Baldwin S-8

The BLH S8 was an 875-horsepower (652 kW) diesel–electric switcher locomotive. The Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton Corporation produced a total of 63 units (61 for United States railroads and 2 for use in Cuba) between 1951 and 1953. Of these, nine were calf units built for Oliver Iron Mining Company in Minnesota. A tenth calf had been built for them on order, but when delivery was refused, it was fitted with a cab, and converted to a regular S8.

S8
Type and origin Power type Diesel–electric Builder Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton Model S8 Build date March 1951 – September 1954 Total produced 54, plus 9 calf units
Specifications Configuration: ​  • AAR B-B  • UIC B′B′ Gauge 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge Prime mover 606 RPM range 625 rpm maximum Engine type Straight-6 Four-stroke diesel Aspiration Naturally aspirated, solid injection Displacement 1,979 cu in (32.43 L) per cylinder 11,874 cu in (194.58 L) total Generator Westinghouse 480F Traction motors Westinghouse 362D (4) Cylinders 6 Cylinder size 12+3⁄4 in × 15+1⁄2 in (324 mm × 394 mm) Transmission Electric Gear ratio 16:76 Loco brake Air Train brakes Air Couplers AAR Type E knuckle
Performance figures Maximum speed 45 mph (72 km/h) Power output 875 hp (652 kW) (marketed as 800 hp)
Career Locale United States and Cuba Disposition Two preserved, remainder scrapped

Original owners

Railroad	Quantity	Road numbers	Notes
American Rolling Mill Company	3	1151, 1152, 1201
Escanaba and Lake Superior Railroad	1	102
La Salle and Bureau County Railroad	1	8
McCloud Railway	1	31	Built with a single stack and space for a turbocharger for later conversion to a S-12, so is factored into the numbers of (and considered to be) an S-12
Medford Corporation, (Medford, Oregon)	1	8	Only Baldwin switcher built with dynamic brakes; preserved by the Southern Oregon Railway Historical Society
New Orleans Public Belt Railroad	2	50, 51
Oliver Iron Mining Company	9	1200A–1206A, 1214A, 1215A	"Cow" units
	9	1200B–1206B, 1214B, 1215B	"Calf" units
Pennsylvania Railroad	6	8994–8999
Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines	1	6006
Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad	5	802–806
Sharon Steel Corporation	8	3–10
Sloss-Sheffield Steel	4	33–36
United Railways of Havana, Cuba	2	8001, 8002
US Pipe and Foundry	1	37	Build as "calf"; fitted with cab before sale to USP&F; preserved by Heart of Dixie Railroad Museum (Calera, Alabama) as Jefferson Warrior 37
US Steel	1	13
Weyerhaeuser Company	2	103, 105
Youngstown Sheet and Tube	7	703, 800–805
Totals	54	A units
	9	B units

Preservation

Only two intact examples of the S-8 are known to survive today, one of which is owned by a railroad museum, while the other is the property of a railway historical society.

References

• Kirkland, John F. (November 1994). The Diesel Builders volume 3: Baldwin Locomotive Works. Pasadena, California: Interurban Press. ISBN 0-916374-93-9.

External links

• Baldwin S-8
• Preserved Baldwin and Lima Locomotives
• S-8 — Original Owners