Oil Headlights - Sourcing Information on Light Output

[Keith Taylor]

Dante, I don’t believe the Sandy River was overly concerned about aesthetics and would change headlights just to look like the other newer locomotives. You change headlights because you are forced to do so. The change to electric headlights was due to ICC mandates
Railroads didn’t spend money unless they were forced to do so.
I have personally seen several headlights of that style and they were all acetylenne gas llamps.
Keith.

[Dante Lakin]

That is fine and fair enough, but even for the big SR&RL #23, Baldwin explicitly called out a kerosene headlight in the spec sheet (page 101, left page, 3 from bottom.

I believe it is more than fair to believe in this image, SR&RL 6 has a kerosene headlight, even with the rising popularity of acetylene/carbide lamps during that time.

[Keith Taylor]

Dante, you ae correct that the Baldwin order for 23 calls for an oil headlight.
I look at things from the view point of a retired locomotive engineer (fifty plus years ago) and I would always vote for the brighter light!
In my experience mostly a headlight allows the engineer to see exactly what he is going to hit. But hit it you will. The main purpose of a locmtive head lamp iis not to see….but to be seen. At track speed if you can see it….you will hit it unless they see you and move out of the way.
Keith

[Dante Lakin]

Further research has shown a few things

1. The headlight on 9 in that image is in fact not oil, it is carbide.

2. It is a lot thinner than the headlights we have in our own collection. Different images show the headlight as being ~10 inches long and ~12in diameter which match Handlan lamp models 545 or 545B, although the breather holes differ from the image.