If you register, you can do a lot more. And become an active part of our growing community. You'll have access to hidden forums, and enjoy the ability of replying and starting conversations.

Current and Proposed New-Builds

Discussion in 'Steam Traction' started by aron33, Aug 15, 2017.

  1. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2008
    Messages:
    26,100
    Likes Received:
    57,416
    Location:
    LBSC 215
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    Yes I am an active volunteer
    Can’t see a figure for residual ash percentage in there - it varies depending on the coal, but can be significant on existing locos with small ash pan capacities. We have one of our most used locos that has a standing instruction to visit the yard at intervals no greater than two round trips (44 miles) to inspect and if necessary empty the ash pan so as to maintain airflow and protect firebars.

    Tom
     
    S.A.C. Martin likes this.
  2. S.A.C. Martin

    S.A.C. Martin Part of the furniture

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2010
    Messages:
    5,591
    Likes Received:
    9,325
    Gender:
    Male
    Occupation:
    Asset Engineer (Signalling), MNLPS Treasurer
    Location:
    London
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    Yes I am an active volunteer
    Is it the O1 Tom? Just out of interest?

    You make a very good point there. On a loco with a big ashpan - possibly even rocker bars/grate - it could be a moot point. Potentially doable for a loco the size of a Pacific, if available in enough quantity and at price too.
     
  3. Allegheny

    Allegheny Member

    Joined:
    May 8, 2015
    Messages:
    625
    Likes Received:
    308
    Gender:
    Male
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    No I do not currently volunteer
    Also River Esk
    S160 No 5820 on the KWVR
    I think the Bure Valley Railway have some too
     
  4. 240P15

    240P15 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Dec 1, 2017
    Messages:
    1,598
    Likes Received:
    1,588
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Norway
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    No I do not currently volunteer
    ....and the light hitting a very dry surface in the summer mounths. I `m wonder if using Biomass will increase the risk of lineside fire from a steam locomotive more than a coal fired one?

    Knut
     
  5. S.A.C. Martin

    S.A.C. Martin Part of the furniture

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2010
    Messages:
    5,591
    Likes Received:
    9,325
    Gender:
    Male
    Occupation:
    Asset Engineer (Signalling), MNLPS Treasurer
    Location:
    London
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    Yes I am an active volunteer
    Good question. I can't see the answer from a quick google search but suspect you are right to raise that. Could be "solved" with a better spark arrestor but then we're getting into a bigger development of the front end as well as the back end of the locomotive.
     
  6. class8mikado

    class8mikado Part of the furniture

    Joined:
    Jun 1, 2009
    Messages:
    3,610
    Likes Received:
    1,438
    Occupation:
    Print Estimator/ Repository of Useless Informatio.
    Location:
    Bingley W.Yorks.
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    No I do not currently volunteer
    Beatrice on the Embsay & BAr, and Eventually 72010 Hengist, fngers crossed.
     
  7. Steve

    Steve Resident of Nat Pres Friend

    Joined:
    Oct 7, 2006
    Messages:
    11,930
    Likes Received:
    10,088
    Occupation:
    Gentleman of leisure, nowadays
    Location:
    Near Leeds
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    Yes I am an active volunteer
    The NYMR was given a couple of tons of regurgitated wood to try a while ago. I'm not sure exactly what it was. Apparently it burned very hot and was OK for steam raising but, when the loco was moved around the yard and as soon as the drain cocks were shut, the fire effectively went up the chimney. I'll try and remember to seek more detail.
    As for firing locos on lumps of wood, I can vouch for the fact that Cl.4 tanks go well on it but the rate of consumption would require two firemen stuffing it in the firebox and a third transferring it from the support wagon being dragged behind.:)
     
  8. johnofwessex

    johnofwessex Resident of Nat Pres

    Joined:
    Apr 6, 2015
    Messages:
    9,185
    Likes Received:
    7,226
    Gender:
    Male
    Occupation:
    Thorn in my managers side
    Location:
    72
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    No I do not currently volunteer
    Do say more, a trial or ran out of coal?
     
  9. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2008
    Messages:
    26,100
    Likes Received:
    57,416
    Location:
    LBSC 215
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    Yes I am an active volunteer
    The O1, yes.

    Interestingly, the H class has a nominally identical boiler, but a deeper ashpan, and can generally run a whole day without emptying, but the O1 is always required to come into the yard for a check after no more than two trips.

    Tom
     
    S.A.C. Martin likes this.
  10. Steve

    Steve Resident of Nat Pres Friend

    Joined:
    Oct 7, 2006
    Messages:
    11,930
    Likes Received:
    10,088
    Occupation:
    Gentleman of leisure, nowadays
    Location:
    Near Leeds
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    Yes I am an active volunteer
    Running out of coal. The first time, when the loco was newly restored, I asked the question if it would do three return trips on a bunkerful of coal and was told yes. It didn't. The second time was when I took over the loco from another crew. There wasn't much coal in the bunker and the nearest supply 18 miles away. No other loco running to pinch some from. Fortunately, on both occasions there was plenty of old sleepers lineside and, even more fortunately, plenty piles with bits small enough to fit in the firebox! I've also run out of coal with LHJC 29, again having taken it over at the wrong end of the line. Armed with this experience, I always keep a mental note of where there are good piles of timber lineside!
     
    ykin01, Forestpines, oddsocks and 5 others like this.
  11. Hirn

    Hirn Member

    Joined:
    Aug 11, 2015
    Messages:
    462
    Likes Received:
    295
    Gender:
    Male
    On the Benguela railway one of the earlier big Beyer Garratts was wood burning and in the early i950s the lcomotives were estimated to be burning 400,000 tons every year.
    Eucalptus wood "blue gum" , grown by the linside with several fireman to pitch it in on the main line engines.
     
    Last edited: Nov 23, 2018
    andrewshimmin and Bluenosejohn like this.
  12. Hirn

    Hirn Member

    Joined:
    Aug 11, 2015
    Messages:
    462
    Likes Received:
    295
    Gender:
    Male
    Very much like this firing peat in Ireland during 194os during "The Emergency" certainly on the narrow gauge. You had a truck of turfs behind a tank engine and the bunker replenished with somebody throwing them in on the move. You needed a good quality turf and you needed to throw them down onto the grate otherwise they tended never to touch it and just
    sail past and out through the tubes.




    s
     
    Last edited: Nov 25, 2018
  13. Monkey Magic

    Monkey Magic Part of the furniture

    Joined:
    Jan 6, 2018
    Messages:
    3,498
    Likes Received:
    6,845
    Location:
    Here, there, everywhere
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    No I do not currently volunteer
    I seem to recall seeing photos of locos in Java burning something that I think might be a by product of the sugar cane industry. What might that be?
     
  14. JayDee

    JayDee Member

    Joined:
    Dec 15, 2017
    Messages:
    354
    Likes Received:
    272
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Swadlincote
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    Yes I am an active volunteer
    Bagasse. So sugar cane stalks soaked in oil.
     
    paullad1984 and Monkey Magic like this.
  15. Hirn

    Hirn Member

    Joined:
    Aug 11, 2015
    Messages:
    462
    Likes Received:
    295
    Gender:
    Male
    Thats whats left of the sugar cane after you have crushed all the juice you can get out of it.

    Damp, bulky, not a high calorific value, can be burnt - giving sparks - in locomotives.
    You need space one way or another -often a tender - to stow the bales of the bagasse and a spark arrestor.
    (There were some industrial loco builders who had a speciality in engines for this. I suppose particularly Fowlers.)

    Plenty of it at mills and more or less has to be burnt to get rid of it.
    Usually burnt on special grates and under boilers to provide heat and power for the mill. Typically - as electricity - there would be an energy surplus to export.
     
    Last edited: Nov 24, 2018
    Bluenosejohn and Jamessquared like this.
  16. marshall5

    marshall5 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Oct 26, 2010
    Messages:
    2,375
    Likes Received:
    3,981
    Location:
    i.o.m
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    Yes I am an active volunteer
    I'm not sure about the "soaked in oil" bit - all the ones I saw in the Philippines burnt the bagasse just as it came out of the crushers (also steam powered) albeit dried. The locos had huge bogie tenders to carry this low calorific value fuel and an assistant fireman was stationed in the tender to tear up the large bales and pass the pieces forward to the fireman. ISTR that some mill locos could be converted from oil to bagasse and some were oil only.
    Cheers,
    Ray.
    Hawaiian Philippian Sugar Co No8 BLW Dec 1983.jpg Hawaiian Philippian Sugar Co No8 BLW Dec 1983.jpg
     
  17. 240P15

    240P15 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Dec 1, 2017
    Messages:
    1,598
    Likes Received:
    1,588
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Norway
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    No I do not currently volunteer
    Wow, that was a really cool engine!:)

    Thanks for posting this photo!

    Knut
     
  18. Allegheny

    Allegheny Member

    Joined:
    May 8, 2015
    Messages:
    625
    Likes Received:
    308
    Gender:
    Male
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    No I do not currently volunteer
    There is a power station in Sleaford, opened fairly recently that burns straw bales.
     
    paullad1984 likes this.
  19. marshall5

    marshall5 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Oct 26, 2010
    Messages:
    2,375
    Likes Received:
    3,981
    Location:
    i.o.m
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    Yes I am an active volunteer
    It's one of a pair of Baldwins originally built for Hawaii that ended up at the Hawaiian Philippines Co. mill on Negros Island. Sometime in the 90's they were purchased and shipped to California for restoration before going back to Hawaii for a tourist railway being built there. Unfortunately the restoration stalled and the last time I heard they were for sale. Pity as they are nice looking locos as Knut says.
    Ray.
     
    240P15 likes this.
  20. 240P15

    240P15 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Dec 1, 2017
    Messages:
    1,598
    Likes Received:
    1,588
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    Norway
    Heritage Railway Volunteer:
    No I do not currently volunteer

    Thanks for your interesting information Ray!:)
     

Share This Page