As anyone noticed that the locomotives on the UP system have suddenly gotten dirtier over the past few weeks. Are they gonna get rid of theese SP habits and actually wa***hem?
There is probably a mid-summer water shortage at some maintenance location, not unusual at this time of year. Let us hope the situation recovers soon.
One might also surmise that a busy unit doesn’t have time to get washed… it’s not like the crew can stop into a carwash on their way and give it a quick once-over. Consider, too, that this is a dry time of year - lots of dust.
Always thought that the RRs 1st job was to move freight not worrying about washing locos. Just as aside have you noticed that the BNSF ones also could use a washing that you see on the cams. [:o)][:p][:)]
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Originally posted by miniwyo
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I saw a UP SD60 on the BNSF the other day and I thought it was owned by UPS.All that an engineer needs to do is use his finger to draw the UPS logo on the engine and you have a UPS big brown diesel.
UP’s new slogan should be “what can brown do for you”.
BNSF usually does a better job at cleaning their engines.Around here no BNSF engine is really dirty like UP’s engines.I guess it could be the yellow that shows more dirt but still you would think orange would have the same effect to dirt.
I think they inherited this from the SP. At least the SP units didn’t look as bad when they got dirty. They just looked like they were a blacker shade of grey. And the DRGW units were already black anyway. That armor yellow really makes the dirt stand out. Clean shiney locos make for pretty pictures an all but give me a rugged, dirty, hard lookin’ loco. That says Railroading to me.
Yes.
Way down here in Florida, quite a number of Union Pacific units pop up on CSX intermodals.
Whether one likes UP or not, it is rather saddening to see these units looking so filthy. Especially modern six axle giants, the flagships of the fleet. When you look at the vehicle traffic stopped at the grade crossings you often see clean shiny semi-trucks. Understandably, with motive power shortages locomotives are often fueled up and sent on their way, but a little company pride goes a long way.
Years ago it was rumored that Southern Railway president, Graham Claytor, did not take kindly to seeing dirty road locomotives on his railroad. In looking at photos on railfan.net of Southern units in the 1970s and early 80s, many of those puppies, even with peeling paint, looked clean.
NO!
BNSF doesn’t like to take care of their units either:
ATSF, before the BN takeover: http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=104755
…and after: http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=82178
Unfortunately, too many units look like the latter.
Not to pick on BNSF, but a month ago we saw a warbonnet unit on a train near Marshall MN. that was so dirty,sooty and faded that it looked like it had been through a fire. But the train was cruising right along and that’s what’s important. Also, the engineer was good for a toot and a wave! That makes your day!
I remember the threads of 10 and 12 years ago on REC.Railroads and the Compuserve Railroad forums about UP vs. SP on the dirt question. The UP crowd was always poking fun at the SP fans about the dirty locos. Because I live on the former SP section of the “Overland Route” just west of Reno, NV I witnessed the gradual changes as this line became apart of the Union Pacific.
One of the first things that I noticed was that as the Armour yellow units started taking over they began to gather dirt, some that ping ponged back and forth on this line between Roseville and North Platt got real dirty. So, I think its not a question of UP picking up SP’s washing practices as UP running SP’s territory. Anyway, this is just my subjective observation.[:D]
Jim
A lot of warbonnet units (and even some H2 ones) have brown strips down the sides near the exhaust from where they caught fire (or so I think) and were never repainted. Here is a shot of what I am talking about (I took this pic in Abo Canyon, near Scholle):
That’s very sad.
I’ve seen many engines like that photo of 4673.BNSF 4348 has its nose fixed up like 4673’s side.It IS because of fire and they buy new doors and metal for the rest of the burnt areas and weld them on.later on they’ll be painted but BNSF’s DASH9s are too busy to be repainted.
I wonder where Dan Harmon is at.
They have been rather dirty out here for years now. Some of them are dirty enough that from a distance, I thought it was a Southern Pacific locomotive. I was disappointed when I got close enough to see what it really was.
I just think that the look of your power represents the look of your company. The other units that have came through with the UP, like CSX and NS all have vrey pristine looking power, especially placed next to the UP power. Granted, dust and dirt is somthing we have plenty of here in SW Wyoming, but I have seen locos stacked up in the Green River yard for days on end, how hard is it to take a powerwasher out there and do it? I know they have one, they wa***hier hy-rail vehicles with it all the time.
UP is lazy and doesn’t feel like washing their engines.
It takes ALOT longer to wash a locomotive than a hy-rail veichle, trust me, ive done both.
Thats why they are supposed to have a WASH RACK! Jeeze, i dont see why all yards dont have some, or atleast the big yards. How hard is it to run it through there. It cant be too hard, SOO line did it all the time at Shoreham.
Alec