3rd Rail has been very good to the B&O steam fans over the last 10-15 years. We now have EM-1s, Big Sixes, Q4 Mikados. T3 and T4 Mountains, and a really great P7e Pacific, and a very limited production P7d on the way later this year.
But there is another engine out there for 3rd Rail to consider. It would also meet the request for smaller steam that appears from time to time on this forum. It is the E27b Consolidation. These engines were built in 1909 and 1910 by the ALCO plant in Richmond. They were modernized through the years and most received the subclass designation of ca. The cylinders were changed to 24x30 inches, engine weight increased to 244,900 lbs, and tractive effort increased to 50,900 lbs. Considering that the B&O Q3 USRA light Mikes had a tractive effort of 53,800 lbs, that was pretty good for a Consolidation. Many of these engines also received the B&O Crew cab of the day, with the extra seat for the brakeman. There is a caption in B&O Power that says they were called “Sport Models” by the engine crews. Considering they never received stokers, the firemen were probably pretty good sports to fire one. They did last until 1958 though.
These are pretty classic looking, small steam engines. S Helper Service made a nice model in S scale about 10 years ago. Even though it was a B&O prototype, it has a standard ALCO Consol appearance about it. I believe it is a project that Scott Mann is considering. But he needs to know if there is enough of a demand to start the project. It is a nice sized prototype that would look good on moderate sized layouts too.
