Rio Grande SW12000 with an curious feature.

Trains Magazine General Discussion
1

I posted this question a couple of years ago on the MR forum and never really got a satisfactory answer. Recently someone on that forum brought that old thread back up and got my curiosity up again. Hopefully someone here can help me solve the mystery.

I am modeling BNSF and UP lines through Saginaw, TX. The ADM grain elevator there owns a former D&RG SW1200 (#134) for its own switching operations. This little switcher has what I can only call a protrusion or an extension of the hood on the area sloping down and back just in front of the cab. Here is a link to a pic of this locomotive with this little box.

http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/drgw/drgw134ajs.jpg

There is also a very good picture of this loco with this feature in the July '04 issue of Trains on page 60 in the article about Saginaw, TXj. I am wondering what this feature represents. Is is original on certain SW1200’s? Was it an optional feature that some railroads chose and others didn’t ? I know other D&RD SW1200’s had this, but no other SW1200’s I have seen did. For instance, here is a link to a pic of a CN SW1200 thoat clearly does not have this box.

http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/cn/cn1234ags.jpg

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for your input.

Ron

2

Lehigh Valley had dynamic brake equipment that spot causing a square thingie to be there.

Adrianspeeder

3

Let’s guess the DRGW unit has been modified to take “baggie” air filters. Doesn’t look like the LV DB hump at all.

Any other guesses?

4

That bulge doesn’t look big enough to house DB equipment. Also there is no fan on top.

5

It’s definitely not for dynamic brakes. The d/b on an SW1200 (V-12 engine) would rise up to the roof level of the cab. The d/b on LV SW8’s was much smaller since the SW8 has a V-8 engine and more space for the d/b equipment in the existing hood.

UP’s TR5 cow-calfs were equipped with dynamic brake since they were initially assigned as helpers on Cajon Pass.

6

My guess would be it has an enlarged air filter.

7

I have seen SW1200’s w/ dynamic breaks and the housing was much larger and more obtrusive than this. Also someone told me on the other forum (I cannot confirm nor deny this report) that D&RG SW1200’s were not dynamic break equipped.

Ron

8

That was me. Whatever this thing is, it was not part of the locomotive originally. Notice that it is not there in this picture.
http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/drgw/drgw134ags.jpg

9

Oooops.

Adrianspeeder

10

I want to make sure I am not being misunderstood. The reason why I posted “That was me” was so that the people people reading would know who say DRGW SW1200s did not have dynamic brakes. There is no need for oops.

11

I have seen that pic also. Whatever it is, it seems to have been added to several D&RG SW1200’s. Check out the other pics of Rio Grande SW1200s on fallenflags.org.

Ron