Steam & Excursion > Iron Mountain #5, September 16, 1990

On September 16th, 1990, a friend and I took a time-out from shooting trains on Union Pacific's Chester Subdivision to head across the river to Jackson, Missouri, to catch 2-4-2 #5 on the St. Louis, Iron Mountain & Southern.

The locomotive began life as the last 2-4-2T constructed by H.K. Porter, built for the Central Illinois Public Service in 1946.  After retirement the locomotive was donated to the Mid-Continent Railway Museum, and from there went to the Crab Orchard & Egyptian where it was converted to a tender engine.  After pulling passengers in southern Illinois between 1973 and 1978, she spent nearly another year in freight service before being retired by the CO&E in 1979.  She came to Jackson in 1985, and ran there from 1986 to 2000.

Today she is in pieces, restoration to service aborted when she failed a boiler ultrasound.

Mary McPherson
Dongola, IL
Diverging Clear Productions

---

---

---

You don't actually 'fail an ultrasound'.

The ultrasound procedure is a thickness-measuring 
procedure for spot-thickness, boiler shell readings.

Hundreds of readings are taken over the whole boiler shell, also
there are additional tests relating to boiler integrity.

The thickness readings are used to calculate the rated boiler pressure
pressure against the steel's actual, measured,  thickness.  The thinnest readings
determine the safe opersting pressure. 

That resultant thickness number must be above a hypothetical number
equal to 4-times the operating boiler pressure.  
We talk about a "safety factor of 4:1".

For example. If a boiler has an rated operating pressure of 250-psia, 
it's safety calculation ( 4:1) number would be 1,000 psia.

If that tested-number calculates to a lesser figure, the boiler must be
reduced in operating pressure..... until the thinner shell would be allowed
to operate --- at a lower pressure, like a hypothetical 180psi.

A boiler that has "poor reading numbers" reflects on the general poor condition
of the entire boiler shell.

In today's world, most re-calculated numbers based on the ultrasound readings,
have results well above the 4:1 safety requirement.

You'd not want to be running a boiler at, or near its 4:1 safety requirement.
Typically, you'd see that thin-shell boiler as needing to be entirely replaced
with a new boiler.

The ultrasound testing process helps owners and managers to make the best
decisions about spending a lot of money on a basically 'rotten' boiler.
 They might have better options.

The 15-year requirement necessitates all new sets of calculations, based
on the actual ultrasound readings..... but, those numbers must be recalculated,
whenever 1,472 days of boiler pressure have been reached --- like
every 5 years... ( 4 years of pressured-days + 12 months out-of-service days).

It's a good thing that this engine has it's owners paused before spending
a lot of money .... so, maybe a new boiler wouldn't be worth the cost.

​W.


 



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 01/29/23 22:01 by wcamp1472.

wcamp1472 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> You don't actually 'fail an ultrasound'.

It was tested to determine if the boiler was safe to operate.  Saying it failed is not an inaccurate way to sum up the end result.  Can the boiler be used?  No.  Could they reboiler the locomotive?  Of course.  Is there funding?  Not until the person with nothing better to do wins the Powerball.

Due to poor practices when the locomotive was parked, water was allowed to enter the boiler and caused corrosion.  When tested, it did not pass muster.

This photo shows the locomotive in 1999 when it was down for work.  While it did run after this, it did not run for long.  What you see here is how the boiler was kept for years after the last run.  Not good.

On top of the boiler issues, it needed A LOT of help with various appliances.  I won't go as far as to say it was another Gettysburg waiting to happen, but that engine needed to be parked toward the end of its career.

Mary McPherson
Dongola, IL
Diverging Clear Productions



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 01/30/23 05:38 by MaryMcPherson.

---

Thank you.

The Gettysburg dropped crown sheet was negligence on the part of 
everybody in the cab ---- The evidence of low water was the water level,
at the front of the crown sheet which was below the top row of boiler tubes.

There are numerous problems with the condition of the engine, any one of
which was a violation of the then extant FRA regulations.

During testimony taken by the NTSB, during their investigation of the dropped 
crown sheet, none of the Gettysburg employees questioned could describe
the proper way to test for proper operation of locomotive water glasses.

The valve bonnet for the lower water glass valve was removed during the boiler
examination & investigation purposes, and the pipe into the boiler is virtually
blocked with lime build-up.   Its still that way, today.

The Gettysburg incident was a matter of willful neglect and stupidity --- 
no water was visible in the glass for least 20 or 30 minutes of uphill
operation.

Thankfully, the 1278 is preserved at the Age of Steam Roundhouse, 

​W.