Iron Miners
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 Post subject: Re: IT LIVES!!
PostPosted: Sun Feb 01, 2015 2:45 pm 
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Joined: Tue Dec 02, 2014 1:17 pm
Posts: 70
Location: Central Wisconsin
First off , this is Miner Dave. I had to make a different account.

OK, I got some info about the people building the T1.
For the frames, they have identified one foundry that is capable of making a casting that large, and has expressed interest in participating - Bradken Engineered Products in Atchison, Kansas. They have the ability to pour up to 120,000 lb. of steel in a single part, and have experience in casting parts for the railroad industry. Unfortunately, a 60 ton pour will typically yield a part of about half that weight after gates and risers are removed, and they estimate that the T1 frame is somewhere between 37 and 44 tons. Because of the weight and complexity of the T1 engine bed, they may be forced to fabricate the frame from several smaller castings, or from welded plate. The exact details of the revised frame design are still being evaluated.

Also, the wheel slip issue had two root causes. The first was ineffective spring equalization. As originally designed (engines 6110 and 6111), the engine truck was not equalized with the drivers, and all four pairs of drivers were equalized together. When entering curves or moving over track that was less than perfectly level, weight was transferred off the front engine, causing the front pairs of drivers to slip. This condition was observed at all speeds, and they believe is the basis for the "uncontrollable" reputation the T1 has. The PRR addressed this in the production fleet by splitting the spring rigging in two - the front engine was equalized with the engine truck, and the rear engine was equalized with the trailing truck. The other root cause was improper handling. Engineers assigned to T1s were given no formal training on how to operate them, and their performance was very different than the K4's most of them were accustomed to. The front end throttle, high boiler pressure, very large diameter steam delivery pipes, and poppet valves combined to make the T1's very responsive to throttle application compared to a K4. Too much power applied too quickly resulted in wheel slip, especially at speeds around 15-25 mph. They will be performing kinematic and compliance simulations of the spring rigging and equalization to determine whether further improvements in adhesion are possible. They will be applying a wheel slip alarm, so the engineer would be made aware of a wheel slip more quickly should it occur, and reduce power manually. They will also investigate fitting an electro-mechanical anti-slip device similar in concept to that fitted to the Q2, but with more reliable valves and modern electronics, so no involvement from the engineer would be required.

So, I could see a new steamer built in the US within my lifetime.


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