D&RGW K-37

Denver & Rio Grande Western K-37
D&RGW #491 at Colorado Railroad Museum
Type and origin References: Dimensions are as rebuilt unless noted Power type Steam Builder Baldwin Locomotive Works Build date 1902 Rebuilder D&RGW Burnham Shops Rebuild date 1928–1930 Number rebuilt 10
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte Original: 2-8-0 Rebuilt: 2-8-2  • UIC 1′D1′ h2 Gauge Original: 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) Rebuilt: 3 ft (914 mm) Leading dia. Original: unknown Rebuilt: 28 in (711 mm) Driver dia. Original: 55 in (1,397 mm) Rebuilt: 44 in (1,118 mm) Trailing dia. Original: none Rebuilt: 28 in (711 mm) Wheelbase 29 ft (8.8 m) Length 41.1 ft (12.5 m) Width 10.4 ft (3.2 m) Height Engine: 13.3 ft (4.1 m) Tender: 13.5 ft (4.1 m) Loco weight 183,920 pounds (83,420 kg) Boiler pressure 200 psi (1.38 MPa) Cylinders Two Cylinder size 20 in × 24 in (508 mm × 610 mm) Valve gear Walschaerts Loco brake Air Train brakes Air
Performance figures Tractive effort 37,100 lbf (165 kN)
Career Operators DRGW, D&SNG, C&TS Class D&RG: 190 D&RGW: C-41 after rebuild: K-37 Numbers 490–499 Locale Colorado and New Mexico Retired 1955 (#496), 1962-1970 Disposition Eight preserved; two (#490, 496) scrapped

Denver & Rio Grande Western K-37s are 2-8-2, Mikado type, narrow gauge steam locomotives. They were originally built by Baldwin as part of an order for thirty standard gauge 2-8-0, Consolidation type, locomotives, class 190, in 1902. They were renumbered into class C-41 (meaning 41,000 lbs of tractive effort) during the railroad's reorganization in 1924 and were converted to three foot gauge in 1928-30 at the railroad's Burnham Shops in Denver, CO with many new parts including new frames and smaller drivers. They were then renumbered into class K-37.

The locomotives are of outside-frame design, with the driving wheels placed between the two chassis frames which support the boiler, but with the cylinders, driving rods, counterweights and valve gear on the outside. This general arrangement is shared with the earlier K-27, K-28 and K-36 Mikado engines.

The locos worked out of Salida, Colorado to Gunnison, Colorado and up the Crested Butte Branch as well as the Monarch Branch. The locos also worked out of Alamosa, Colorado to Antonito over Cumbres Pass to Chama and on to Durango and the Farmington Branch. Like the K-36s the locos were not permitted West of Gunnison or on the Silverton branch. However, the Silverton branch has since been upgraded the track and line to handle K-36s and K-37s. 3 K-37s, 493, 491, and 499, were equipped with steam heat and signal lines so they can haul passenger trains like the San Juan Express and Shavano.