Has any one ever noticed that Penn Central diesel locomotives were seldom equiped with a full set of MU hoses on both the left and right sides of the front and rear pilots? Take a look at any photos of PC power and chances are you will see that, at best, a full set of hoses will be on one side of the pilot only. I have been working for both Wisconsin Central and CN for the last seven years and I have yet to see a locomotive missing its full complement of MU air hoses. Why would PC locomotives be unequiped with enough MU air hoses? Was this due to a goofy labor agreement in wich the Mechanical Department Union kept Transportation Department people from "MU"ing their own power, or was PC simply to broke to afford a full set of airhoses for all locomotives? If there are any ex-PC employees or PC experts out there that may have an answer to these questions I would like to hear from you,
Thank you for the back ground info about MU hoses however my question still remains unaswered. The PC opperated into the mid 1970’s when second generation power was already standard, why then do most PC units lack the full complement of air hoses on both sides of the pilot? Air hose swapping may be part of the answer but it does not explain why the vast majority of units are missing MU hoses, does anyone else out there have an explanation to my question?
This was common on C&NW and MILW units as well. Railroads in bad financial straits learn to get along without many basic materials and supplies. If the parts bin has no mu hoses to replace one that is damaged on a locomotive it does not get replaced. When some crew needs to mu two units they unscrew hoses from one side of the locomotive and move them to the side they will be using to make the airbrakes work. Just another dirty part of railroading.