Stumbled on to this interesting view of No 2760's firebox side (youtube, m611martin). Looks like a combination of washout plugs for circulators (top row) and then some sort of drafting device (bottom row).
The C&O had 90 of these so were some built w circulators v syphons?

The original ALCO order (2700-2739) all originally had syphons. The Lima order (2740-2759) had circulators but I don't know about the last ALCO order.

Here's a look at 2756's firebox and circulator set up

One of Lloyd Stagner's articles in Trains in the mid-Eighties mentioned that some ATSF engines had syphons replaced with circulators, if I recall correctly. A syphon was a big, relatively dark source of flame quench in an oilburner firebox, compared to security circulators, wasn't it?

A story I can easily believe, and I bet the man got out of that cab as fast as he could!

I have to wonder if the engine was an M1, though. That sort of thing suggests an engine with a front end throttle, in which the superheater is always full of steam. As I recall the Ms had dome throttles, which would suggest the superheater should have been empty.

Of course, I could be full of hooey. . .any Pennsy fans care to chime in?

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It's been nearly a year since any comments about Kentucky Steam Heritage and their efforts in restoring Kanawha 2716. I was on their site today and was surprised to see that there was some work done on 2716 toward making her Louisville & Nashville 2-8-4 #1992. I am not quite sure if the work shown was actually done (it appears it was) or whether this was photo manipulation. There is one photo of L&N 1992 which is surely a photo of a genuine L&N M1 class Berkshire, with renumbering as 1992. I've seen no other photos, so perhaps a comment from someone connected with the group could advise.

BTW, I have nothing against changing 2716 into L&N 1992, although (as pointed out on their website) there are some major differences between C&O and L&N 2-8-4's. At least they're being honest by giving her the next number up in the series, rather than as some previous "imitations" have done. What was really interesting on their website was the story about how the very last L&N Berk (#1991) was supposed to have been the very last Lima steamer delivered. A manufacturing glitch with NKP 779, forced Lima to send the 1991 out two days earlier than 779. Interesting story (if true) and I'll let others confirm it. An L&N 1992 might actually bring in some local funding for the group.

The main thing is that the group continues work on 2716, which is great to hear.

Les

Les. Thanks for upping this thread.

We have done a good amount of work to the engine, mainly involving inspecting and deciding if it's indeed smart to go ahead with a full mechanical rebuild. So far, there's really nothing out of the ordinary that we didn't expect.

We've not kicked off an official fundraising campaign yet, but did wind up receiving over 20k in donations to get the ball rolling. This spring we will initiate a formal fundraising campaign for moving the engine.

The firebox ultrasound has been completed, and there is some sidesheet and doorsheet replacement in our future, but nothing out of the ordinary. Wire wheel-ing the firebox interior, gridding and then ultrasonic testing comprised the bulk of the work that we did this summer. We've moved the engine several times with the help of KRM crews and inspected all the bearings. We also stripped years of paint off of the rods and inspected them. The big focus has been the tender. The tank is getting blasted and coated and we are going to replace a couple of thin spots on the bunker slope sheet. The next step is to convert the tender to roller bearings.

We met with Tom Stephens, former CMO of the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Soceity, and he generously donated the old SRR boiler tube pilot and headlight bracket that were used by Mr. Purdie and crew during the engine's brief career on the Southern.

We partnered with Ron Flanary and KRM to cosmetically alter the engine to look like an L&N "Big Emma" this fall to coincide with the L&N Historical Society Convention that was held in this part of the state. This involved removing the C&O pilot and putting the old "Purdie Pilot" back on, as well as some other cheaply-produced accouterments. Railroad purists were quick to point out the differences in the two classes of engines (most notably the valve gear), but all in attendance at the convention could feel the spirit of "Big Emma" return. It was surreal.

Mr. Flanary has written a nice piece for both Railfan and Railroad and Trains Magazine about the event.

Our 50 or so volunteers will be back at work in March.

We did several live videos of our work sessions, and have other content on our facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/co2716/

In 1984, #2716 was featured in a National Geographic video entitled "Love Those Trains". The "Southern Heritage Unit" decorated C&O Kanawha looked splendid and even the sound of the famed Southern Railway Ps4 whistle could be heard echoing over the hills. The excursion ran from Huntsville to Chattanooga, and the footage also includes the Chattanooga Choo Choo Hotel.

Oh man, I forgot about that episode. I watched that so many times as a kid.