# kitbashing a the 2-6-4, world's ugliest loco



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

I recently came across this, and thought is was maybe the ugliest steamer I'd ever seen, but kind of cool












This is the builders photo, from 1903. The Reading built these Q1 locos for suburban commuter service, in places where congestion made it hard for locos to turn around. The 2-6-4 could run backwards as well as forwards easily. 2-6-4s were more common in Europe. In the US, only a few RRs ever used them. The jersey central had some, the boston and Albany, I think central of Georgia, but they never caught on generally.

The Reading has the huge Wooten firebox, which I've always thought would be an interesting challenge. Around 1920 they were rebuilt with Walschearts valve gear, though they kept the slide valves:










They seem to have changed the domes too. The Q1 sereis were retired sometime in the 930s when the Reading electrified its commuter lines. By that time they looked like this, with generators and electric headlights, and a much more claptrap appearance.



















So I have enough to work with but not so much info that it's intimidating.


I'm thinking of basing the kitbash on an old derelict LGB modgul I have around. The boiler is sized about right and the shape is roughly ok, and the Stephenson valve gear is pretty close, although I'm missing some crucial parts.

But maybe it would look better in the Walschaerts valve gear? I have the valve motion assembly from an old Bachmann Annie that might be made to work. 

The loco will scale out to about 16 inches long, which makes it a good size for our line, and the mogul drive is pretty robust, so it can pull some cars. Any suggestions?


----------



## Semper Vaporo (Jan 2, 2008)

Of course, all the photos you show are tank engines (tenderless), but for YEARS and YEARS the only 2-6-4 I knew of was the Lionel one that ran around my Christmas tree when I was a kid. I did find that there were some tendered engines of that wheel arrangement and they were called "Adriatics" because they ran in that area of Europe. I have never found photos of one in the U.S. 

As for "ugliest Loco"... hmmm that is quite subjective! The photos you show are not all that bad looking, I might allow the word "ungainly", but any of the Henry Dreyfuss or Raymond Loewy and other "streamlined" abominations far out weigh these on the UGLY scale.


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

I think it's so ugly it's cute. It's more capable than the average yard tank engine., The Reading built ten of them, or had Baldwim build them. I found a few other examples--I think the CNJ had a 2-6-4 with a tender. All the other examples had piston valve cylinders.

You can see seven B&A 2-6-4s here, if the link works. It seems like it should have been a successful design--optimized for pulling power over speed, with 61 inch drivers since the Chestnut Hill LIne, where the Reading used them, was full of stops just a few miles apart. There is an article about the Reading loco in Railway and Locomotive Engineering for 1903--google books has it.

http://books.google.com/books?id=tw...mp;f=false 


http://digital.denverlibrary.org/cd...ort/ad/asc 


Now does anyone know how to get the weight out of the boiler shell of an LGB Mogul?


----------



## Dave Meashey (Jan 2, 2008)

lownote; 

Sometime in the latter part of the 1960s Rivarossie actually made a model of this locomotive in N scale. As I remember, it was nice looking, but could not pull the skin off a rice pudding. I bought one of the N scale locomotives for my college buddy. He really liked the lines of the locomotive, but it ended up as a shelf queen. It may have performed better if it could have had the benefits of today's motors, but the standard Rivarossie three-pole motor doomed the locomotive. 

If you use an LGB Mogul for the chassis, you may want to check with Mik concerning how he did the firebox treatment. I think he may have created a camelback from an LGB Mogul. I have read that the Reading engine men were so accustomed to camelbacks, that when federal regulations outlawed them, they nicknamed the rear-cab locomotives "Long Johns." 

Good luck on your project, 
David Meashey


----------



## chuck n (Jan 2, 2008)

Mike:


It was back in the early 90s when I bashed one of the first LGB Moguls (red and green wood burner). As I recall the first part of the boiler (under the stack) is glued and/or press fit into the rest of the boiler. If you can carefully break the seal you should be able to get to the weight. It may be held in place by the screw for the pony truck. You will probably have to separate the motor block from the boiler. It may also be possible to remove the cab and back head and get to the weight that way. I have also removed the panel behind the smoke box door. That just sits in there and I think I pulled it out with some bent ended tweezers. I took it out when I installed a on/off switch for the smoke generator.

Chuck

I can't remember why I took the front off, but it may have been to paint the engine. I never have been very good with masking tape. The bash included new light, stack, domes and a coal load.


----------



## Semper Vaporo (Jan 2, 2008)

Posted By lownote on 07 Jan 2013 02:13 PM 
I think it's so ugly it's cute. It's more capable than the average yard tank engine., The Reading built ten of them, or had Baldwim build them. I found a few other examples--I think the CNJ had a 2-6-4 with a tender. All the other examples had piston valve cylinders.

You can see seven B&A 2-6-4s here, if the link works. It seems like it should have been a successful design--optimized for pulling power over speed, with 61 inch drivers since the Chestnut Hill LIne, where the Reading used them, was full of stops just a few miles apart. There is an article about the Reading loco in Railway and Locomotive Engineering for 1903--google books has it.

http://books.google.com/books?id=tw...mp;f=false 


http://digital.denverlibrary.org/cd...ort/ad/asc 


Now does anyone know how to get the weight out of the boiler shell of an LGB Mogul?


All the engines in those references are "tank engines" and not "Engine with tender" (the verbage accompanying the photos is in error). The fuel and water is being carried in a bunker on the rear of the locomotive frame.

A "tender" for carrying fuel and water is always a separate vehicle.


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

Posted By Semper Vaporo on 07 Jan 2013 02:46 PM 


All the engines in those references are "tank engines" and not "Engine with tender" (the verbage accompanying the photos is in error). The fuel and water is being carried in a bunker on the rear of the locomotive frame.

A "tender" for carrying fuel and water is always a separate vehicle.



I know that, I just thought you might want to see some of the other 2-6-4s


----------



## vsmith (Jan 2, 2008)

Didn't these engines last until the mid 1960's in commuter service?


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

Vic as far as I know not on the Reading. I think the CNJ 2-6-4Ts might have ended up spending some time on the PRR/Reading Seashore line. but that was dieselized in the 60s


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

I'm thinking I'll build a shell for the tank/coal bunker, and just attach a truck to the Mogul's tender hook, so it can swing freely in curves. Anybody know a good source for small spoked metal wheels? I'm thinking Bachmann big hauler pilot wheels


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

So Im thinking about the boiler

Here's a picture of the Q1 with part of an LGB mogul sitting on it











The mogul block has reasonably close wheel spacing, and it's a good block. The boiler is not the right shape--the taper is too shallow and starts to far back . But it has a squat, beefy look that seems appropriate, and once I get a Wooten firebox on there (no idea whatsoever how that's going to happen) it might be less noticeable. MIght had to sand off those huge rivets on the smokebox


And here is the dreaded and familiar Bachmann Annie boiler 











It might be a better choice--the taper is close, once you shorten the smokebox. But I have no idea how I'd attach it to the mogul block. So I think it's going to be the mogul boiler

There are a bunch of challenging things here. I'm going to have to figure out how to make domes, for one thing. I have an aristo rodgers dome that should work for the sand dome if I shorten it. But the other one....I'm thinking of trying to chuck a dowel in in my drill and trying to turn it out of wood.


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

Made a bit of progress. I'm not sure who's interested, but I'll kep posting updates and make a builder's log when I'm done

I roughly filled the holes left from cutting out the mogul's domes. I had a dome from an old aristo rodgers that will work for the sand dome, and a 3/4 PVC pipe cap will make a passable steam dome. I'd like to know how to make the "sleeve" that fits around the base of the domes. It'd look a lot better with that detail

I was able to glue a 2 inch section of PVC pipe to the end of the boiler to make a boiler extension. 













The cab should be fairly easy, and I'll make the tank out of an old aristo long tender. The hard part is going to be the firebox. I'm still not sure how to do that. But I'm going duck hunting tomorrow with my brother in law so I'll have plenty of time to sit and think about it.


----------



## Crisolite (Jan 9, 2008)

I like your progress. 
Didn't Gary Raymond have spoked wheels at one time?


----------



## Nutz-n-Bolts (Aug 12, 2010)

I for one am hooked on the thread. I like the Wooten too. Combine that with a Forney on steroids, and it's a neat loco.










For the "sleeves" you might try laying a piece of paper between the boiler and dome. Then trace around the dome with pencil. Remove the paper and use your new template to fashion the sleeve from your material of choice.


----------



## Ted Nordin (Feb 27, 2008)

Lownote, you asked," I'd like to know how to make the "sleeve" that fits around the base of the domes. It'd look a lot better with that detail." 
Look at the cap of the large yellow Bayer Aspirin Bottle (plastic) Curvature might be quite close to your mogul. 
Ted "Zippo 6"


----------



## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Interesting project, and it looks good so far.


----------



## wigginsn (Jan 9, 2008)

Yes, I'm watching too.. 

Nice work, can't wait to see it finished. 

Cheers 
Neil


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

Yikes! People are actually watching. Considering I have zero idea what I'm doing, that's alarming.

I sat in the duck blind yesterday and thought about it. Our layout is in a pretty public place and gets a lot of kid traffic. The locos are stored in an outdoor shed which sometimes gets critters in it. So it has to be a pretty robust model. No delicate parts you can't touch.

I decided to glue styrene scrap to the sides of the boiler/boiler extensions, using DevCon plastic welder, which is in my experience really really tough. It looks awful:











The other side looks just as bad. But it gives me a rough guide to the curve of the firebox. The next step is to slather the sides in automotive Bondo, to fill the gaps between the styrene pieces and make a smooth transition to the top of the boiler. I plan to shape the Bondo once it dries, then skin it with styrene. I've used bondo on some other projects--it's tough, it's easy to sand, and can be carved and shaped, and it's cheap and readily available. 

But man, it looks awful, doesn't it? It could end up a complete disaster. Also I'm right at the point where it probably would have been easier to just scratch build a new boiler.


----------



## DKRickman (Mar 25, 2008)

Also I'm right at the point where it probably would have been easier to just scratch build a new boiler. I was thinking that myself, back when you first proposed the model. Given how easy it is to make a boiler, and how difficult it is to un-make all the parts that you don't want on an existing boiler, I've about reached the point that I'll make my own rather than bashing one unless it's really darn close. 

Oh yeah, and I'm watching with interest as well!


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

The hard part for me would be making a good attachment system for the new boiler . I wanted to keep the simple and solid design of the original loco


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

Well I've roughed out the underlying shape for the Wootten firebox. I slathered the boiler with bondo, let it dry, sanded it down with an oscillating tool, glazed it with bondo glazing putty, and sanded it a little more




















It came out about as well as I'd hoped it would. I'll finish it a bit more, add the ashpans, shape the slope when I start to get the cab together, then skin it with two or maybe three plies of .10 styrene for the top/sides, and something heavier for the front of the firebox, so I can shape a curve into it. 

I apologize to the skilled modelers out there--this is really meatball modeling. Bondo? An oscillating tool? If I was good at this, and knew what I was doing, I'd have built a frame for the firebox that fit neatly over the existing boiler shell. But that's some complicated geometry and beyond my skill level. 

So now how to attach the styrene to the bondo? The Devcon plastic weld would probably work, but it's lumpy and hard to smooth out. Super glue would work, but in my experience when it heats as it cures it sometimes causes bent styrene to break.


----------



## DKRickman (Mar 25, 2008)

So now how to attach the styrene to the bondo? 
My suggestion would be to use two part epoxy. It's strong, bonds well, and will not attack the plastic. However, because of the long pot life (relative to most of the plastic solvents we use) it will require some sort of clamp to hold the styrene in place while the epoxy cures. 5 minute epoxy is a mixed blessing - it sets faster, requiring less time in the clamp and allowing work to resume faster, but for large areas it may set before you get the work positioned, leaving unsightly lumps. I would suggest 30 minute epoxy since the longer pot life will give you more time to get everything just right. Clean up any excess with paint thinner - it will not attack the styrene, but it might hurt the paint on the smokebox, so be careful there. 

On a related note, you are too hard on yourself and the quality of your work. The point is to get a good looking model, not to be the best at a given technique. If it works and you like it, it's good! Also, you acquire skills through practice, which is exactly what you're doing right now. Each model will be a little better than the last.


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

Thanks KR. I do think of this as learning and make the posts in the same spirit.

So I made some progress last night. I cut up and old Aristo long tender--cut it in half, narrowed it, and cut it down to form the rough shape of the cab/tank. I used the aristo tender because I wasn't keen on simulating 5000 rivets if I didn't have to, and the aristo tender has plausible rivet detail already. 

The cab roof is from an old Piko 0-6-0 I'm not sure it's rounded/high enough, but it's hard to tell as I don't have a drawing of this loco, only some pictures. Here it is without the smokebox attached











The trailing truck is from an old lionel Atlantic that got converted to a consol. The cab dimensions seem a litte off to me--I think the front window, which right now is a solid piece of styrene, is too wide, and the cab overall is maybe sitting too high. Hard to tell until the boiler is sheathed. But the real challenge is figuring out the attachment. How do I attach it to the mogul frame? I may build out an extension of some sort, but it's pretty complicated. 











I'm going to go for the earlier version, as built by Baldwin:


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

Here's a better shot, showing the proportions. I'm pretty happy with it, more than I was a couple days ago. Since I took this picture I cut out the windows in the cab. I still have to do the cab front, and cut windowns it that, and then build the coal bunker on the back. But it's looking more reasonable


----------



## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Looks good so far! 

Nothing wrong with using bondo -- whatever works! I used bondo to simulate stucco on my Hotel Torgo, among other things.


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

Lots of work, relatively little obvious progress. All the hard stuff is invisible. 

I got the firebox/boiler all figured out, and covered in styrene, and also figured out how to attach it. I cut out the side windows and the door, and added the beginning of the ashpans. I seem to have gotten the heights all correct and matching. I may have made that door a little too tall. The firebox is extending into the cab, which it shouldn't do. I may or may not try to fix that. I plan to shape the coal bunker out of a block of wood, then glue styrene to the wood, and make it removable for easy access to the interior

I think that roof is too flat, but I'm not sure I'm up to a new roof










Here's an interesting detail of the prototype: a recessed tail lamp










It looks like the headlight on a bachmann Annie, but the Annie headlight would be too big. I think. It would be a tough thing for me to pull off.


In this view, you can see why I think the roof is too flat:










The design of that bunker is one of the neat things about this ugly prototype, and I'd like tio get it right.


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

Made a few changes, but progress is stalled by a couple things. First, it turns out I dont have all the parts for the old GB modul this bash is based on. So I'm waiting for some scrounged parts to arrive. Second, I'm not sure if I want to file all the rivet detail off the tender/tank, or leave it as it is.

The existing rivets are oriented the wrong way, and Im going to have to add some riveting around the doors and the cab anyway. But Im skeptical that I could do a good job of pressing all those rivets and then attaching the sheet to the side accurately> I dont have a rivet press, and I've ordered a couple different sizes of tracing wheel to see if I can produce credible rivets in styrene. Alternatively, I could just live with the rivet detail being all wrong. Any thoughts?


Some progress: made a cab front. On the original, a pice of trim goes on the boiler where it mets the cab front wall--how convenient is that! The original had two round windows. I plan to make sills/frames using #9 o rings, glued to the styrene and then filed down flat on top. Tested it, and it works. You can't see it in this blurry picture, but I managed to press some credible rivets into .10 styrene











The coal bunker is mostly done--it also needs some rivets . I plan to attach it to the back wall of the cab with inset magnets, so I can remove it easily to get to the tank space.I need to redo the smokebox--that may be today's project. Otherwise, I'm just waiting for USPS.


----------



## Torby (Jan 2, 2008)

That is one *ugly* loco. If it was articulated, Mr. Brades would have modeled it. 

"I've become a verb. When the children are acting up, their mothers tell them to 'quit Wooten around.'" -- Wooten Basset, Adventures in Odyssey


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

It is--it's as ugly as homemade sin. But I'm surprised this kind of design didn't catch on more. It was designed specifically for suburban service, with stations in some cases just a mile or two apart, so it could accelerate quickly but didn't need to get to really high speeds. And it was designed to run in both directions--there's a "cowcatcher" on the back as well as the front--so you didn't need to turn it. Seems like a great idea. The Reading ran ten of them for about twenty years, till electrification replaced them in the 1930s


----------



## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

Is it oxymoronic to say "great looking ugly duckling?" 

Later, 

K


----------



## Paulus (May 31, 2008)

Interesting project!


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

A few updates. After filing off all the original detail I pressed rivets into some .10 styrene and wrapped the smokebox. I added a smokebox washout plug that's out of scale, but I had it around and I'm never going to use it since I don't do 1:20. It's not too bad. I need to do some patching where the thin .10 styrene tore 














I've actually done some "rivet counting" on this project. 


Also added window detail to the front of the cab. The prototype had pretty heavy framing around the round windows. I used #9 o-rings, glued them to the cab, and then ground them flat using a dremel sanding wheel. It's ok, but I could not think of a better way to make the round frames. I don't have a good picture of the front of the prototype, so there's some guesswork here













I decided to go for it and filed all the rivets off the tender. It takes very little time to file them off, it takes a lot more time to add them back. I made a practice "skin" with a more prototypical rivet pattern. These were pressed into .15 styrene












I'm using a "pounce wheel," also called a tracing wheel, pressing the rivets in from the back side. I set the styrene on a piece of cedar scrap left over from making a cedar closet, and run the wheel along a straightedge. It's not bad, but there are a few problems you can see in the picture above. First, the rivets tend to be a little bit oblong, rather than round. Second, it's hard to make a precise start and stop. And third, it's really hard to get alternating rivet patterns. The best way is one of those rivet presses. But I don't have one and ain't ready to get one. 


This is the wheel I've been using:














I've ordered a couple different tracing wheels, to see what works best. You can find something called a "needle point tracing wheel," a kind of scary looking device used for perforating leather. I have on on order. I'm thinking of running it over a file, to take the points off. The other wheels won't be here till later this week though.






While I wait for the additional parts and the tracing wheels I'm working on other details. I'd love to find a 1:29 or 1:32 scale dynamo/generator. The Bachmann Annie generators are pretty good, but way too big.


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

This is a little more like it. I added the some of the parts I was missing. The rods and crosshead were stripped of their chrome paint and painted with neolube. I decided to keep the original walkways, even though they're too low. It was just too easy. All I had to do was narrow them a bit. I glued diamond-plate styrene to the top, to make it look a bit more modern. I'll add the second,. higher walkway later. The ring on the smokestack is a #9 o-ring. The cab front it mostly done--there wil;l; be a trim strip glued to the boiler that will conceal the joint where the front of the cab and the boiler meet. It's on the prototype!














The tender has been skinned over with new styrene. My "needle point tracing wheel" arrived, and while the spacing of rivets was more accurate it was too hard to control, so I went back to the one I was using before. YOu cant' see them in this shot, but they show up here:















The prototype had a recessed tail lamp, so I cut a recess into the tender. I'd love to find an accurate lamp in 1:29, but until I do, this old aristo headlamp will probably work. I'm not at all sure how to do the rivet detail around the recess. I may either omit it or try rivet decals. The tailight had a little curved shade over it. which I can add now 















I'm adding a 1:29 bell I got from USAT and a generator. The generator was interesting. Nobody makes a good Pyle generator in 1:29 or 1:32, that I know of. I have some generators from the aristo pacific and MIkado, but they're the wrong style. There are a bunch in 1:20, but they are WAY oversize for this loco.

















So my neighbor, a while ago, asked if he could put the wood lathe he picked up at yard sale in my workshop, since he didn't have room in his. We bolted it to a table, but found that it didn't work--it's a Grizzly wood lathe, not really a very fine piece of equipment. After much fiddling and fussing I got it working well enough to turn this out of a piece of dowel:













Not bad considering I haven't run a wood lathe since woodshop in middle school, way back in the Ford administration. I'll add a few details, make a stand, and hope that paint covers the wood grain.






I have to do some general clean up--small detail, squaring the opening and smoothing them. It's starting to come together


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

I need to take a break--I'm getting sick of this project. Today it got suddenly freakishly warm, so I decided to go ahead and paint. Paint covers a multitude of sins. I havent' painted the bunker yet because I'm waiting on some rivet decals. In this shot you can see the recessed headlight and it's little roof. I need to add a beam on the back and a "cowcatcher," since this loco was designed to run passenger service in both directions.











It doesn't look like an LGB Mogul. I made a steam turret out of a piece of plastic cap










He're s my generator, turned out of a piece of dowel and worked with files, with pins used to simulate bolts. At least it's more or less the right size










I faked up a backhead, and drilled the holes for the cpompresser, which will be on the smokebox. Need to add a window piller on each side of the cab, and I'll probably have doors on each side, closed. Air tank, and of course the front pilot and pilot truck. It's uglier than ever!


----------



## vsmith (Jan 2, 2008)

Wow Its taking shape, an ugly shape but a shape none the less ... very cool.


----------



## DKRickman (Mar 25, 2008)

Man, that's coming together nicely! I'm quite impressed. Hope you come back to it soon.


----------



## Nutz-n-Bolts (Aug 12, 2010)

Excellent work! She is really turning out nice. Don't for get about the drop of paint method for those rivets around the "rear" light. It might be easier than buying some decals. Love the rest of the rivet work. I can really appreciate it since I've been experimenting with some in brass my self lately. Keep up the good work.


----------



## Paulus (May 31, 2008)

Very nice work! Always great to see when it is at the point the paint comes on and the model start to comes alive. She is beautifull!


----------



## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Very nice work! It's turning out well. The prototype may be ugly, but in a good way.  I wonder why they recessed the rear light?


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

Thank you! I got a lot done on it this weekend, even put a decoder in and test ran it, but then realized that the trailing truck was a problem. The loco won't navigate all the curves I need it to run on. So I'm going to have to devise a new mounting method, something more like you'd find on a pilot truck. It will take me a while.

I've also wondered why they recessed the taillight. Why not just mount it on the tender deck?


----------



## Dave Meashey (Jan 2, 2008)

Ray & Lownote; 
This is just a guess, but it may at least give some logic for recessing the rear headlight. Reading locomotives burned hard coal, and I do mean that Anthracite is HARD! This coal will actually take a polish, like marble and granite. I have a paperweight made from Anthracite, and one side of it is shiny as obsidian - and has a small 0-4-0 mine lokey engraved into it. (There were gift shops in Pottsville, PA that sold bookends, clocks, and other novelties made of polished Anthracite.) The coal bunker on those 2-6-4 suburban transit locomotives comes pretty close to the rear of the locomotive. Some guy gets a little sloppy with the coal chute and lets a big chunk of Anthracite drop outside the bunker - and POW! the headlight gets a heavy dent. If it's out in the open, that is. The same thing could happen if somebody over-filled the bunker. I think the headlight was recessed to keep it from getting banged-up by big lumps of hard coal.

Anthracite was discovered by accident. A trapper in that region, named Necco Allen, lined his campfire with some large black rocks he found near a bank. When Necco woke up the next morning, he was pleasantly surprised to find that his feet were still warm. The "rocks" he had lined his campfire with were actually Anthracite. They had been kindled by the campfire and were keeping him warm. In colonial times, the British merchant ship people called it "stone coal." They would use Anthracite for ballast on the return trip to England, then sell the coal once they got to port.

Okay, I've bored you enough.

Back to our regular build thread,
David Meashey


----------



## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

That could be Dave. It thought the whole point of the Wooten firebox was to burn "culm", which is always described as waste anthracite. I never knew what that meant--small pieces? Big pieces? Wikipedia describes it as fine grained waste or as "spoil tip."

Part of the light sticks out--it's not fully recessed, making it even more odd. I like your suggestion and maybe that will be the answer!


----------



## Dave Meashey (Jan 2, 2008)

Lownote;

By the time those locomotives were in service, the Reading was using a mixture of Anthracite and bituminous coal - and most of it was mine run, that is, all sizes as they came from the mine. The big breakers (industrial coal sorting structures) in the Anthracite regions would sort and wash the coal for other customers, but the railroads tended to use mine run coal. Hefty chunks of coal were present in mine run. I noticed there was an arched sheet metal guard over the rear lamp in one of your photos. The motive power department probably hoped it would protect the portion of the lamp that projected out from the rear.

When I lived in that area from 1969 to 1973, there were still huge culm banks, but eventually Pennsylvania Power and Light would use up the culm. PP&L's turbine boilers were still oil fired back then, but PP&L found that adding culm to the fuel oil boosted the BTUs by 33%. Pretty soon the culm banks were disappearing.

Best, 
David Meashey 
P.S. If you ever find a copy of Burt Penneypacker's book, Reading Steam Pictorial, it is a great source for reference material.


----------

