Please forgive me for being an idiot ([V]), but in all the time I’ve been involved in model railroading I’ve always only collected USRA type locos. Yet here on the forum I see a lot of you guys talking about L-1s, K-4s and so forth. I’d greatly appreciate if some of you would take a moment to educate me on these and other types of non USRA locos…
Thanks in advance.
TL
First…USRA engines were engines designed by the United States Railroad Administration during the World War 1 period. They weren’t given leteer/number classes by the USRA but were referred to by wheel arrangement and either “Light” or “Heavy” which referred to engine size (boiler & driver diameter and cylinder size).
Second…the letters and numbers you referenced were class designations given by the railroads to differentiate various locomotives. Some of the USRA engines owned by the many railroads would have probably been given some of these class designations.
The Pennsylvania RR, while famous for it’s own individually designed and built locos, had USRA 2-8-2’s which it classed as L-2’s after their numerous home designed 2-8-2’s the L-1’s.
There was no rhyme or reason to the letters given to the classes on most RRs. Some used the first or first, second or other letters of the Whyte classification for the wheel arrangement such as Mk (Mikado) PA (Pacific). Many used the letters as they progressed in the alphabet.
The numbers usually designate changes in the basic engines or major design changes. The N&W used the letter “Y” for its 2-8-8-2 articulateds. The major classes in that class were 1-6. Subclasses were specified with a small letter (a, b, etc.) So you could find 2-8-8-2’s on the N&W as Y-3, Y-3a, Y-5, Y-6, Y-6a and Y-6b as well as several others.
One other way of classifying steam engines was by number series rather than by using a letter. The Santa Fe & other roads did it this way…1950 class, 2900 class, etc.
If you want to model any specific RR you need to do the research on that road to find out what they did with their classifications.
Hope this helps you.
Roger
Tracklayer, you’re NOT an idiot. An idiot is someone who won’t ask the question.
Roger gave an excellent answer. My favorite road (gee, I wonder what that could be?)
[:D] also had a class of USRA heavy Mikados. They were classed in the O-3 class,
after the 145 Baldwin-built O-1s that were built to their own specs. (O-2 was a
one-off loco not typical of GN power). GN had 9 O-3s and used them on the Iron
Range-mostly as heavy switchers.
Each railroad had their own classes and ways of determing them. PRR apparently just used the next letter with each wheel arrangement as they started using them. Thus the A class are 0-4-0, B are 0-6-0. The number after the letter are the subclass. A small s at the end for superheated is sometimes included. The PRR K4s Pacific is probably their most famous engine, but the H9 Consolidation and E6 Atlantic are well known also. Certain designations are so famous that they are frequently used by thenselves such as the K4 above or the Y-6b (N&W).
Enjoy
Paul
On page 5 of the Model Railroader Cyclopedia Volume 1, Steam Locomotives, there is an incomplete table of letter designations used by some major railroads for the various wheel arrangements of steam locos. Some, like the PRR and N&W classes, are well known to steam aficionados. Other roads (NYC comes to mind) had locos better known by their type names. On NYC, the 4-6-4 Hudsons were class J. Ask 100 railfans which road ran J’s and 99 will say N&W. (N&W had a handful of those beautiful 4-8-4s. NYC had over 400 Hudsons!)
For that matter, some type names were not universally accepted. Most 4-8-4s were known as Northerns. NYC had Niagaras. Dixies ran the L&N. (Ain’t gonna run no Nawthuhn on THIS road, suh!)
The only sure way to find out how a particular railroad classified and named its locos is to check with its historical society.
The name applied to different engines (northern, yellowstone, etc.) is interesting. Generally the railroad that created a wheel arrangement and had it built go to name the type. So 4-8-4’s became “Northerns” after Northern Pacific, who also introduced the “Yellowstone” 2-8-8-4 which they named after the Yellowstone River and Nat’l Park NP served. “Mikado” comes from the first 2-8-2’s built here being sent to Japan, Mikado being their word for Emperor.
NYC 4-6-4’s were named “Hudsons” after the river they were designed to run beside. Oddly enough, Milwaukee apparently ordered 4-6-4’s the same time, but NYC’s were put in service first…otherwise 4-6-4’s would be called “Baltics” !!