Here is a solid built 1918 Alco 2-8-2 USRA "heavyweight" Mikado, originally numbered 8663, sitting by the massive coaling tower in the Bensenville, IL, yard. Specs - class L3, 63" drivers, 27 x 32" cylinders, 190 psi boiler pressure, engine weighed 325,000 pounds, 59,800 pounds of tractive effort. Edwin Wilson photo |