Pretty interesting thread. I gather that overall costs might have been lower for diesels but I did not realize how close the Niagras came to competing with diesels. Cool stuff. I never thought about how coal ash had to be disposed of and water treated. Those are definitely costs I would have missed on my own. Makes sense though. I also think steamers are rough to start up. That's a lot of boiling. And it never boils if you watch it (or so I'm told).
One thing I wanted to say was about assembling a steamer in two weeks. I would feel confident it could be done because it's mechanical. My experience at work supports my opinion that purely mechanical things assemble quickly if you have the background knowledge to do it.
I really appreciated this thread. Good read.
