In reference to the UP 4014 consist, Is there any way to tell a fuel aux tender from a water aux tender? Did I read somewhere that one or the other was an actual steam loco tender put back in use, but the other was fabricated?
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This link might answer your questions.
@CALNNC posted:In reference to the UP 4014 consist, Is there any way to tell a fuel aux tender from a water aux tender?
There is no such thing as a "fuel auxiliary tender". Auxiliary tenders for any and all steam locomotives were/are ONLYfor water (which is gravity feed into the main tender).
Did I read somewhere that one or the other was an actual steam loco tender put back in use, but the other was fabricated?
No, i.e. both UP auxiliary tenders were originally main tenders on the early 800 series 4-8-4 steam locomotives, as well as the early 3900 series Challengers. When those various steam locomotives were removed from service, the tenders were rebuilt and modified as all fuel (heavy bunker C fuel) for General Electric gas turbine locomotives.
When the GETL (General Electric Turbine Electric) units were eventually removed from service, quite a few of those fuel tenders were repurposed as fuel. or water, storage for various places around the UP system. Eventually, two or three of those tenders were "acquired" by the Steam Crew in Cheyenne, and converted to all water for use behind either 4-8-4 8444/844 and or 4-6-6-4 3985. After many years in steam excursion service, those two auxiliary water tenders were completely rebuild, including removal of all the internal electric heating elements (used to keep the bunker C fluid), and all the external insulation & jacketing. That is now how those two auxiliary water tenders appear today as used behind 4014.
Thanks for clearing that up for me. If you are in the know on the 4014, when it was first out and about, and on the run to West Chicago where I and the family traveled from NC to go see it, you would always see steam leaking from the front cylinders, and the cylinder cocks, but the rears were perfect, not a wisp of steam anywhere. Was 4014 running on the front cylinders only, to get it to the 150th Anniv. Golden Spike ceremony, or did they just do a better machining job on the rear cylinders?
I believe you are mixing up two different time periods. First, when 4014 and 844 went to Utah in 2019, the piston rod packing was leaking on BOTH sets of cylinders. Someone miscalculated the full piston rod stroke when the piston rods were sent out for re-grinding, thus the forward portion of the piston rods were NOT properly finished, which prematurely wore out the metallic rod packing. That situation was corrected by 2020/2021.
Also, a simple articulated steam locomotive can NOT operate on just the forward, or rear, pair of cylinders. All four cylinders receive the same amount of steam.
When 4014 came through the Chicago area, headed back to Cheyenne, I did not see any unusual "steam leaks" when she went past me in Lombard, IL.
