This is my 28-75 Case plowing in October 1974 on my Uncle’s
land [Doug Beamish]. We are pulling 10-14′ bottoms. This land
is very heavy. If the plows weren’t right in, they just dragged
on top. Myself operating, my cousin, Robert, firing. My other
cousin, Ed, lifting in levers and also on the plow in my good steam
friend, Gordon Mundle of Binscarth.
To all Iron-Men Album Readers – I would like to point out
something about horsepower. All 75 Case’s were not 25 HP. The
older engines were because they only had 250 square feet of heating
surface. By the way: the first figure is not draw bar HP – it is
boiler HP. The second number represented belt HP. My 75 Case engine
has a triple riveted lap seam boiler the same that was placed on
many 80 HP Case engines. The heating surface is 282.6 square feet.
There is 1 boiler HP for every 10 square feet of heating surface.
Divide 282.6 by 10 and you get 28 HP.
The butt strap boiler on the 80 HP Case had 283.1 square feet.
The only difference is there are 56 tubes instead of 58 and the
tubes are 100-1/2′ instead of 96-1/2′. Draw bar HP was
calculated 50% to 75% of HP of engine which would give you 28 to 56
HP on the 28-75 Hp Case. I have been very disappointed to see so
many write ups take the first figure as drawbar HP which is not
so!
Right shot shows the Case pulling 10 bottoms in good tough
stubble land. Gordon Mundle of Binscarth is operating, while I am
firing. We also used my Uncle Doug’s 22-65 Case. The 75 with
its 11 X 11 bore and stroke, same as the 80, handled the 10 bottoms
very easily.
This picture was taken on the grounds of the Allegheny
Mountaineers 1975 Show. The show was over and the engines were
lined up here to be picked up by Dennis Smith’s low boy truck
to be hauled to the Morrison Cove Power Reunion which would be the
following week.
The first engine in line is a Peerless owned by Blair Sell of
Duncansville, Pa.; next engine is a Frick owned by Lloyd Calhoun of
Everett, Pa.; next in line is a Frick owned by Lester Beach of
Martinsburg, Pa.; another Frick owned by Joe Dull of Alum Bank,
Pa.; then a Frick owned by Dennis Smith of Roaring Springs, Pa.;
then a Case owned by James Stiffler of Altoona, Pa.; and last
engine is a Huber owned by Henry Dull of Alum Bank, Pa. Picture was
taken by Ethel Moch of Alum Bank.
My friend, Gordon Mundle and myself standing beside a piece of
boiler plate. The dome on the wagon top had blown off and the stays
in the leg had been broken in half like toothpicks. The iron was
1/2′ thick. This engine blew up in 1899 near Millwood,
Manitoba. The cause was believed to be low water. The engineer and
fireman were killed. Pieces of them were supposed to be hanging in
the trees off the right of was. We dug this piece out of the ground
quite some distance away from the fence off the right of way. The
boiler and tender apparently blew off the wheels. The train was
supposed to have coasted about two it did. He was supposed to have
walked to the front to find nothing but the wheels. A resident in
the town still has the fire door complete with the cast frame. The
brass bell was sold several years ago for $3.00. The tender was
completely buried over about seven years ago on the right of way
along with the rest of the pieces of boiler plate. We dug down
through about four feet of earth and roots for the plate. This
particular piece was 73′ wide and 14’6′ long and
weighed approximately 1800 lbs.