Re: 82's Leading Patricks West- Question on 82 cl gear ratios & what

[mauried@commslab.gov.au (Maurie Daly)]

In article <37bac373@nap-ns1> "Grahame Ferguson" <grahamef@users.mcmedia.com.au> writes:
>From: "Grahame Ferguson" <grahamef@users.mcmedia.com.au>
>Subject: Re: 82's Leading Patricks West- Question on 82 cl gear ratios & what
>Date: Wed, 18 Aug 1999 23:50:28 +1000


>Maurie Daly wrote in message ...
>>
>>
>>
>>>I think that the NRC should have tried the Westrail 'Q' class- 4000hp,
>>>radial bogies, D87BTR traction motors, a much better package.
>>
>>The Qs didnt exist at the time the NRs were ordered and fuel costs were of
>>paramount importance to NRC as they had then to pay the fuel excise.
>>Four stroke locos still win hands down in fuel efficiency over 2 strokes
>and
>>would have been a big deciding factor .
>>As a rough example the EMD 16-710G3 series engine as used in the Qs and the
>>SRA 90s pulls approx 1200 litres / hour in 8th notch compared with the
>>GE7FDL-16 engine in the NR which uses only 860 litres / hour in 8th notch.
>>Things are better now with the removal of the fuel excise.
>>
>>MD
>>
>>

>Dear Maurie,
>                        The figures you quote seem extremely weighted
>towards the NRs, and if it were true no railway would go near an EMD engine.

> BUT, from what I could get off the US internet, the fuel consumption rates
>are as such:
>(NB: these are in US gallons)(SD70 nearly the same as a 90 class, and a
>Dash9-40 nearly the same as an NR)

>SD70  = 3.0 gallons/hour at idle,  191 gallons/hour at full load.

>Dash 9-40C = 3.6 gallons/hour at idle, 2.5 at low idle and 190 gallons/hour
>at full load.

>Dash9-44CW = 3.6 gallons/hour at idle, 2.5 at low idle, and 210 gallons/hour
>at full load.

>The source given to me was Norfolk Southern form1014"Condensed List and
>Description of Locomotives", page 131.

>So it would appear that the fuel consumption rates are nearly the same.

>So maybe the NRC should have looked to Clyde for a better locomotive.



Well Graham , the fuel figures I quoted are from the SRA themselves,and I cant 
prove they are correct,and would welcome any more accurate or up to date 
numbers.
This is for the SRA 90.

Notch	Gal/Hr	Engine HP	Traction Hp

     0  	 18  	197  		  0                                                 
     1  	 44  	502 		 305                                                  
     2  	 75 	 900 		 703                                                   
     3  	113 	1407 		1210                                                  
     4  	146	 1915		 1718                                                  
     5  	177 	2422 		2225                                                  
     6  	204 	2930 		2733                                                   
     7  	227 	3437 		3240                                                  
     8  	274	 3945 		3748   

I am also not a NR advocate or fan ,and beleive that they were the wrong loco 
for NRC to buy in that they bought too many and didnt need 4000 HP locos.
Fuel consumption isnt everything when buying a new loco,there are many other 
considerations,like price , cost of spare parts,maintenance costs,similar 
other locos in the fleet etc.
NR claimed at the time of purchase that the NRs were the most fuel efficient 
loco offered,and presumably went to some effort to find out.
The Qs didnt exist when NRC was created and when the NRs were ordered so 
maybe in hindsight they would have been a better loco,we will never know.
What was available at the time was the AN class which one would have thought 
would be a good candidate ,having the big D87BTR motors and the 710G series 
engine,but obviously not.

MD