611 Rods

[NW Mailing List]

The rods for all Js (and other N&W Shop-built engines) were made in Roanoke 
Shop.  Replacement rods for older N&W power were also made in Roanoke.

Lightweight rods for the Js and last five As were made from an alloy 
furnished by Timken known as "high dynamic" alloy.

They were all forged in Roanoke's Smith Shop and machined in the Machine 
Shop.  The web on the side rods of the J was a quarter inch thick.  The web 
on the J main rods was a half inch thick.

Roanoke didn't need anybody's help in manufacturing side or main rods, or 
any valve gear parts not furnished by the Pilliod Company (the Baker 
mechanisms).

Roanoke also made side rods for the Gainesville Midland 2-10-0 #206, which 
you can see today in Spencer Shops as Seaboard #544.  Roanoke made two side 
rods for the Russian Decapod to replace two broken in service.  They're easy 
to spot on the preserved engine.

Ed King

-----Original Message----- 
From: NW Mailing List
Sent: Sunday, May 03, 2015 11:10 PM
To: NW Mailing List
Subject: 611 Rods

I'd like to clear up some questions regarding the side rods on the 611.

Some people have claimed that the rods for the 611 were fabricated in
the shops in Roanoke, referring to an N&W film that shows rods being
forged and machined in Roanoke Shops.
Others stated that the rods for 611 were made by Timken, not the N&W's
Roanoke Shops.

So here's the story:
The rods for the Class J were originally fabricated in Roanoke Shops as
shown in the company film. Look closely and you will see that the
intermediate rod between the number 2 and 3 drivers was actually 2 rods
installed side-by-side. This caused the rods to be set out from the
drivers and the need for long crank pins.

According to Bud Jeffries' book "Giants of Steam", in 1952 a failure of
the crank pin on the number 4 driver led to a redesign of the rods. The
new lightweight rods only required one rod between the drivers, allowing
the rods to be located closer to the wheels and shortening the
crank-pins. This reduced the stresses seen by the crank pins and solved
the problem.

These new rods were fabricated from a lightweight alloy by Timken, not
Roanoke Shops. The new rods were installed on numbers 600, 605, 610 and 611.

So despite the N&W film showing rods being fabricated in Roanoke, the
rods on 611 today were made by Timken.

Ron Davis

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