During lot of time the last couple of month I go through my Geared Steam Locomotive collection.
I figure out I did not have any proof for the term:
WEST COAST SPECIAL HEISLER
We all use it for any superheated piston valve equipped 3-truck Heisler locomotive.
But when and where come it from? My guess are 3 choices:

1. pre Pacific Coast Shay (before Lima Locomotive Works introduced the Pacific Coast Shay 11/1927).
"West Coast Special" used by Heisler Locomotive Works or Whitney Engineering for all superheated 3-truck starting 1926.

2. post Pacific Coast Shay (past Lima Locomotive Works introduced the Pacific Coast Shay 11/1927).
"West Coast Special" used by Heisler Locomotive Works or Whitney Engineering for all superheated inside steam admission piston valve 3-truck starting 1928.

3. not used by Heisler or Whitney at all. Invented by the railfan community maybe in the 40s, 50s?

Does anybody have proof of the term officially used by Heisler/Whitney?
ADS, CATALOG, LETTERS, INVOICE......

Thank you in advance

I don't think Heisler ever used the term Pacific Coast Shay to describe any of their locomotives.......... or called any of theirs a Shay of any kind.

If you look around at photos, some of the early West Coast Special Heislers did not have inside admission piston valves. One was a Weyerhauser Tbr. machine that started out at K. Falls, OR and another was the 91 at Morton, WA.

I don't have this in writing anywhere, but I think it is accepted that the term had direct aim at Lima. I don't believe that this term was ever started by the rail fan community, which wasn't really developed much at that time anyway.

There were 3 sizes of these machines, dubbed 70, 80 and 90 ton. As with the Shay, these were nominal weights. Example: Hetch Hetchy RR 80-3 Shay 6 (Lima c/n 3170), later to Pickering, actually weighed in excess of 99 tons.

There's a good chance that this term came from somebody in marketing or design engineering of the company. I do believe that it was legit and tied to the company. Beyond that, I can't answer your question with any certainty, sorry.

My
pre Pacific Coast Shay
post Pacific Coast Shay
remarks are TIME FRAME IDENTIFIER -> 11/1927

never mention Heisler would ever use the name Shay!

Hi Tom,
thanks, I have the data and pics of all of them!
That make me curious not finding "West Coast Special" anywhere.

For info here the 3 configurations they build.

1. superheated, outsite steam admission piston valves, open cab
february 1926 - early 1928

2. superheated, outside steam admission piston valves, all weather cab
early 1928 - late 1928

3. superheated, inside steam admission piston valves, all weather cab
late 1928 - 1930 (five build for stock delivered 1936, 1939 and 1941)

The term "West Coast Special" was coined by Heisler. The first use I can find is an ad from July 1928 stating that they were available in 70, 80 and 90 tons. The Class 90-12-40 was 110 tons in working order. The first 3 WCS were 90 tonners sent to Weyerhauser at Longview, Vail and Melbourne, WA.

Thank you John,
in what periodical or newspaper you find that ad?
Did they mention the lower gearing/enhanced tractive power?

Is it possible you post or send a copy or photo of that ad? Would be great.

The engines you mentioned:

The one goes to Longview, WA is the 101 in the picture above June 1928.
The Vail, WA loco is the number 4 above November 1928.
That Melbourne, WA engine goes actual to Weyerhaeuser subsidiary
Clemons Logging in November 1928. See pic below.

Did heisler or climax ever build anything as large or modern as the WM 6 shay?

The Timberman July 1928 Page 62 & 63
"Guaranteed to give unequalled hauling capacity, ton for ton"
There is no mention of lower gearing. Speed and power are the selling points.

No,
neither Heisler or Climax build engines large like the WM6 150-3 Shay.

The largest Heisler was the 90-12-40 class (all pics above) with 43600lbs TE.

Climax build two 100tonners class C-100 with 44000lbs TE as their largest
locomotive (see pic below).

The phrase "modern" for WM6 is... let say not anybody would agree...
Actual the 1945 build monster is a copy of the 1921 G.C.&E. RR #12
plus improved girder frame and piston valves instead of slide valves
delivering 59000lbs TE (same like the engine 24 years before).

And it is not the biggest Shay at all.
Kansas City Southern received the only 160-3 class in 1913 powering 74000lbs TE.

For many years, Heisler had been using 75% of boiler pressure when figuring tractive effort on their machines. At that time the t.e. on the 90 ton West Coast Special was 43,600 lbs. , about 3,000 more lbs than a 90-3 Shay.

Heisler finally wised up and started using 85% of b.p. like most others and when they did, the t.e. on the 90 tonner came out to a whopping 49,000 plus lbs.

Given that both Heisler & Lima were generally using 200 lbs. on the boilers and that the Heisler had 40" drivers as opposed the the Shay's 36", I am pretty certain that Heisler went away from their standard 2:1 gear ratio.

I wish now that I had taken the time to count the teeth of 91 when I was a volunteer at Mt. Rainier Scenic in 2005. I would really like to know just what that gear ratio is. If anybody here has knowledge of it, I would be most grateful to learn just what it is.

I learn something every day. Was not aware that there was two of the 100 ton Climax
locomotives. The Timberland one is pretty well known. Can you please cite the other?
Thanks in advance.

I would think on a geared locomotive with the high RPMs that superheating would be a major improvement to water consumption and performance.

Heisler was going after two competiters with the WCS, Shay and the Baldwin 2-6-6-2T. Climax was a dead issue by 1928. I paced The Kinzua loco at between 35 and 40 on the UP south of Auburn, WA so it can't be geared very low. Here is what I have on the Weyerhaeuser WSCs.

3 3T Heisler C/N 1569 09-28 18.25X16 40 43,600 198,000 200 $32,097.50
White River Lbr. Co. #3 Enumclaw, WA (wrecked 1943, rebuilt 1946)
WTCo #3 Enumclaw, WA 1949
M. Bloch & Co. 06-16-52
scrapped 1954

101(2nd) 3T Heisler C/N 1562 06-28 18.25X16 40” 198,000 43,600 200 $31,410
WTCo. Longview, WA
(one source states changed to #3 but listed as #101 in 1937)
(Possibly to WTCo Clemons Branch #101 1944)
Kosmos Tbr. Co. #8 Kosmos, WA (here 09-49)

2 3T Heisler C/N 1574 11-28 18.25X16 40” 198,000 43,600 200 $33,370.00
Clemons Log. Co. #2 Melbourne, WA
WTCo #2 Mel 1936 (still here 12-31-45)
Craig Mountain Lbr. Co. #6 Winchester, ID
Craig Mountain RR #6 “
scrapped 1956

4 3T Heisler C/N 1573 11-28 18.25X16 40” 198,000 43,600 200
WTCo Vail, WA
M. B. Log. Co. #4 Markham, WA

When the original Shay patents expired in the 1920s the Willamette Iron Works of Portland Oregon built and sold an improved design to West Coast logging operations.

In response, Lima Locomotive came out with the "Pacific Coast Shay."

And then both Heisler and Climax came out their upgraded designs.

Individual books have been published about all these builders. My copies are awaiting reshelving in new/additional bookcases.