I’m sure that I have pics in my files somewhere of CNW modified GPs in passenger service… Can I find them now that I want them?[banghead]
Someone point me to a source please?
TIA [8D]
PS Did anyone low-nose any SD7s or 9s? Pics please?
TIA [8D]
Dave,
It’s sort of hard to have a chop nose GP9 in passenger service - the S/G normally is in the short hood! Without the S/G, another engine with a S/G or a ‘heater car’ will need to be run with the passenger train.
As far as chop nose SD7/9’s: DM&IR Milw, & C&NW all had ‘rebuild’ programs that chopped the noses.
Jim
The first low nose GP9 built by EMD was an engine for Phelps-Dodge #38 and was designed to operate with the long hood forward a.k.a. “Southern” style. When built in 1955 the extra visability was to provide a clear line of sight back over a train of ore cars not to improve the engineers visability of what was ahead… One design feature of a passenger GP7/9 was a partitioned belly tank for both water and fuel, an exhaust for the S/G atop the short hood and some times the air resevoirs were moved to the roof a.k.a. “Torpedo Boats”. If they were to only operate for shorter distances and thus could get away with smaller fuel tanks the air tanks would remain behind the fuel/water tank.
The CNW did use Geeps for passenger service and since its commuter cars used head end power, some of them had steam generators in the short hoot and the HEP stuff was in a boxy addition at the bottom of the long hood. Thus while I cannot specifically say that a low nose GP pulled commuter trains on the CNW it is possible that once the steam generator passenger cars were retired in 1971 that one of those passenger geeps was short hooded, so to speak.
Dave Nelson
C&NW’s ‘commuter’ GP’s had a S/G for train heat, and a small 10kw(or 14kw alternator in the rear ‘box’) for train lighting. This was not HEP as we know it, but provided only lighting power as the start/stop nature of the commuter runs asnd long layovers did not allow a full charge of the lighting batteries. The GP’s left commuter service as the bi-level cars entered service, and F and E units were equipped with HEP packages just for these new cars. By this time, there were no real intercity passenger runs left for the GP’s, so they migrated to freight service on a permanant basis…
Jim