N 2-8-8-2 Y6b Locomotive, 22I with Tender, Paragon 4, N&W #2199

Introduction

The N and W shops in Roanoke, Virginia gave all Y Class engine and tender axles roller bearings and they used the same outside frame lead truck as the Class A. The trailing truck was also equipped with roller bearings which were fit into an outside frame design. With these improvements, the Y6's cost considerably more than their earlier brethren, but the maintenance records show that these locomotives had a time available for assignment far superior to any of the predecessors.

The Y6b had a starting tractive effort in simple configuration of 152,206 pounds. In the compound mode, a tractive effort of 126,838 was achieved. The locomotives delivered 5,500 horsepower. The Y6b locomotive weight was 582,900 lbs with 522,850 lbs directly on the drivers.

When the N and W ceased their mainline steam operations in 1959, 50 of the Y6s were still running out serviceable miles in the coal fields waiting for the final order of diesels to replace them. The last of the Class Ys were retired in the summer of 1960.

Features

Overview

In 2022, Broadway Limited is building the first production of the N amd W Y6b in N scale. They are building five road numbers in the standard in-service paint scheme, one painted but unlettered and unnumbered model, and two models painted in fantasy paint schemes. The fantasy schemes are adaptations of prototypical N and W paint schemes, that were never applied to the Y6bs in real life, but look beautiful on the models.