A Lesson in Torque, Steam vrs Diesel

Dale.Traveling wrote:
John Deere Tractor vs. 1800s Steam Tractor

Can't dispute the results.

No, but we sure can dispute your premise. It has nothing to do with the engine characteristics, and has everything to do with shear weight.

A real comparison would be to put each tractor in a 100 acre field with a plow and see which one is done first. HP is the measure of work being done. 18 HP will not do much work. When presenting facts, it is wise to remember history. The failure of the steam engine was because it could either be set up for speed, or torque not both. Steam was more efficient than diesel/electric, however the steam engines were not capable of handling the grades. When they would gear them for speed, they would have to add extra engines during certain parts of their runs, because they could not pull the grades.