |
Power MT | 1189.69 |