Steam & Excursion > Here Is A Quick Way To Add More Range To Your Steam Locomotive!

One of the limitations of any steam locomotive was the amount of fuel and water they could carry.  The water was the greatest limiting factor as it is used up 4-5 times faster than the fuel on most steam locomotives.  The need to replenish water more frequently meant that the railroad had to build more water facilities (if water sources could be found) along the right of way and the more water stops made, the more time lost watering rather than hauling revenue freight.

As lumber companies who operated logging railroads extended their railroad lines farther and farther from the mill into virgin timber, this meant the daily log haul was longer and the need for more water capacity greater.  Some logging lines found ways to enlarge the tenders on their locomotives to carry more water, while some lines replaced a locomotives original tender with larger tenders off other locomotives.

Southwest Lumber Mills of Flagstaff, Arizona found another way to add range to their 2-8-0 #2.  As we see here, they simply added a tender off one of their retired locomotives to serve as an auxiliary tender to the normal tender behind #2.  Shown here in November, 1958 we see SWLM #2 on her way back to the mill with a train of logs.  She has the sloped back tender off one of the retired locomotives for the SWLM predecessor line, Saginaw & Manistee Lumber Co..  This solution was very effective.

Ironically, when #2 was retired and put on display by SWLM, she lost the rectangular tender seen here to 2-6-6-2 #12 and she retained the sloped back tender as her final tender on display.

Martin



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 09/20/20 02:56 by LoggerHogger.

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LoggerHogger Wrote:
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> One of the limitations of any steam locomotive was
> the amount of fuel and water they could carry. 
> The water was the greatest limiting factor as it
> is used up 4-5 times faster than the fuel on most
> steam locomotives.  The need to replenish water
> more frequently meant that the railroad had to
> build more water facilities (if water sources
> could be found) along the right of way and the
> more water stops made, the more time lost watering
> rather than hauling revenue freight.
>
> As lumber companies who operated logging railroads
> extended their railroad lines farther and farther
> from the mill into virgin timber, this meant the
> daily log haul was longer and the need for more
> water capacity greater.  Some logging lines found
> ways to enlarge the tenders on their locomotives
> to carry more water, while some lines replaced a
> locomotives original tender with larger tenders
> off other locomotives.
>
> Southwest Lumber Mills of Flagstaff, Arizona found
> another way to add range to their 2-8-0 #2.  As
> we see here, they simply added a tender off one of
> their retired locomotives to serve as an auxiliary
> tender to the normal tender behind #2.  Shown
> here in November, 1958 we see SWLM #2 on her way
> back to the mill with a train of logs.  She has
> the sloped back tender off one of the retired
> locomotives for the SWLM predecessor line, Saginaw
> & Manistee Lumber Co..  This solution was very
> effective.
>
> Ironically, when #2 was retired and put on display
> by SWLM, she lost the rectangular tender seen here
> to 2-6-6-2 #12 and she retained the sloped back
> tender as her final tender on display.
>
> Martin

The little slope backed tank was initially used behind S&M Malley #4.  When S&M stripped #4 of its side tanks they got a much bigger tender for her.  She kept that tender until she was scrapped in 1954.  The tender was eventually put behind the replacement Malley, former Arcade & Mad River #12.  #2 (former #25) continued to use the tender shown in the above photo, and was given the small slope back tank as an extra water car when needed.  When Malley #12 was retired in 1959, #12 and #2 swapped tenders.  #2 getting the bigger #12's tender.  #12 was put on display at the Flagstaff county fairgrounds with #2's smaller tender.  #12 still has this smaller tender (the one in the picture) today.  #2 ran with the bigger tender until the last run in March 1966.  Shortly (very shortly) after the railroad shut down, #2's tender was sold to a rancher for a stock tank.  When decision was made to put #2 on display in front of the mill in Flagstaff, the small slope back tank was dug and placed behind #2.  Recent investigation of the #2 (now #25 again) shows this small tender has no provisions for a buffer between the engine and tender, and the drawbar pocket on the front of the tender had been modified to install a conventional coupler.

Thanks for the SWLM pics.  It is really frustrating to see how little is known about how the RR operated, especially when one considers it was the last steam logger in AZ, lasting to the mid-1960's.  

Earl,

We cover these details in our up-coming book on Baldwin's Logging Mallets.

Martin