Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1901-01-08
AFTER LIVE MODELS
IRON HORSES ARE CONSTRUCTED
T. AFTER LIVE HORSES.

Psrcherons for Frsighters and Dominos
for speed-Rulky Engine HauIs Well
But Lighter Ones Make the Records for
Speed.
High rates of speed in railroad loco
motives are brought about by various
combinations Of size, weight and meth
DDS OF construction. These elements
differ in their relative proportions ac-
locomotives are to be used. Great
weight is not as essential to record
breaking engine in the matter of
speed as for the locomotive that 10 de-
signed to pull heavy trains over long
hauls. In reply to questions on this
subject, Arthur J. Wood associate edi-
tor of the Railroad Gazette, said:
Generally speaking the aim of the
makers is to decrease rather than to
increase the weight of locomotives.
But weight and speed are quite indie
pendent, except, of course, within GER
tain limits For example, take the
2S0.000-pound locomotive, probably the
largest in the world, which was built
last year by the Pittsburg Locomotive
and Car Works. 1t weighs 10000
pounds more than the famous No. 999
of the New York Central But it
would soon be left out of sight in
race with No. 999. The heavy engine
with eight drivers, each with diam
eter Of fiftyfour inches, was built for
heavy hauls. while the lighter one.
with four drivers of eighty-six-inch
diameter, was designed for speed
when the demands for heavier
trains were made. comparatively few
years ago, many roads had to strength
en- their bridges, lay heavier rails,
straighten many of the curves and re-
build their roadbeds. 1t was only
few roads that had had sufficient fore
sight to see the trend Of events and
prepare for the sixty-ton locomotive
rolling along at seventy miles an hour
and pulling behind it mole than 300,
600 pounds, but such results have been
obtained only by well executed engi-
neering work on the road itself, as
well as in the locomotive shop.
Suppose, however, we build a road
that will stand the pounding land
there are few such), what, then, is
the indication of increasing the
weights over the heaviest now run? In
a word, it may be said that some en-
gineers believe that freight engines
may approach toward the $50, 000-
pound mark, and fast passenger COM
pound locomotives may reach 10000
pounds, but such weights may do more
harm than good in modern railroad
travel.
"The fastest runs Of which we have
records for the last ten years have
nearly all been made by locomotives
weighing over fifty tons, and within
the last four years the unusual runs
have, for the most part, been made by
locomotives weighing between 120 and
140 thousand pounds, hauling from
1000 to 100000 pounds. Probably
the most remarkable record for great
weight hauled at high speed in re-
cent years was made by the Baldwin
compound Columbia weighing 140,-
700 pounds, little more than half of
the weight OF which is on the drivers.
which are seven feet in diameter and
four in number On July 3, 1896, this
steaming giant ran seventy-four miles
on the Chicago, Milwaukee and st.
Paul tracks at the rate of SIT miles
an hour, exclusive Of stops, and hauled
in the run cars weighing 974,3S0
pounds, making the total weight of the
train 10000 900 pounds. The speed in
this case was not so remarkable when
considered by itself, but when we take
into account the weight of the train,
the whole performance is worthy of
record AS far back as 1886 the Great
Northern of England had on It's road
a locomotive weighing 101 900 pounds
and hauling $4,000 pounds at speed
of fifty-four miles an hour. and run
ming los IA miles without a stop.
''The heaviest locomotive in Europe
of which we have any record is a Bel
gian engine, weighing 218,255 pounds
This is compound, with drivers about
four inches less than the big Pittsburg
locomotive referred to. The present
tendency in American practice is to
make the boiler as large as possible
Thus, in comparing the largest Ameri-
can and European locomotives, the
former has, in round numbers, 1900
more square feet of heating surface
than the Belgian engine, but the work
ing pressure of the American is 200
pounds per square inch, while the for
eign engine works with 220 pounds
Many of the so-called unusual runs
are not schedule runs, and, therefore,
may mean little to the man looking
on the strictly practical side and who
wants to know what are the possibili-
ties of decreasing the present time
from New York to Boston, Albany
Philadelphia or Chicago A lesson may
be drawn from a French road-the
Northern Ten years ago, the average
speed OF its fastest train was about
forty-four miles an hour, but to-day
the Northern has twenty-five trains
booked at over fifty miles an hour, the
fastest making run Of eighty-two
miles az an average speed of SIT miles
an hour This increase has not been
stimulated by competition, and we
may look for even little better re-
suits than these.
'Mr. Charles Rous- Marten says that
he recorded last year on the Midland
Railroad in England a quarter-mlle
run in ten seconds, that is rate Of
ninety miles an hour But we have
records for short runs of over 100
miles an hour in this country so we
have little fear on this side Of losing
the glory.
Some things point toward faster
average speed on the better roads, but
the limit for each road will be prob
lem by itself Everybody can guess,
but few can guess wisely"
Be sure Won are rignt-then let your
wife have her own way. a