Re: Boiler repair questions for those of us who are uniformed

I believe that it is much more common on oil fired locomotive boilers to seal weld the flues on the firebox end than with coal or wood. As I understand the procedure the flues are rolled and beaded on the firebox end then seal welded. The thinking is that with oil firing changes can occur in firebox temperature much more quickly than with coal or wood, making the flue ends more likely to leak due to the rapid expansion or contraction. A good example would be when the drivers get spun on an oil fired engine and the fireman isn't on top of his game, much cold air can be sucked into the firebox. Similarly the fireman can quickly go from a spot fire to near maximum firing in the flick of the wrist. This is not recommended procedure but can occur to varying degrees.