A mistake in identity?

March 13, 2022March 14, 2022 vintagedieseldesign1 Comment

I have two c. 1944 advertisements in my collection – both featuring a Type 327 ST tug, built for the US Army, one from Enterprise, and the other from Busch-Sulzer.

You will note….both advertisements feature the same tug, ST-246! These 86′ Type (design) 327 tugs were built throughout WWII by numerous shipyards across the country and used 3 main types of propulsion, all of which were direct reversing engines:

Enterprise Engine & Foundry Co. – DMG-38: 8 cylinder, 12″ x 15″, 650HP
Busch-Sulzer – 6DFMT-17: 6 cylinder, 13″ x 17″, 650HP
Clark Brothers – MD-6: 6 cylinder, 12 /2″ x 16″, 650HP

It is likely that both of these companies used a stock photo provided by the Army, however it is indeed good for a laugh. A good portion of these tugs went on to postwar careers, many of which would get EMD 567ATL repowers. The Great Lakes region is home to a handful of these, as well as some with original Enterprise engines. The Enterprise seems to have been the better choice of the three. Other classes of ST tugs built during WWII featured a swath of other engine makes, including EMD, Atlas Imperial, Cat, Superior-National, Buda, Kahlenberg, Fairbanks-Morse and others.

According to Dan Friend’s roster – the 246 had the Enterprise (and may still be around!) – https://www.usarmysttugs.com/uploads/3/3/1/4/3314314/ww2_st_st_9_-_937__9_26_2014.pdf

Sarter Marine Towings *Susan L* (ST-709) is still powered by her original Enterprise DMG-38, and is likely one of the only direct reversing tugs still working commercially.

Montana Western 31

February 23, 2022February 23, 2022 vintagedieseldesign1 Comment

With the help of Winton, the Electro-Motive Company pioneered and developed gasoline-electric railcars. Hundreds of these cars were built in the 1920’s-1930’s, and were an important stepping stone in the development of the forthcoming Diesel-Electric generation of railcars and locomotives.

Only a small handful of these cars remain, including Montana Western #31, at the Mid-Continent Railway Museum in North Freedom, Wisconsin. #31 was donated to the museum in 1965.

The car was built in 1925 for the Great Northern Railway as their #2313, and was sold to shortline Montana Western in 1940. Only the front truck on these cars is powered.

While the date on the plate is 10/1925, the car’s engine was not shipped until 4/1926, leading me to think this may have been a contract date.

Inside, the car is essentially 100% original, including these lush purple velvet walkover seats. A small smoking section is in the compartment forward of this one.

Ahead of the smoking section is a baggage room, as well as being home to the cars heating boiler.

The rear end of the car features a control stand, as well as a small bathroom opposite of it.

Forward of the baggage room is the engine room, home to the 6- Cylinder Winton 106A gasoline engine and control stand.

Stepping back a few feet gives us a better overall view of the engine, showing the central carburetor and intake manifold. These early engines used General Electric electrical gear. The three exhaust pipes head straight up to the roof.

Forward of the engine is the engineers corner with the various controls and brake system, note the use of a “trolley” style controller. My ears bleed just thinking of being this close to the engine!

The engine in #31 is a Winton 106A, a 7 1/4″ bore x 8″ stroke, 4 stoke, 6-cylinder gasoline engine. The engine was rated for 250HP at 1200RPM. Previous model 106 was a slightly smaller, 7″x8″ engine, rated for 200HP at 1000RPM.

What is interesting is the Winton record for this engine lists it as a 106B. It is likely this is simply a typo on the record sheets, as other engines labeled 106A are listed with the same shipping date.

Looking toward the magneto side. While you can access the cab through doors on either side, or by climbing over the generator – it is still an extremely cramped space.

A better view of the engine from the Winton manual for these engines.

Special thanks to Bill B. at Mid-Continent for arranging a look inside this rare piece of equipment. #31 is currently not in operable condition, however the museum does have a 2nd spare parts engine it obtained from Sperry Rail – once a large user of Gas-Electric railcars. Be sure to stop by the museum if you are in the area, they have an amazing collection!

https://www.midcontinent.org/equipment-roster/dieselother-locomotives/montana-western-31/

Video of a Winton 106A engine on youtube, by user Taitset.

New on VDD – Pages

January 10, 2022January 30, 2022 vintagedieseldesign1 Comment

One of my big griefs with setting this up as a blog format initially, was that after a certain period of time, the posts would disappear off the home page. I was working around this initially by doing a post every so often with a listing of every post.

Now, you will see on the right hand side of the page..

… a listing of various topics we have covered. In each of these pages is a sub listing of all the articles that pertain to that topic, essentially making this more of a website, then a blog.

This is the first step in hopefully a bunch of cool new things coming this year, so stay tuned! Be sure to sign up on the right hand side as well, and you will get an email (NOTE: It does go to spam sometimes!) whenever we make a new post.

Note – Apparently these pages do NOT show up when your viewing on a phone..

Vintage Diesel Design

Documenting some of the most prominent engine designs and uses of the 1930's-1960's

Category: Uncategorized

A mistake in identity?

Montana Western 31

New on VDD – Pages