Does anyone know if any Fairbanks Morse Trainmasters were preserved (operational or a static display)? How about any “Baby Trainmasters”?
None of the FM Train Masters survive, however, a Canadian (CLC) built Train Master does survive. Former CPR 8905 is at the Canadian Ry Museum in Quebec. There is a FM H16-66 in Calgary, formerly an Alcoa/Squaw Creek Coal locomotive. There is also a CLC H16-44 and some CLC CPA16-4’s in Canada.
Two factors led to the extinction of Train Masters. First, Their power plants were egarly snapped up by non-rail users of FM diesel power plants (On and off shore drilling rigs, for example). Second, most TM owners were trading in what FMs they had before the diesel preservation movement began. Lovers of DL109s and other FMs can tell stories about how their favorite diesels vanished in the early/mid 60s.[banghead][sigh]
The OP engine was originally designed for (sub)marine use, which explains why it works so well in stationary and marine applications. The OP is a good engine but the upper crankshaft makes it a bear to maintain properly in railroad usage.