St. Louis–San Francisco 4500

St. Louis–San Francisco Railway (reporting mark SLSF, also known as the "Frisco") locomotive 4500 is a 4-8-4 Northern type steam engine.[1]

Frisco 4500
Frisco 4500 being moved to Tulsa, OK, in 2011
Type and origin Power type Steam Builder Baldwin Locomotive Works Serial number 64449 Build date November 1942
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 4-8-4 Gauge 4 ft 8 ^1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge Leading dia. 38 in (965 mm) Driver dia. 74 in (1,880 mm) Trailing dia. 44 in (1,118 mm) Axle load 70,620 lb (32,032.7 kilograms; 32.0 tonnes) Adhesive weight 280,340 lb (127,000 kg) Loco weight 474,040 lb (215,000 kg) Tender weight 341,300 lb (154,810 kg) Total weight 815,340 lb (369,800 kg) Fuel type Oil Fuel capacity 6,500 US gal (25,000 l; 5,400 imp gal) Water cap 18,000 US gal (68,000 l; 15,000 imp gal) Boiler pressure 255 lbf/in^2 (1.76 MPa) Cylinders 2 Cylinder size 28 in × 31 in (711 mm × 787 mm)
Performance figures Maximum speed 80 mph (129 km/h) Tractive effort 71,188 lbf (316.66 kN), 80,800 lbf (359 kN) with booster Factor of adh. 3.94
Career Operators St. Louis-San Francisco Class 4500 First run 1942 Retired 1950s Disposition Display

History

No. 4500 was built as an oil-burning steam locomotive by Baldwin in 1942 for Frisco passenger service.[1] It was the first 4-8-4 Northern that Frisco ordered. Along with similar locomotives 4501 and 4502, it was painted in the zephyr blue, white and gray paint scheme with "Meteor" spelled out on the side of the tender in bold, red letters.[1] It was used for pulling Frisco's crack Meteor train service.[1] No. 4500 even saw service pulling Frisco's Texas Special. When the Meteor was dieselized, No. 4500 was re-painted into Frisco's standard black with gold striping and lettering, and assigned to passenger trains such as the Will Rogers.[1]

Specifications

While the Frisco 4500-series 4-8-4s designed to be coal-burning weighed 462,500 lbs, oil-burning models like Numbers 4500 to 4502 weighed 454,000 lbs. But the whole series had 74" drivers, 28 x 31 cylinders, a boiler pressure of 250 psi, and a tractive effort of 69,800 pounds.[2]

Preservation

No. 4500 was repainted back into the Meteor paint scheme and is on static display for free public viewing at the Route 66 Village at 3770 Southwest Blvd. in Tulsa, Oklahoma.[3]

References

1. "St. Louis - San Francisco Railway Company ("Frisco") 4501". Museum of the American Railroad. Retrieved February 9, 2020.
2. "St Louis-San Francisco 4-8-4 "Northern" Locomotives in the USA". SteamLocomotive.com. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
3. "Route 66 Historical Village". TravelOK.com. Retrieved January 16, 2019.

• Class 4500 specs