Water Usage
To determine the water usage, the first step is to figure the grade from Blackhawk down to Forks Creek. Blackhawk's elevation is 8537 ft and Forks Creek is nominally 7000 ft for a rise of 1537 feet over 6.38 miles or an average grade of 4.5%.
From this, we can calculate the water usage per mile as (Rf+G)×Tw÷104 where Rf is the rolling friction in lbs/ton, G is the retarding force of gravity (also in lbs/ton) and Tw is the weight of the train in tons. I assume 10 lbs/ton for rolling friction and for an average grade of 4.5%, G is (4.50×20) or 90 lbs/ton. Lastly, I'm interested in the range for the maximum train weight - for an 0-4-0T this is 68+23.5=91.5 tons and for an 0-6-0T it is 71+25.5=96.5 tons. Then the table below summarizes water usage:
| 0-4-0T | 0-6-0T | |
|---|---|---|
| Water use (gal/mile) | 91.5×100÷104 = 87.9 | 96.5×100÷104 = 92.8 |
| Maximum Range (miles) | 800÷87.9 ≈ 9 miles | 700÷92.8 ≈ 7.5 miles |
Fuel Consumption
For determining fuel consumption, the two conversions used are to multiply the water use by 5/3 to arrive at the amount (in lbs) of coal burned. The second is that one cord of wood (128 cu. ft.) is the same as 1,000 lbs of coal. Using these, the following table can be filled in:| 0-4-0T | 0-6-0T | |
|---|---|---|
| Wood use (cu. ft./mile) | (87.9×5×128)÷(3×1000) = 12.5 | (92.8×5×128)÷(3×1000) = 13.2 |
| Maximum Range (miles) | 35÷12.5 ≈ 2.8 miles | 50÷13.2 ≈ 3.8 miles |