Saturday, April 26, 2014

Vulcan industrial loco

Since I am moving slowly on the steam pump company model I thought I would post some industrial locomotive equipment.  First is an early (perhaps about 1920) 24-inch gauge Vulcan "friction drive" gasoline locomotive intended for industrial use.  The friction drive was apparently accomplished by rollers driven by the engine's motor which then pressed on the drivers and moved them by friction.  Seems kind of clunky to me but the premise was to achieve a powerful, low speed drive.  This loco was 3 1/2 ton and had a sheet steel canopy, probably to protect the engineer from falling industrial detritus such as crushed rock, coal, etc.


I saw a more modern vulcan loco in operation at a stone quarry in Virginia about 20+ years ago.  It also had a sheet steel cover over the loco.  This loco is a diesel providing perhaps an 80 year span for somewhat similar locos.


I doubt I will ever build a model of either of these but I find them interesting.


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1 comment:

  1. Randy HeesOctober 16, 2023 at 5:50 PM

    Hello Stan,

    The image of the small Vulcan "Friction Drive" is a challenge... Vulcan's (Wilkes Barre, PA) known small, early gas locomotives are known for their worm gear drive with side rods connecting the two axles, so "friction drive" is outside the known production. Do you remember where you got that image? Beyond it being an unknown drive style, it is similar to other Vulcan products. I have considered that it might be a product of Vulcan Foundry in England, which also built small locomotives.

    I suspect that the second image is an EMD end cab switcher, working for a company named "Vulcan" rather than a Vulcan Iorn Works built locomotive.

    Randy Hees

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