Time to chime in with a few official facts and comments about the D&SNG motive power.
The D&SNG does not live in a vacuum, times change. Our goal is to be able to have a sustainable business that can grow. Oil has been in the conversation for decades at the D&SNG primarily because our customers are increasingly less interested in riding behind coal burners. As we learn more about changing fuel sources we will continue to refine our oil program and will continue to see the additional benefits, and maybe even a couple frustrations, of burning oil.
That said the 493 is doing great, one finicky trailer truck brass is all that’s holding us back from load testing. Based on what we have seen so far, there doesn’t appear to be any loss of steaming capabilities. The oil we are using is a recycled oil that, with the help of our suppliers, have spent over a year sourcing and optimizing the blend (SP18 was the test bed for this). While oil cost is a little higher it is not drastically higher than coal costs. As far as the oil BTU’s go, they have been in the 19-20,000’s vs. King Coal that is about 14,000 for comparison.
Yes the 473 is indeed being converted to burn oil. No it is not undergoing a 1472 sdi. In fact, thanks to now having a 7th locomotive, we should not have a 1472sdi in the next 4-5 years on any of our locomotives. The decision to convert the 473 was made in large part due to the fact it received new tubes last year and was due to receive some new firebox sheets this winter anyhow; it was an easy choice. Our friend Jeff Livingston of the Hawaiian Railroad museum helped us tons by gathering Alco drawings from the Oahu Railway 2-8-2’s at the Bishop museum in Honolulu. The Oahu locomotives boilers, running gear and frames are exact duplicates to our K28’s so much of the information is directly transferable. We anticipate 473 to be in service this summer.
As for the rest of the fleet, yes we are creating CAD drawings and in some cases making oil components in Noah’s ark fashion – 2 by 2. 486 will not see any service in 2020 (again no 1472) and will re emerge in 2021. We will let you know future conversions when we are ready to announce them.
As for the other engines, and their current work goes, it’s a pretty typical winter in Durango:
476 is in service
480 is getting a driver job and will get some firebox work
481 is undergoing a 5 year cap inspection and receiving some running gear work
482 is also receiving running gear work and should return to service next month
Remember that the history of these locomotives did not stop in 1968 and will not stop as long as they are still revenue making tools. So when you come visit the D&SNG in 2020, you will be able to ride behind one of six steam locomotives and it will burn either coal or oil.
BTW as for asking about the diesels, more about them will come in time.
Randy B.
CMO
D&SNGRR
