http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=187303
Their future does not look good…[:(]
NS has been elminating odd power and or stuff that doesn’t really fit in with what they have, lately. The SD9M’s, GP15-1’s, and the 8-40B’s have been removed from the roster. Rumor has it the SD80MACs go next, then the few remaining GP38AC’s. The SD80MACs would most likely go to CSX, like the Dash 8’s did. The GP15-1’s will be bought up by shortlines and regionals, as they are the prefect power for a smaller road. Hopefully some of the SD9M’s will make it to the used market, but in NS’s eyes they may be worth more as scrap.
Well, I would say CSX would want to get the SD80MACs but, who knows.
No short line can afford to buy the GP15-1s which have gone for $250K to $300K or more. The SD9Ms are said to be coming up for bid soon. With 6 axles and heavy weights they may not be too good for short lines anyhow. Guess we’ll see.
LC
LTEX bought a few GP15-1s. 7 are in Horicon. 
Supposed to be getting painted in the LTEX scheme, whatever that is.
It would be nice to see them rebuilt with three truck engines, like the two GP-38AC’s back at the first of the year.
Thats too bad. Lets Hope that doesn’t happen to the 80mac’s.
Both NRE and MPI have made proposals for gen-set C-C hump pushers, so the SD9’s could wind up as fodder for such a design if and when they are actually built. Just don’t expect them to come out looking like SD9’s.
One GP15-1 is out of the paint booth. It later got the white sill stripe.
Did the above painted unit keep it’s NS number?
Yes it did. Here is another one, in red.
Nope, we don’t want them. We are planning to get rid of most, if not all, of our pre-Tier 2 EMDs too.
Thats quite a blanket statement you are making, probably based on the talk in the local hobbyshop? You make it sound as if you are the one making the decision on which locomotives are to be disposed of. You are just starting and spreading worthless, factless rumors. Don’t look for ANY mass retirements of any EMD units on CSX anytime soon.
Bryan Jones
Considering the only tier-2 EMD you have is 30 SD70ACes I don’t see that likely. Although I am sure that is true in a very general (20 years+) sense.
One of the SD9Ms has just gotten a new life, after 50 years! The engine had
apparently been in the rack at East Wayne Yard in Fort Wayne Indiana; it
has been painted a brilliant “Conrail blue” and lettered with Louis Dreyfus
reporting marks. NS transported it yesterday to the Louis Dreyfus biodiesel
plant in Claypool, IN, where it will be the yard switcher for that plant (due
to begin operations in October).
Regards, Joe McSpadden, Wabash, IN
Damn (excuse lang., but this is the only word to describe what is happening), why? I don’t see why NS once the home of the great long hood forwards and highhoods would lose all there good pwoer left. I HATE WIDE CABS, ONLY HIGHHOODS AND STANDARD CABS!! Mike
Yay.
The less high hoods and standard cabs - the better! Scrap em all and quick!
Pictures?
Probably one of the ex NKP SD9’s. There’s 3 in the picture(below). I believe NS 52(NKP) and 57(NKP) are still on roster, but as RC’s. Glad they are going to a good home they are historic engines to me.
Conrail paint?! Those SD9’s weren’t even ex Con. That doesn’t sound right to me.
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=194237&nseq=29
Kevin
Could of fooled me. Where?
These things might be good power by themselves but, I had one of these towing it dead up and down the road for who knows what reason. I don’t think anyone wanted to fool with it. You couldn’t even MU the thing with the other units. Send the things to some museum and be done with them!