Total Burlington Northern SD70MACs? How many did BNSF later purchase?

[poop]

Final summary SD70MAC locomotives 9400 - 9499 bought and owned by BN transferred to BNSF in the merger 9504 - 9775 bought and owned by BN transferred to BNSF in the merger, some of these were lettered BNSF before the merger ______________ Total 371 locomotives bought and owned by BN 9776 -9837 likely bought by BN but delivered to, and owned by BNSF ______________ Total 62 locomotives 9838 - 9999 bought and owned by BNSF 8800 - 8989 bought and owned by BNSF _____________ Total 352 locomotives ______________ Grand Total 786 SD70MAC locomotives bought by BN and BNSF

OK, this seems the best summary of BN/BNSF SD70MAC locomotives! Now, the most important is would it have been 371 + 62 units ordered by BN before the end of 1996 (merger)? This is 433 units. Would this be correct? Trains Magazine should have a link for this right? I may have to go with what we have! I mostly need to know the actual “SD70MAC” units BN placed for the order in 1993! I have seen “350” a few times. Is that accurate for the amount ordered between 1993 and 1996 year? Seems like “350” is right! Looks like "

[JayBee]

I am sure that BN signed an agreement with EMD to purchase 350 SD70MAC locomotives, payable in annual installments over a specified number of years. This originally included rebuilding the four SD60MAC prototypes to full production standards. At some point EMD decided that it was too expensive to rebuild the four SD60MAC prototypes to full production standard and so they kept the SD60MACs and provided four production standard SD70MACs instead, but the numbers carried by the SD60MACs were not reused.

[SD60MAC9500]

One interesting note about the first BN SD70MAC’s… IIRC the first 74, or 75 units came with Mechanical Fuel Injection. Later units were all equipped with EFI.

[Leo_Ames]

The SD60MAC’s stayed under lease at BNSF until the late 1990’s, several years after the 9500 class SD70MAC’s were built.

Since I assume that the decision you mention to not upgrade these came fairly early on during the SD70MAC program, did BN or BNSF then enter a lease for these afterwards when new SD70MAC’s were built in their place, in order to continue using them in their original form (BNSF of course was in a motive power crunch in those early years, buying new power in bulk, leasing scores of locomotives, and retiring very little of their older BN/ATSF roster)?

Or were these perhaps used by EMD as protection power to cover for SD70MAC’s down for warranty repairs and such?

[poop]

Well I am now officially going with “371” SD70MAC units ordered by Burlington Northern! Trains Magazine shows this in an article from May 1994. I will read this story soon! This should be the most accuarate! JayBee, you also mention “Total 371 locomotives bought and owned by BN.” Somehow “350” got into the mix!

This should be the “Conclusion!” Thanx everyone! [;)]

Robert Jackson

[poop]

Now I read the Trains Magazine article from May 1994 about these! In fact “350” is the official number of SD70MACs BN ordered! Earlier I just “Glossed” over some of it. Yes at the end of the article states “With 371 high-horsepower, radial truck, A.C. drive locomotives on its books, GM’s locomotive division appears to be on the comeback trail.” That sentence may not be referring to BN exactly! That’s what I “Glossed” over a few days ago!!! Now I read the whole article!!! The beginning in fact mentions “…record setting 350 unit, $675 million order…”

Well there you go folks, “350 units” is in fact correct in BN’s order from 1993! My wording for

[MaxTheRailfan123]

I think in total, the BN purchsed 434 SD70MACs before the 1995 merger. earlier this year I saw an ex BN executive paint SD70MAC in fort collins colorado. It was amazing being so close to that roaring beast.