Description
In the spring of 1925, the Berkshire Hills on the Boston and Albany railroad resounded with the roar of a new concept in locomotive design – the first “Super-Power ” 2-8-4. Dubbed the A-1 by Lima Locomotive Works, the “Berkshire ” - as it quickly came to be known - was more than a logical upgrade to the 2-8-2 “Mikado ”, as it featured a larger boiler, firebox, feedwater heater and superheater. These features taken together overcame the issues of wheel slip and loss of steam pressure upon acceleration that plagued earlier drag-freight designs based on the Mikado.
Indeed, this first Berkshire easily pulled over 2500 tons up the 1.5% grades of the B&A without assistance, resulting in an order for 55 by the B&A alone. More upgrades were soon to come, however. By the early 1930s, the railroads under the ownership of the Van Swerigen brothers (Nickel Plate, Chesapeake & Ohio and Hocking Valley, Erie, Pere Marquette, Wheeling & Lake Erie) had joined together the engineering talents of their several railroads into an Advisory Mechanical Committee, which produced many of the most successful steam locomotives of the era, including the C&O T-1 (or “Texas ” type). The improved Berkshire design resulting from this committee was derived from scaling the primary dimensions of the T-1 down by 70% - except for the drivers, which were increased in size from 63 ” to 69 ”. By the end of production of the 2-8-4 Berkshire in 1949, Lima had produced 368 of the 611 locomotives to carry the name. Two remain in operation – NKP 765 (the “Queen of the West ”) and PM 1225, the star of the movie “Polar Express ”.
Features
Accurate paint schemes
Master series Silver (Sound Ready) and Gold (DCC with sound) versions
Separately applied details
Atlas Master Series Silver Additional Features:
NMRA Next18 plug for DCC (Decoder-ready)
Indeed, this first Berkshire easily pulled over 2500 tons up the 1.5% grades of the B&A without assistance, resulting in an order for 55 by the B&A alone. More upgrades were soon to come, however. By the early 1930s, the railroads under the ownership of the Van Swerigen brothers (Nickel Plate, Chesapeake & Ohio and Hocking Valley, Erie, Pere Marquette, Wheeling & Lake Erie) had joined together the engineering talents of their several railroads into an Advisory Mechanical Committee, which produced many of the most successful steam locomotives of the era, including the C&O T-1 (or “Texas ” type). The improved Berkshire design resulting from this committee was derived from scaling the primary dimensions of the T-1 down by 70% - except for the drivers, which were increased in size from 63 ” to 69 ”. By the end of production of the 2-8-4 Berkshire in 1949, Lima had produced 368 of the 611 locomotives to carry the name. Two remain in operation – NKP 765 (the “Queen of the West ”) and PM 1225, the star of the movie “Polar Express ”.
Features
Accurate paint schemes
Master series Silver (Sound Ready) and Gold (DCC with sound) versions
Separately applied details
Atlas Master Series Silver Additional Features:
NMRA Next18 plug for DCC (Decoder-ready)
