Question for 1:1 steam operators

I'm not 100% certain on this but I would venture to say that an auto-stoker would create a V as the coal works its way into the hole where the auger is located.  I'm sure someone will have a much better answer than I've just given.

Great question.

coach joe posted:

I would like to model a steam tender with less than a full load of coal.  I believe a tender when the fireman is stoking would develop a "V" shaped depression toward the doors at the front of the tender but I'm not sure if a tender equipped with an auto-stoker would empty the same way or would develop a uniform depression down the length of the coal bunker.

First, there is no such thing as an "auto-stoker", since the Fireman controls all operations of the stoker, i.e. speed of the coal delivery and distribution of that coal being delivered over the fire bed. 

That said, the coal does indeed get used from the front of the tender coal bunker, pretty much the same way as when being hand-fired with a shovel. The vast majority of railroads had movable steel plates covering most of the stoker auger screw trough, so that the stoker engine did not have to turn the auger screw with the entire weight of all the coal in the tender on it. As the coal was used in the forward portion of the tender, the Fireman would then open the big steel coal-gate doors, and using a long steel hook, pull the next steel slide forward, thus releasing more coal int the auger screw trough. The Fire would repeat this action, until the coal bunker was virtually out of coal. Prior to refilling the tender with coal, all the steel trough slides, would be pushed back towards the rear of the trough, then the tender was refilled with. coal.

  Any info or pictures would be appreciated.

Hey, I never knew that. Thanks for the fun information.

I’m modeling an empty tender for a MOW train. The first is inside a CNW tender at Illinois Railway Museum. Note there are couplers on both end. I found the Pennsy tender on line. The NYC Mohawk in Elkhart, Indiana has a second tender behind it that has a steel plate over the top of the tender where coal would go. I had a few pics of that, but now can’t find them.

Thanks Hot, I expected you would answer.  I figured the auger ran the whole length of the tender but had no idea about the sliding plates.

Lionel modelled these sliding plates in the tender of their Smithsonian 0 gauge Dreyfus Hudson:

Regards

Fred

Hot Water posted:

coach joe posted:

I would like to model a steam tender with less than a full load of coal.  I believe a tender when the fireman is stoking would develop a "V" shaped depression toward the doors at the front of the tender but I'm not sure if a tender equipped with an auto-stoker would empty the same way or would develop a uniform depression down the length of the coal bunker.

First, there is no such thing as an "auto-stoker", since the Fireman controls all operations of the stoker, i.e. speed of the coal delivery and distribution of that coal being delivered over the fire bed. 

That said, the coal does indeed get used from the front of the tender coal bunker, pretty much the same way as when being hand-fired with a shovel. The vast majority of railroads had movable steel plates covering most of the stoker auger screw trough, so that the stoker engine did not have to turn the auger screw with the entire weight of all the coal in the tender on it. As the coal was used in the forward portion of the tender, the Fireman would then open the big steel coal-gate doors, and using a long steel hook, pull the next steel slide forward, thus releasing more coal int the auger screw trough. The Fire would repeat this action, until the coal bunker was virtually out of coal. Prior to refilling the tender with coal, all the steel trough slides, would be pushed back towards the rear of the trough, then the tender was refilled with. coal.

  Any info or pictures would be appreciated.

 

If you are the N&W.