[Attachment(s) from LZadnichek@aol.com included below]
April 15, 2016
Pete, Pat and Phil - Of all the digital images in my collection,
I do not have a full tender top image of a Class O-5-B or Class S-4-A oil
burner. The closest I have is an undated partial overhead view taken
of Class O-5-B No. 5614 in Lincoln, NE, both inserted and attached
below:
If you slightly enlarge the attached image, you can see the tank top
opening for the oil bunker at far rear behind the safety handrail.
Unfortunately, you can not see any tender sand box top opening.
Pete is partially correct when he says the oil bunker was slightly
pressurized. There were steam heating coils within the bunker to heat the Bunker
C fuel oil to make it "thin" enough to flow through the pipe to the firebox
atomizer. When the oil was fully heated, it would expand and create a slight
pressure that would escape around the edge of the tank top opening
(you could smell the hot oil fumes).
Two oil-burning Class O-5-B locomotives are preserved, the 5614 at St.
Joseph, MO, and the 5629 at the Colorado Railroad Museum in Golden,
CO. Perhaps, a Group member living close to either locomotive could visit
and measure/photograph the tender sand box, as well as the tender top side for
placement of openings, then share with the rest of us. Should pretty much
be the same as on other large oil burners.
Regarding terminology, it may be my spending the past half century in the
maritime world with steam and later diesel ships, but tanks holding
fuel oil were referred to as "bunkers" and "cisterns" referred to containers or
tanks that held water. Not all that important, still a good
thread..... Best Regards - Louis
Louis Zadnichek II
Fairhope, AL
I have no personal memories of this, but I have seen
(photos...not personally) and heard that the oil cistern on oil burners
was "pressurized" a bit to help the oil flow. It wasn't..and couldn't
have been much pressure, but just a bit would move the oil quite well.
There, was, of course, a relief valve which had to be opened, before the
filler cap was removed...If someone would forget this little maneuver, it
could create a bit of a mess.
Anybody more familiar with oil burners than me, please add or subtract to
my "ramblings.
Pete
-----Original
Message-----
From: 'Patrick Homan'
homanfamily@fuse.net [CBQ]
<
CBQ@yahoogroups.com>
To: CBQ <
CBQ@yahoogroups.com>
Sent:
Thu, Apr 14, 2016 6:49 pm
Subject: Re: [CBQ] What's The Hostler
Doing?
I find this discussion very interesting, escially the photo of
4003. I did enlarge the picture and it appears that the sand box had a
rounded shape to the cab side. I can’t get my computer to give a clear
image when enlarged. Does any member have a photo of the top of the oil
cistern, showing the oil and sand covers as well as any other details
particular to large oil burners. My background is coal fired locomotives
here in Cinciinnati or in Southeastern KY (L&N). I am trying to
build an accurate cistern to put in a Bachmann locomotive. My only
photos are a set I was able to take of FW&D #305 in wichita Falls
TX. The museum staff that day was most gracious in letting my climb over
the locomotive and tender. II suspect the large locomotives had a bit
different set-up.
Pat Homan
Sent: Sunday, April 10, 2016 8:09 PM
Subject: Re: [CBQ] What's The Hostler Doing? [1
Attachment]
[Attachment(s) from LZadnichek@aol.com included below]
April 10, 2016
Pete and Phil - You both get a "gold star" in correctly identifying the
Lincoln roundhouse hostler as pouring sand into the tender sand box for use in
cleaning flues. Since I do not have any gold stars handy, you get a bonus
undated color image of 4003 in dead storage at Lincoln, NE, probably never to
run again. I've both inserted and attached the image. In the attached image,
if you enlarge it, I think you can just see the sand box to the left in
entrance of the gangway.
All Q oil burning steam locomotives had such tender sand boxes, so
modelers can feel free to make two stops under their sand tower, one for the
sand dome on the locomotive and one for the sand box in the tender. One
question I have, how much sand would the tender sand box on the 4003 hold?
Would there have been enough sand to fill a 55 gal. drum, more, less?
To answer Pete's question about a light mounted on the top backside of
the stack so the fireman could judge his fire by the darkness of the smoke at
night, to my knowledge such a device was never used on Q, C&S or FW&D
oil-burning locomotives. However, it was used widely on Frisco and MOPAC steam
locomotives, among other railroads that used Bunker C oil for fuel.
Since oil-burning locomotives could have their fires "turned off" between
runs rather than having their fires banked like on their coal-burning
siblings, some Q oil-burners had a round stack flap fitted on a hinge that the
fireman could flop over the open stack to keep as much heat in the boiler as
possible until the locomotive was needed later. This seems to have been a
roundhouse added device as some oil-burners had the stack flap and others
didn't.
Anyone else with Lines West oil-burner stories or comments is welcome to
chime-in! Best Regards - Louis
Louis Zadnichek II
Fairhope, AL
Two old timers with
fine alert minds got it right.
Pete
-----Original
Message-----
From: Phil
pawnbaw@sbcglobal.net [CBQ] <
CBQ@yahoogroups.com>
To:
LZadnichek@aol.com [CBQ] <
CBQ@yahoogroups.com>; cbq <
cbq@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Sun,
Apr 10, 2016 4:45 pm
Subject: RE: [CBQ] What's The Hostler Doing? [2
Attachments]
[Attachment(s) from Phil included below]
Pumping fresh air into the cab?
Or……maybe filling the sandbox on the tender. Oil
burning locomotives carried a supply of sand
up front on the tender. The fireman had a small
scoop sized to fit a hole in the firedoor and - when
the locomotive was working hard and pulling a strong
draft- he’d toss some sand into the firebox.
The sand scoured the oil soot off of the flue tubes and
produced a puff of black smoke out the stack.
You’ll see this in videos of oil burners – as the
engineer works the locomotive harder the fireman gets
a couple of scoops of sand into the mix – and there
will be a puff or two of black smoke.
Coal burners didn’t have a soot problem when working.
Cinders and assorted real estate kept the flues
clear. However, a coal-burner could get pretty
dirty inside when parked for a while. Then the first move
would produce black rain out the stack that was as
permanent as India ink.
PAW
Group
- This is a little "test" to see how many old timers from Lines West will
remember what the hostler is doing a top the tender in this undated image of
oil-burning CB&Q Class S-4-A 4003 being serviced at Lincoln, NE. I'm
both inserting and attaching this interesting image:
What
the hostler is doing was once so common place on Lines West oil-burning
locomotives that it was seldom if ever photographed. In fact, this is the
first image I've ever seen that shows such a service function. The image was
taken well prior to November 1960 when 4003 was sold for scrap. Best Regards
- Louis
