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while i haven't the experience to speak to the drawbar durability question . . . (though with a few minutes with my materials text and a calculator i could give an upper limit on that number, if anyone is really all that interested in what would be an entirely theoretical answer. ) the following occurs to me: Horse *power* is the rate at which a machine does work, (work x time) and work, as someone has already pointed out, is force x distance, so power is therefore force x distance x time. two locomotives that make the same drawbar pull at the same speed are producing the same amount of useful work, and by extention, the *same 'train' horsepower*. things get then confusing fast, because the numbers most often bandied about for steam are for starting TE, while Diesels are rated in prime mover HP. And THOSE numbers don't translate to 'TRAIN' horsepower at all. The confusion happens because we talk about a prime-mover producing so many horsepower, when we really only mean it can generate x,xxx,xxx watts . . . train speed doesn't enter it. And steam TE is ONLY *cylinder* pressure dependant. Firing rate (watts) doesn't enter into it except when steam consumption becomes a factor. . . a situation that arises once you're moving. . . at which point the starting TE number is largely meaningless. so steam TE vs diesel horsepower is an apples-oranges question.[banghead] try comparing Starting TE to Sustained TE vs locomotive weight. that's as close a comparison as you're likely to get. . . . and without looking at the numbers, i'll bet diesels probably win because every axle is driven vs pilot and trailing trucks, tenders, etc. in the real world, we're really interested in bananas. . .[}:)] the real question, i think, boils down to how much fuel energy is consumed per ton-mile-hour of cargo moved, and how many manhours were spent maintaining the equipment that did the work. I think we all know how those equations work out. . . .
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