Chicago, Burlington & Quincy 4-8-2 "Mountain" Locomotives in the USA

Class B-1 (Locobase 2901)

Data from Corbin & Kerka (1960) and Data from locomotive diagram published on Vernon Beck's website -- [] (accessed 22 March 2003). Works numbers were 6248-6255 in September-October 1922.

Lima delivered eight of these Mountains for the heaviest express service without doubleheading. Equipped with healthy amount of superheater area, 14" (356 mm) piston valves, Worthington No 4 feed water heaters, Duplex automatic stokers and fitted for lignite burning. The combustion chamber contributed 105 sq ft (9.75 sq m) and the four arch tubes 34.5 sq ft (3.2 sq m) to the direct heating surface area.

See Verne L Munger, "In My Own Words: Running in the Blizzard", Trains Magazine, Vol 74, No 1 (January 2014), pp. 58-61, in which Munger describes a grueling day as fireman on 7007on 1 January 1949 as it worked the Ravenna-Alliance (Neb) section in a mounting blizzard that brought every other train to a complete stop. The last of these retired in the mid-1950s.

Class B-1A (Locobase 5474)

Corbin & Kerka (1960) and Data from locomotive diagram published on Vernon Beck's website -- [] (accessed 22 March 2003). DeGolyer, Volume 76, pp. 242+. Works numbers were 58482-58483 in June 1925, 58509-58515 in July, and 58602-58605 in August.

Baldwin's 13 B-1As in 1925 were split into seven lignite-burners (7008-7014) and six bituminous coal consumers (2015-2020). The lignite burners had 5/16" (7.9 mm) openings in the grate. The firebox heating surface was augmented by four arch tubes aggregating 34.2 sq ft (3.2 sq m) and a combustion chamber contributing 107 sq ft. (9.95 sq m). The 14"(356 mm) piston valves were only average in size. The class also had heat-treated alloy steel running gear and a Worthington #4 feed water heater.

7017 later received roller bearings on the valve gear and three were refitted with roller bearings on the driving wheel axles. (14, 18, & 20).

The last of these retired in the mid-1950s.