Sorry about missing a few days I went to protland to see Neil Diamond, the Uninon Station, and the Challenger. So here is today’s question.
ANWER: 8-10
uuhh…does ‘too much’ count???
Don’t ask me to do all the shoveling 
Any other volunters? And where there any engines who burned more coal per hour? or is that a stupid question? DD
I heard that if you shovled it, you wouldn’t get enough steam to blow the whistle.
Which one should I choose if I want to select 10? (or even 8 or 12, for that matter?) Two choices for each of these! For some reason, I was thinking that it was about 5 tons per hour, but that isn’t an option. I guess I’ll wait for the answer soon.
If you are talking about now, the answer is zero.
If you are talking about before they were converted to oil I don’t know, so I’ll say No.2(8-10)
From what I’ve read, the answer isn’t UP there! ( Pun intended! [;)] )
I read somewhere between 22-28 tons per hour at full steam!
Rotor
Only 1 of the 25 Big Boys (#4005, I think) was ever converted to oil burning. The experiment was unsuccessful and she was returned to coal burning.
Also, the original question was about how many tons WERE (past tense) burned, not how many tons are burned now. Although your answer of zero tons now is correct (and funny). [:D]
Jeff
And the answer is…?
He won’t reveal the answer until 10PM.[:D]
Jeff
more than i wanna carry
Whatever it takes! I wonder what the crews did if the stoker froze due to one of those infamous Wyoming blizzards? Put another Big Boy on the barbie mate!
You are correct in 4005 being the victim of the failed oil conversion, the UP employed a single burner where two should have been installed, poor steaming abilities, low boiler pressure, oil control issues were the main reason for the failure. It was done out of desperation due to it’s main coal supplier being out on strike yet again at the height of the fall rush season.
Dave
quote from: http://www.trainweb.org/jlsrr/bigboy/information/dimensions/dimensions.htm
Under full steam, the engine burned an average of 122,500lbs of water (12,500 gallons) and 22 tons (44,000lbs) of semi-bituminous coal per hour! However, it has been know to happen when pulling an extremely long train up Sherman Hill, BigBoy would burn 225,000lbs (25,000 gallons) of water an 28 tons (56,000lbs) of coal in a 27 mile period! He had a voracious appetite
I knew I’d read that somewhere!
Rotor
Yep that is what they said down at Steamtown!
The history channel said on average it burned 8-10 tons of coal an hour.
And in the same show I believe they claimed that there were 20 Big Boys, not 25. So don’t believe everything you hear on the history channel.[:D]
Jeff
Quote from: http://www.nationalrrmuseum.org/collections-092-steam-up-4017.html
The large 14-wheel tender attached to Big Boy could carry 28 tons of coal and 24,000 gallons of water. This was enough to feed the locomotive for about an hour when hauling a train over the Wahsatch or Sherman Hill. In fact, a fuel stop was usually required at Red Buttes or Harriman between Cheyenne and Laramie, a distance of 55 miles.
Once again, it seems, don’t believe everything you see on TV! [:D]
Rotor
What about coming down Sherman Hill, then how much is used? 8-10 tons average also matches an old UP film I have.
That must have been going downhill! [;)][:D][:p]
Rotor
Or more likely flat with no load.