Can anybody tell me what ever happended to SBD (CSXT) BQ23-7s? Last pic I saw of them they had the windows plated over and reduced to booster unit status. Did CSXT turn them into razor blades or a museum or shortline pick some up?
The caption on this photo says they were all scrapped
http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=20828
Too Bad.Seems Like They Coulda Saved At Least one For A Museum.
They are kinda cool looking locos. What EMD and Ge are puttting out nowdays all look the same. I often have questions like this and everybody says check out Extra 2200 south. I’ve picked up a couple of issues, but there doesn’t seem to be a way to index there back issues to find out what has happened to particular units. Anybody know a trick I’m missing?
A GE riding on EMD trucks…look at the photo in the above link…
Ed
From Wikipedia:
“Following a practice dating back to SAL U30B’s of 1966-67, SCL’s 10 BQ23-7’s and 30 standard B23-7 were delivered riding reconditioned Bolmberg trucks from EMD trade in-ins.” …
Interesting …
From personal experience, they ride better than whats on GEs…
Our MK1500Ds ride on Blomberg, with clasp brakes, ride great, and stop fast.
Ed
Amazing how perspectives change over time.
Interesting thing about this for me is how well I remember the scores of railfans, modelers, and myself remarking “how UGLY” these things were! Essentially B23-7s with the experimental crew cab.
I have to admit that they don’t look so bad to me anymore. A shame one couldn’t be saved.
poop
I’l admit that I had a double take on that one![:I]
TRAINS did an article on this loco a couple months ago methinks? Not sure of exact date.
I’m still in the “how ugly” camp on that one. Every picture I’ve seen shows them in the gray Family Lines Paint scheme, which certainly didn’t help the situation.
we are used to them here in Aus, that sort of cab that is
The GE P42 Genesis Series is the modern style of this cabin concept. The P42 is more attractive than the BQ23-7. I thought there was a versiion of the BQ23-7 with a second row of windows.
The Family Lines Paint scheme did not use the Red and Yellow paint to properly increase the unit’s visibility and accentuate the distinct angles of the Crew Cabin. It might have been one of the worst paint schemes because it was too stealthy.
Andrew Falconer
Hey Murph-
3003 made it into the Bright Future scheme
http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=98971
That does look a lot better. It has sort of a European look to the cab. I’m not so sure they hired the best painter though. The fool painted right over the windows![D)][:o)]
The only one I ever saw was in the B&OCT Chicago Barr yard and I think it was repainted for CSX. I’d have to look at my slides to be sure.
To me they were GEs test bed for widebodies, after some refinement you have Dash8 40CW. Only saw pictures of them myself.
In the mid-90’s CSX turned the BQ’s into B-units and plated the windows over.
i saw it on railpictures.net it is ugly
I always thought those were cool! BN’s GP50s with a similar “Q” cab were also interesting to me… I was sad to see that they were scrapped, not to mention made into B units. BTW, Bachmann made a model of this engine in HO scale, which they later retooled into their B23-7 – good thing, since sales couldn’t have been too good with a one-railroad engine like this!