Connecticut Valley Railroad 3025

Connecticut Valley Railroad 3025 is a China Railways SY class steam locomotive that was built in 1989 by the Tangshan Locomotive and Rolling Stock Works for the Knox and Kane Railroad, where it spent its life until that railroad's demise. It was purchased by the Valley Railroad Company in 2008 and has since been rebuilt as a functional replica of a New Haven J-1 "Mikado" locomotive[1][2] and re-numbered 3025.[3]

Connecticut Valley Railroad 3025
#3025 operating on the Connecticut Valley Railroad after being restored.
Type and origin Power type Steam Builder Tangshan Locomotive and Rolling Stock Works Serial number SY1658M Model SY Build date July 1989
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 2-8-2  • UIC 1’D1’ Gauge 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge Driver dia. 53.94 in (1,370 mm) Length 70 ft 10 in (21.59 m) Height 13 ft 10 1⁄10 in (4.22 m) Axle load 38,500 lb (17,460 kg; 17.46 t) Adhesive weight 154,000 lb (69,850 kg; 69.85 t) Loco weight 211,200 lb (95,800 kg; 95.80 t) Tender weight 101,200 lb (45,900 kg; 45.90 t) Total weight 312,400 lb (141,700 kg; 141.7 t) Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity 20,000 lb (9,072 kg; 9.072 t) Water cap 6,600 US gal (25,000 l; 5,500 imp gal) Displacement 22,883 cu in (13.24 cu ft) Firebox:  • Firegrate area 49.514 sq ft (4.6000 m2) Boiler pressure 195 lbf/in2 (1.34 MPa) Heating surface 2,314.3 sq ft (215.0 m2)  • Tubes and flues 1,851.4 sq ft (172.00 m2) Superheater: ​  • Heating area 462.9 sq ft (43.0 m2) Cylinders Two Cylinder size 22.83 in × 27.95 in (580 mm × 710 mm) Valve gear Modified Walschaerts
Performance figures Maximum speed 60 mph (96.56 km/h) Power output 1,475 hp (1,100 kW) Tractive effort 44,765 lbf (199.1 kN) Factor of adh. 3.44
Career Operators Knox and Kane Railroad, Connecticut Valley Railroad Class SY Numbers KKRR 1658 KKRR 58 NH 3025 VALE 3025 Restored 2008-2011 Current owner Connecticut Valley Railroad Disposition Operational, based in Essex, Connecticut

"#58," as it was then known, ran for the Knox and Kane between 1989 and spring of 2006, when the railroad ceased all operations. In storage in an engine house in Kane, locomotive 58 and other rolling stock was subjected to an early morning arson attack on March 16, 2008. The locomotive was severely damaged, more so than its housemate, the older No. 38, which had thicker boiler skin. Its cab was lined with wood, which was utterly destroyed.

On October 10, the locomotive was purchased at a liquidation auction by the Valley Railroad. The new owners planned to restore the locomotive to operating condition, and simultaneously transform its appearance to that of a New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad locomotive, to be numbered 3025. Restoration was completed in 2011, and the locomotive entered revenue service on November 25, 2011 pulling The North Pole Express. It has since become one of the railroad's regular road engines.