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LDLAWRENCE — Fireless Steam Engine
Published: 2009-01-07 00:10:04 +0000 UTC; Views: 1411; Favourites: 42; Downloads: 52
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Description
Here is another shot from the Mahoning Valley Railroad Heritage Association's Steel Valley Railroad Museum.Up front is Southern Ohio Power Co. 0-4-0 fireless locomotive. A fireless locomotive is just that, a locomotive that doesn't carry an on board fire to power it. Instead an external steam source is needed to pressurize the locomotive. Once fully charged the locomotive can run for about 3 hours before needing recharged again.
I have run into these two loco motives before. [link]
Included in this shot are:
Southern Ohio Power Co. 0-4-0 Fireless Locomotive
Sharon Steel Co. Ingot Mold Car #235
Youngstown Sheet & Tube 0-4-0 Plymouth EL Engine #320
50' Boxcar
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Comments: 23
As big of a train fan as I am, I ONLY JUST learned how a "fireless" steam locomotive works about a month ago. I've been confused about it since I was old enough to read and saw a fireless engine in a book.
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Always wanted to make an air-driven one with a soda bottle or something. Interesting, those fireless types are!
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This wasn't the only type of fireless steam locomotive. Google "soda locomotives" and "ammonia motors" both largely forgotten. There were also compressed-air locomotives, which served in coal mines where they could not trigger a dust explosion and did not pollute the air.
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I've heard about these engines, they usually ran around chemical plants to shunt trucks around, but to keep the chemicals from being contaminant with the smoke, soot, and impurity's, a steam plant from a fair distance away would pressurize it and the engine would run
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Yep.
Just like a big thermos.
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Nice to see such locos apparently preserved (given the comment on the older pic about them being buried under a pile of scrap)
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Yep.
Not too many engines like these make it to preservation.
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Sounds a little like the old electric cars. Seems like it would have to be used as a switch engine.
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Definetly ahead of its time despite its age. Nice job taking the shot man.
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I know IRM has a fireless, but it doesn't run. I have a picture of it that I need to scan.
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Cool! I didn't know that there were any still working. This one here is completely shot.
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I don't think the one at IRM works either. Unfortunately, they've been without operating steam for a few years now.
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I've seen these in a book except they ran off of compress air
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These are similar but run on steam. It's compressed in the tank that looks like a boiler.
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There's a really cool railway museum up nearby Chicago that you'd likely enjoy. I think it was the Illinois Railway Museum, but I'd have to double-check.
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Yup. And they have both a fireless and a small industrial switcher, and a few other things... [link] [link] [link] [link]
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Yea, I have a few photos from my passing through there as well. Some pretty cool machines, well kept.
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I hope to have more in the near future.
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