I had been operating on the assumption that all of these parts went together. given that they had been stored together for years as a group before coming to us and that the journal size on the wheel set seemed to match the size of the missing bearing in the bearing boxes (either 4x7 or 4 1/4x8)
Taking into account the unimpeachable expert testimony of Kelly (that lead truck wheels would have a larger lateral bearing surface on their face, much like locomotive drive wheels) and Earl (that 360,361 and 375's pilot trucks had separate journal boxes and that our bearing boxes are for an inside bearing lead truck) along with some more information I received on the parts' origin (they were purchased in Alamosa by Lindsey Ashby, from Floyd Reed, the scrapper that was cutting up most of the narrow gauge cars in Alamosa as well as cleaning up the "accumulated junk" from around the locomotive and car shops), it would seem that what we have are the remains (pedastals, bearing boxes and curved spring things) from an inside bearing pilot truck with 4x7 bearings and 24" wheels (as the parts seem to sit "right" on the 24" wheelset we have assembled them on) from a C-19 (24" wheels, 4x7 bearings) and a wheelset. Hopefully we will find a locomotive number stamped on the pieces parts. (the marks chisled onto the pedastals, numbered 1 to 4, and the spring things, LF and RF, indicate that they are a set from the same truck)
As to the wheelset, it has 24" wheels and outside bearings, along with the remains of black paint on the faces of the wheels and white paint the full circumference of the side of the tread (as one might expect of a locomotive lead truck or tender wheelset). Based upon the admitadly limited reference material I have here, the only use of 24" wheels on the D&RGW was on locomotive lead trucks up to the lone C-25. Anything larger (K-27 on up) uses larger diameter wheels with at least 5x9 bearings. On the tender front, from the T-12's to the C-25, all have 26' wheels with 4x7 or smaller bearings. K-27 and up use 26" wheels and 5x9 bearings. None of the tenders seem to use 24" wheels.
Thus, a question for Earl (assuming he has the patience to wade through all my ramblings); Did 360/361 and/or 375's lead trucks use collared axles and bearings as seen on our wheelset? Given their separate journal boxes, this would seem to make sense.
If so, then it would seem that Alamosa kept a wheel set from one of them around in case it was needed for the others. Based on the folio sheets, the C-21's, 360 and 361 and the lone C-25, 375, were the only locomotives on the D&RGW narrow gauge that used 24" wheels and outside bearings on their lead trucks. 375 was scrapped first, in June 1949, while 360 lasted until August of 1950 and 361 until November of 1951. Perhaps someone thought it was worth saving the pilot truck wheelset from 375 in case it was needed on 360 or 361. Or perhaps there was something else on the D&RGW that used 24" wheels that were decorated (white trim) like locomotive wheels often were.
Jason Midyette
