What’s the most reliable and common GE locomotive?I see the SD40-2 is EMD’s most common and reliable locomotive.I’ve never heard of any very common GE locomotives.
Dash944-CW seems to be the biggie here in BNSF with the ES series coming up fast in recent years in both AC (for coal drags mostly) and DC (for intermodals and general merchandise freights) in the past year or two.
I’d say Dash 9s, though Gevos are getting up in numbers too.
I would have to say the -9/AC44 series locomotives. They’re pretty ubiquitous on most class 1 railroads these days.
Although I agree that Dash 9s have certainly proven their reliability and are quite common on all Class I roads, I stop short of comparing them or any previous GE model to the overall poularity of the SD40-2 or any other EMD model built since the 70s for that matter, except for the SD45 and 50 which by popular opinion were junk from the accounts of many old railroaders I’ve spoken with.
The way I see it, Dash 9s have only been around since the 90s, and Dash 8s for that matter have only been around since the 80’s. U-boats and Dash-7s were numerous during their time, but many if not most have been either been unceremoniously hauled off to the bone yard and sit or have been completely scrapped. Doesn’t say much for their reliability, does it?
EMDs just seem to elude the scrap yard and cutting torch a lot longer than GEs, must be for a reason…Reliability I assume. Everywhere you look, around here at least, you’ll find GP38-2s, GP39-2s, GP40-2s and SD40-2s, all built from about 1972 until 1986. Older models like first generation GP38s, GP40s and SD40s from the late 60s are still around but in fewer numbers. Still, older locos like GP30s, GP10s and GP9s (late 50s early 60s) still lug freight on numerous shortlines from coast to coast.
Basically what I’m saying is that they (Dash 8s, Dash 9s, AC4400s and GEVOs) will have to stand the test of time before I’d compare them to the SD40-s in terms of overall reliability and their commonplace after more that 30 years of service which they’ve got at least another 10 or 20 to go. On that note, even if they do last that long, I’m sure there’ll still be plenty of SD40-2s around just to show who’s boss.
Just my…[2c]
I agree. I see the AC44’s leading freights thru Rochelle and such nice clean behemoths they are, at least for now. EMD couldn’t possibly have more global reach than G.E. to lower manufacturing costs. It just came up in a post on one of these boards that G.E.'s side plating comes from South Africa!
As to who sells more, I don’t know. My impression is that G.E.'s in the late 1990s started a surge of production that rivaled EMD for a while, but might now have slacked off a little. But most of what I know is conditioned by the good-natured badinage between GE fans and EMD fans. Now, those who hog 'em have valid opinions. But since most of us aren’t any kind of engineer or railroad professional, aren’t our opinions about along the lines of the Chevy - Ford rivaly of the 1960s? Fun to cheer for the home team. I choose GE because I feel sorry for them. A terrible reason, but there you have it. This is not to imply that everyone else has a doofus reason, but some opinions are based on experience and professional expertise IMO, many more not.
I am also under the opinion that Dash’s are kind of on the way out, or at least out of favor with a couple of the big roads in their DC form. NS has stuck with them, a couple of others haven’t. I agree with the above post. - a.s.
Out here in the Powder River Basin, I’ve noticed the ES44ACs making themselves known. For a long time all I’d see was MACs and SD75s then it seemed to go all AC. Then the ES44s started showing up now its not uncommon to see an ACe, an ES44, and a MAC mixed. But for the past two weeks or so, they’ve been running 2 DPUs and mixing in some DC motors in, SD60Ms, SD75Ms, and SD75Is. But as far as general frieght goes…I see quite a few Dash 9s. Oh yea, the ethnol trains are almost all Dash 9s, here anyway.
[quote user=“Ted Marshall”]
Although I agree that Dash 9s have certainly proven their reliability and are quite common on all Class I roads, I stop short of comparing them or any previous GE model to the overall poularity of the SD40-2 or any other EMD model built since the 70s for that matter, except for the SD45 and 50 which by popular opinion were junk from the accounts of many old railroaders I’ve spoken with.
The way I see it, Dash 9s have only been around since the 90s, and Dash 8s for that matter have only been around since the 80’s. U-boats and Dash-7s were numerous during their time, but many if not most have been either been unceremoniously hauled off to the bone yard and sit or have been completely scrapped. Doesn’t say much for their reliability, does it?
EMDs just seem to elude the scrap yard and cutting torch a lot longer than GEs, must be for a reason…Reliability I assume. Everywhere you look, around here at least, you’ll find GP38-2s, GP39-2s, GP40-2s and SD40-2s, all built from about 1972 until 1986. Older models like first generation GP38s, GP40s and SD40s from the late 60s are still around but in fewer numbers. Still, older locos like GP30s, GP10s and GP9s (late 50s early 60s) still lug freight on numerous shortlines from coast to coast.
Basically what I’m saying is that they (Dash 8s, Dash 9s, AC4400s and GEVOs) will have to stand the test of time before I’d compare them to the SD40-s in terms of overall reliability and their commonplace after more that 30 years of service which they’ve got at least another 10 or 20 to go. On that note, even if they do last that long, I’m sure there’ll still be plenty of SD40-2s around just to show who’s boss.