| Rio Grande No. 493 | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| D&SNG (Former D&RGW) No. 493 At Fassbinder Bridge, October 8, 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||
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D&SNG No. 493 is a K-37 class 2-8-2 "Mikado" type narrow gauge steam locomotive that used to be a C-41 class 2-8-0 "Consolidation" type standard gauge steam locomotive built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in Philadelphia, PA in 1902 for the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad (D&RG), later known as the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad (D&RGW). First it was a D&RG class 190, then it was a D&RGW class C-41. It was later rebuilt in 1928 into a D&RGW class K-37.
493 made its last revenue run on the D&RGW in July 1968 and was later placed on static display in Silverton, CO. But in 2016, it was moved to Durango, CO for restoration to operating condition, which was later completed on January 24, 2020. Originally, it was to be restored by the Colorado Railroad Museum in Golden, CO and operate there on the museum grounds on a 10-year lease, but those plans ultimately never came to be and the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad (D&SNG) eventually decided to take on the restoration of 493 themselves in 2018. As of today, 493 is now back in steam at the D&SNG, but was converted to burn oil instead of coal. Thus, 493 is the very first former D&RGW 2-8-2 type locomotive to be converted from burning coal to burning oil. It is also the first former D&RGW class K-37 locomotive to operate on the D&SNG since D&RGW 497 operated on the line back in October 1991 before it was traded to the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad (C&TS) in exchange for D&RGW 482, which is a class K-36 locomotive.
Some of 493's close relatives, D&RGW 491 and D&RGW 499, both rest on display at different places in Colorado, although 491 was also restored to operating condition on August 28, 2014 by the Colorado Railroad Museum. In early 2022, 493 underwent some running gear work while it was temporarily out of rotation and later returned to service on October 5, 2022.
Trivia[]
- No. 493 is the very first former D&RGW 2-8-2 type locomotive to be converted from burning coal to burning oil, but was then followed by class K-28 locomotives 473 and 476 and class K-36 locomotives 480 and 482, as well as class K-36 locomotives 487 and 489 on the Cumbres & Toltec.
- No. 493 has worn several different whistles during its operating career on the Durango & Silverton, including a custom-built Nathan 6-chime that sounds like a Reading 6-chime, a Crosby 3-chime, a Rizzoli Locomotive Works T&P 3-chime, an N&W experimental 3-chime, and a Nathan Longbell Hancock 3-chime, among others. Right now, it currently carries a homebuilt AT&SF 6-chime.
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