Steam & Excursion > Question about GI 2-8-0 Steam Locomotives

This might be a tough Question to answer, but I was wondering if there were any differences between a GI 2-8-0 built by Lima or Baldwin or Alco ? Did one ride or beform better because it was built by Baldwin VS Lima or Alco, even through built to a Common design ?

TIA Tom

GI ?

Nudge

By GI I think poster means USRA specs for the WWII effort?

Kimball Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> By GI I think poster means USRA specs for the WWII
> effort?

The US Army ordered 2-8-0's during both WWI and WWII, largely for export, though a few remained in US. None were USRA designs, as the USRA did not have a 2-8-0 design.

USRA was created to manage nationalized US railroads during WWI, but returned them to private ownership at the end of WWI. The organization ceased to exist before WWII.

-John

I cannot comment on the ride quality other than to say I doubt that there was much difference. However, as to the builders I have seen one S-160 in China with a Baldwin boiler carrying Lima rods and an Alco cylinder assembly.

I don't know if this is the way it came from one of the factories or if it was a composite loco that assembled from salvaged parts at one of the China Rail rebuild shops.

Cheers,
Jack



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/17/14 14:20 by africansteam.

We had the 606, 610 & 612 at Ft. Eustis, VA. All were hand fired coal burners but had drop in oil tanks that came with them for the coal bunkers. Clean out the coal, change the bricks and oil lines and you were ready to go, so to speak.

They were rough riding, the fastest I got one up to was 40 and thought it was going to head for the swamps. They were held together with bailing wire and gum. You were lucky if you could make one trip around post(42 miles) without breaking down. They were not allowed off post, in fact none of the power was except the 2036 & 2037, EMD SW-1 switchers. Even then the FRA would show up and bad order them too. The brass would tell you to go out to the interchange at Lee Hall on the C & O anyway.

Nudge

When at Eustis in 1971 the 607 and 612 were running. The 2036 and 2037 are SW 8's. We did go to Lee Hall with MRS1 1813 fresh out of the box she had been stored in. The 607 was not bad riding. She is a Lima product.

When I got to Germany it was 2-10-0's which were sweet running machines.