loco-info.com
The reference for locomotives and railcars
Navigation
Random
Search
Compare
Settings

Navigation

Page views since 2023-01-26: 1014027
Canadian Pacific classes N3a, b, c and N2a, b, c
Canada | 1909
199 produced
No. 3716 in July 1986 in North Vancouver, British Columbia
No. 3716 in July 1986 in North Vancouver, British Columbia
Gary Everhart / www.rrpicturearchives.net

In 1909 H.H. Vaughan would produce a Consolidation that should achieve more power with 24x32 inch cylinders, but thanks to 63 inch (1,600 mm) large driving wheels should have enough steam even at higher speeds. However, during the trial runs it became apparent that the boiler was still insufficient at higher speeds. This resulted in the production engines with a cylinder diameter of just 23.5 inches.

In the years 1909 to 1911 the production engines of the class N3a were built, in 1912 more of the class N3b and in 1913 finally the class N3c. Technically, the subclasses were almost identical, but they differed in the driver's cab. The N3b and N3c used all-weather driver's cabs, which were characterized by an additional vestibule.

Since the capacity of the boiler later still proved to be too low compared to the cylinders, the conversion to class N2a to c took place in the 1920s. The diameter of the cylinders was reduced to 23 inches and the area of the firebox increased at the expense of the tube heating area. A larger superheater was also used.

There were two different versions of the N2, which had different boilers with 141 and 165 tubes respectively. 40 locomotives were converted to oil firing by 1950. As early as 1946, 65 units were converted to the P1n class with the 2-8-2 wheel arrangement. Four remain today, of which 3512 has been lying at the bottom of Slocan Lake in British Columbia since 1947 after a barge carrying the locomotive capsized.

VariantN3N2
General
Built1909-19131923-1926
ManufacturerCanadian Pacific, Montreal Locomotive Works, Canada FoundryMontreal Locomotive Works
Axle config2-8-0 (Consolidation) 
Gauge4 ft 8 1/2 in (Standard gauge)
Dimensions and Weights
Length75 ft 5 1/2 in
Wheelbase25 ft 5 in
Rigid wheelbase16 ft 6 in
Total wheelbase55 ft 11 1/2 in55 ft 8 in
Service weight220,000 lbs240,000 lbs
Adhesive weight195,000 lbs216,000 lbs
Total weight354,000 lbs379,000 lbs
Water capacity6,000 us gal
Fuel capacity22,000 lbs (coal)24,000 lbs (coal)
Boiler
Grate area49.5 sq ft
Firebox area165 sq ft191 sq ft
Tube heating area2,400 sq ft2,125 sq ft
Evaporative heating area2,565 sq ft2,316 sq ft
Superheater area436 sq ft602 sq ft
Total heating area3,001 sq ft2,918 sq ft
VariantN3N2
Power Plant
Driver diameter63 in
Boiler pressure180 psi190 psi
Expansion typesimple
Cylinderstwo, 23 1/2 x 32 intwo, 23 x 32 in
Power
Power sourcesteam
Estimated power1,700 hp (1,268 kW)1,800 hp (1,342 kW)
Optimal speed25 mph26 mph
Starting effort42,918 lbf43,395 lbf
Calculated Values
steam locomotive
freight
last changed: 01/2023
loading...

We use cookies to save the following settings:

  • selected navigation structure
  • selected language
  • preferred units
  • spelling of railway company names

If you refuse the use of cookies, the settings will only be retained for the current session and will be reset to the default values the next time you visit the site.

Display of units

Here you can set the desired unit system for the technical data.

  • Metric: Lengths in meters, weights in tonnes, and volumes in cubic meters
  • Imperial (UK): Lengths in feet/inches, weights in long tons and volumes in imperial gallons
  • Imperial (US): Lengths in feet/inches, weights in pounds, and volumes in US gallons
  • Individual: Depends on the country of origin of each locomotive
Operator names

Here you can set the display of railway company names.

  • Short: Abbreviation or short form of the name
  • Standard: commonly used name, partially translated to English
  • Complete: full name in local language