The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1909-12-22

power and action of a modern loco
motive, in consideration of it's size and
duties on the road.
This new machine has special
claims to consideration as a new de-
velopment in mechanical engineering,
in the unusual arrangement and
strength of the self propelling mech
anism and in the self contained hy-
draulic turntable whereby the entire
machine. including trucks, is quickly
lifted clear of the rails and turned
end for end.
This new Bucyrus locomotive pile
driver, as it is called, was designed
to meet the requirements of the Santa
Fe. The road has been wanting
good machine to climb the big noun
tain grades, hauling its own cars and
tools and doing the work that the old
time extra engine crews were required
to do. In this new locomotive pile
driver the Santa Fe has just what
has been demanded for some time and
it is the pride of the bridge building
department.
Not only this, but it is one of the
new developments in mechanical en-
cheering in this country. 1t is al
ways the Santa Fe that takes hold of
the new railroad propositions over the
country and even though some fail,
the majority of the good that comes
from the tests is an advantage to the
Santa Fe in every way-financially
The old self propelling pile drivers,
which are considered a great thing by
the average railroad are only capable
of moving themselves for a short dis
lance while at work, bit FROM the
I1ck of steam capacity as we'll as en-
CINE power must have a LOGON in
constant attendance. This requires an
extra crew of men for the propeliing
of the locomotive and is a constant
drain on the available motive power
nf a The SpTVioac of a In
connective in this work is usually.
charged against the bridge department
of the Santa Fe at a rate of from $50
to $50 per day.
After having used several of the old
er self prOpell1ng machineS-thoSe of
the ordinary type-A. F. Robinson,
bridge engineer of the Santa Fe sys-
tenn. prepared specifications calling
for a pile driver of much higher pro-
pelling power This resulted in the
the machine mentioned and the ma
chine that has been placed in active
work on the Atchison, Topeka & Santa
Fe .vstem.
This new car, as shown in an ac-
companying cut is 40 feet long. built
entirely of steel and steel castings. On
the front is mounted the swinging
frame, consisting of a pair of parallel
trusses supporting the leaders at one
end and q counterweight at the other
end with the necessary parts for rails
ing and lowering the leaders and
swinging the entire frame to the right
or left at right angles to the main
body of the car.
The main engines in the car are
equipped with double cylinders and
the so-called Stephenson link motion
These engines are most powerful With
the fast gear on level or moderate
grades and with moderate loads the
machine can readily be driven at 25
miles per hour and has been driven at
.35 miles per hour. With the slow
gear the engines are powerful enough
to slip the two driving axles and thus
obtain all the tractive force that can
be had with about 10000 pounds
weight on the drivers.
The machine can thus be used eff
fectively as a switching engine and
will readily haul its own weight with
considerable additional load over
grades of 1 u per cent or more The
acceptance test of the first machine
built was run of 8 2 miles up a grade
averaging rs feet to the mile. with a
maximum of 81 feet to the mile
In order to provide necessary steam
capacity for these propelling require
nents, the boiler is nearly three times
the size of those ordinarily furnished
for pile drivers. The boiler is of To-
connective type, "a inches in diameter
I 5 inches long, having about 500 feet
of heating surface and designed for
175 pounds pressure. This pressure
is required only for steam economy on
propelling runs. as the engines are so
large that all the ordinary movements
of the machine can be made with a